Guardians vs. White Sox (July 24): Cease, Chicago look for series split at home

In Sunday’s series finale between the Cleveland Guardians and Chicago White Sox, two of the top arms in MLB match up at Guaranteed Rate Field.

The Guardians will look to lock up a series win with 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber, who has pitched better than his record might indicate.

Cleveland’s next two series are on the road against the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays, two teams who are also in the AL wild-card hunt, so a series win in Chicago would be a good way to go into those two pivotal series.

The White Sox, meanwhile, will turn to Dylan Cease to try to secure a series split after losing on Friday and splitting yesterday’s doubleheader.

Cleveland Guardians vs. Chicago White Sox Matchup Information and Betting Odds

Matchup Information

• Matchup: Cleveland Guardians (48-45, 23-26 away, 2nd in the AL Central) vs. Chicago White Sox (47-48, 20-27 home, 3rd in the AL Central)
• Venue & Location: Guaranteed Rate Field (Chicago, Illinois)
• Date: Sunday, July 24, 2022
• Game Time: 2:10 p.m. Eastern Time (1:10 p.m. local time)
• TV Broadcast/Streaming Info: Bally Sports Great Lakes (Guardians), NBC Sports Chicago (White Sox), MLB Extra Innings/MLB Network (subscription packages)

Guardians vs. White Sox Pitching Matchup

• Cleveland Guardians: Shane Bieber (2022: 17 starts, 4-5, 3.24 ERA)
• Chicago White Sox: Dylan Cease (2022: 19 starts, 9-4, 2.15 ERA)

Guardians vs. White Sox Odds

Game odds are via BetOnline. This article may also feature odds from other legal online sportsbooks that we have reviewed and recommend.

Moneyline

• Cleveland Guardians +116
• Chicago White Sox -134

Over/Under

• Over 7.5 (-110)
• Under 7.5 (-110)

Run Line

• Cleveland Guardians +1.5 (-192)
• Chicago White Sox -1.5 (+158)

Will Pitching or Offense Take the Sunday Spotlight in Chicago?

With two top-tier talents on the mound in this matchup, it would be easy to lean towards expecting a low-scoring game at Guaranteed Rate Field.

After all, Cease is 5-1 with a 0.65 ERA in his last seven starts. In his last start before the All-Star break, he allowed just one hit and two walks and struck out eight in seven shutout innings in Chicago’s 11-0 win against the Minnesota Twins last Sunday.

And Bieber is coming off of his longest outing of the season, which came in Cleveland against this very same team a dozen days ago.

Bieber tossed a complete and allowed just one run and three hits and struck out seven (with no walks) in a 4-1 win over the White Sox. In the start prior, he had allowed five runs, seven hits, and three walks in 5.2 innings in an 8-2 loss to Detroit on July 6.

However, there have been eight or more runs in Chicago’s last seven games. For the season, there have been eight or more runs in 26 of 40 games (65 percent) of their games against divisional foes.

And prior to his complete game against the White Sox, Bieber had allowed three or more runs in five consecutive starts. Also, there have been more eight or more runs scored in 25 of Cleveland’s 45 games this season against AL Central foes.

Cleveland Guardians vs. Chicago White Sox Prediction and Best Bets

Guardians vs. White Sox Prediction: White Sox to win

Guardians vs. White Sox Best Bets: White Sox ML (in the -130 range at BetOnline & others) & White Sox team total over 3.5 runs (-120 at Bovada Sportsbook & BetMGM)

The White Sox continue to be up and down and up and down and up and down, but with how well Cease has been pitching recently, I really like the White Sox to pick up a series split.

But instead of backing the over for the game, I think the better value is with backing the White Sox to hit the over with their team total. That accounts for if Cease shuts down the Guardians and the White Sox won 5-1 or 6-1, for example.

Going for the over 3.5 means you won’t get as good of a number the over, but it means you will be set if the White Sox score exactly four runs.

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