Peter Lewis
• New York Yankees vs. Chicago White Sox
• Wednesday, August 9 at 8:10 PM ET
• Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago, Illinois
In what has been an inconsistent season for the New York Yankees, it’s time for the Bronx Bombers to take things to the next level. Over the weekend, the Yankees showcased that they have what it takes to hang close with the Houston Astros, splitting their four-game series. Now, though, New York must take advantage of games against weaker opponents to give themselves a shot to make the playoffs. With that said, the Yankees have no excuses against the White Sox on Wednesday night.
It has been a year to forget for the White Sox, as they’re currently 45-68 on the season. The embarrassment for Chicago reached new heights last week when Tim Anderson got into a fight with Jose Ramirez of the Cleveland Indians and he was dropped with a vicious right hand. Now, the White Sox have been getting trolled left and right across the country, which isn’t giving their fans much confidence ahead of the series with NY.
| Yankees vs. White Sox odds |  |  |  |  |
| Yankees to win | -115 | -115 | -115 | -115 |
| White Sox to win | +125 | +125 | +125 | +125 |
| Over to hit | -110 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Under to hit | -110 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
The Yankees are starting to get healthy, which is great news for them. Reigning AL MVP Aaron Judge is back in the lineup after missing significant time with his toe injury. Not only that, but Carlos Rodon is back on the bump as well. Rodon was a massive signing from the offseason, but he has missed the majority of the campaign due to a back issue. Having both of these guys back on the field is massive for manager Aaron Boone.
According to the best-rated sportsbooks, which includes the reliable Bovada review, the Yankees hold -115 MLB betting odds to post a win against Chicago on Wednesday night. The White Sox have an upset on their mind, holding +125 MLB betting odds. On paper, this should be an easy win for New York, but Chicago will hope to stun the world. We don’t think that will happen, though. We’re going with the Yankees as our pick.
Victory Views. #RepBX pic.twitter.com/O3WipVcRRQ
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) August 5, 2023
The over should hit between the Yankees and White Sox
Leading up to the action, there’s no doubt in our mind that the over should hit between the Yankees and White Sox. While the Yankees are yet to announce who their starting pitcher will be for this tilt, the White Sox will be giving the ball to Mike Clevinger. Clevinger is currently 4-5 on the year, with a 3.72 ERA. While his ERA isn’t overly high, you can’t argue with the fact that he’s been quite inconsistent this campaign.
That’s not ideal for a pitcher when he has to take on the Yankees. Not only is Aaron Judge a stud with the bat in his hands, but fellow slugger Giancarlo Stanton has been fantastic over the past week. Stanton has recorded some frustrating at-bats for this team, but he was on fire against the Astros. Last week, we saw Stanton deliver with some fantastic homers for this club and more could be on the way vs. Chicago. It would be great to see.
Giancarlo Stanton off Tyler Wells
🔥 115.8 mph, 20°
Home Run 💣 (.946 xBA)#RepBX pic.twitter.com/yphTZP1O7f— 💥MLB Barrels 💥 (@mlb_barrels) July 30, 2023
If Judge and Stanton can catch fire in the coming days, then it will be bad news for Clevinger. As for Chicago, they feature plenty of talent on offense as well. The Yankees feature big names in their starting rotation, but things have been pretty inconsistent for them as well. Whoever Boone decides to send out on the bump to take on Chicago, it will be imperative for them to bring their best stuff.
According to the oddsmakers, the over/under has been set at 6.5 runs for this matchup. Again, the Yankees haven’t decided who will get the start, but there’s plenty of optimism from both fanbases that a lot of runs will be scored in this one. Clevinger will surely have a tough time trying to contain the Yankee hitters too. With all of that said, we’re going with the over as our pick for this battle.
The Yankees are at risk of missing the postseason this fall
With the way the 2023 campaign has gone, the Yankees are at risk of missing the postseason this fall. This is not what anyone was expecting at this point in the season, but New York hasn’t lived up to expectations and plenty of people are calling for Boone to get fired. Not only that, but they were furious with Brian Cashman for not being aggressive during the MLB trade deadline. Cashman has lost plenty of support and things will only get worse for him if this team doesn’t make the playoffs.
Judge, Stanton and others are hoping to prevent that from happening. New York must play well against Chicago this week to send a message. Right now, New York holds +225 odds to sneak into the playoffs, but a hot stretch in the coming weeks can certainly boost those numbers. We’ll see if they’ll be able to take care of business against the White Sox. It will be great to see it happen and it will give the supporters plenty of optimism too.
