Guardians vs. White Sox: Picks, predictions, how to watch Friday’s game

Apple TV+ will host Friday’s matchup between the Cleveland Guardians and the Chicago White Sox with first pitch set for 8:10 p.m. ET at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago, IL. Cal Quantrill (6-5, 3.75 ERA) will start for the Guardians with Lucas Giolito (6-5, 4.69 ERA) throwing for the White Sox.

Cleveland (46-44) went into the break on a three-game winning streak with victories over the Detroit Tigers as the Guardians get ready for what could be a competitive battle for the American League Central. Quantrill started the Guardians most recent game when he threw 6 scoreless innings last weekend. Cleveland has the ninth-best batting average (.249), and Jose Ramirez ranks No. 2 in the league with 75 RBIs.

Chicago (46-46) won five of its last six games heading into the break as the White Sox get ready for a four-game set in an important series in the AL Central. Giolito will make start No. 16 of the season and is coming off an outing where he allowed 1 run (0 earned) over 6.1 innings in a 2-1 win over the Guardians. The White Sox have the third-best batting average (.256), and Jose Abreu has a .304 batting average and .387 on-base percentage with a hit in the last eight games he appeared in.

Guardians vs. White Sox

Pitchers: Cal Quantrill vs. Lucas Giolito
First pitch: 8:10 p.m. ET
Live stream: Apple TV+ website, Apple TV+ app

Odds, picks & predictions

Run Line: White Sox -1.5 (+130)
Run total: 8.5
Moneyline odds: White Sox -150, Guardians +130

Moneyline pick: Guardians +130

Cleveland has the pitching advantage in this spot and with a couple of offenses that are fairly equal, you can get plenty of value with a solid return if the Guardians pull off a victory on Friday night. Quantrill is throwing the ball well this season after last year when he finished with a 2.89 ERA through 149.2 innings of work.

Player prop pick: Lucas Giolito Over 5.5 strikeouts (+120)

Taking Giolito to reach 6 K’s is worth the risk with plus odds as he has been a great strikeout thrower over the last four seasons, and he will enter with a 10.4 K/9 in 2022. The Guardians strike out just 7.0 times per game as a team, but it may take a couple games for their lineup to start seeing the ball well after a few days off.

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