White Sox vs. Royals Prediction, Computer Picks, Odds & Pitching Matchup 8/1/2022

Coming off of a 2-1 series win over the Athletics, the Chicago White Sox (51-50) are -174 favorites to pick up the win in Game 1 of a three-game series against the Kansas City Royals (40-62). The series begins at Guaranteed Rate Field, starting on Monday at 8:10 PM ET. Michael Kopech starts for Chicago while Brad Keller is Kansas City’s starter for the contest.

White Sox vs. Royals Spread and Betting Line

Computer Predictions for White Sox vs. Royals

After digging through all of the key statistics and trends for this matchup, our best bet is the Royals on the moneyline at +148. Our computer picks see the scoring going over the total of 8.5 runs.

Our computer pick: Kansas City Royals (+148) and Over (8.5)

White Sox vs. Royals Game Info

• Chicago White Sox probable starting pitcher: Michael Kopech
• Kansas City Royals probable starting pitcher: Brad Keller
• Game Day: Monday, August 1, 2022
• Game Time: 8:10 PM ET
• Location: Chicago, Illinois
• Stadium: Guaranteed Rate Field

Chicago White Sox vs Kansas City Royals Pitching Matchup

White Sox Starter Michael Kopech

• The White Sox are sending Kopech (4-6) out to make his 19th start of the season. He is 4-6 with a 3.16 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 88 1/3 innings pitched.
• His last time out came on Wednesday against the Colorado Rockies, when the right-hander threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings while allowing six hits.
• In 18 games this season, the 26-year-old has an ERA of 3.16, with 7.9 strikeouts per nine innings. Opponents are batting .196 against him.
• Kopech is trying to secure his sixth quality start of the year in this outing.
• Kopech will look to prolong a four-game streak of pitching five or more innings (he’s averaging 4.3 frames per outing).
• The opposing Royals offense has a collective .245 batting average, and is 12th in the league with 845 total hits and 26th in MLB play with 394 runs scored. It has the 24th-ranked slugging percentage (.377) and ranks 27th in home runs (82) in all of MLB.
• In five innings over one appearance against the Royals this season, Kopech has a 3.60 ERA and a 1.400 WHIP while his opponents are hitting .176.

Royals Starter Brad Keller

• The Royals will send Keller (5-11) to the mound for his 20th start this season.
• The right-hander’s last start was on Wednesday, when he tossed six innings while giving up three earned runs on six hits in a matchup with the Los Angeles Angels.
• The 27-year-old has pitched in 19 games this season with an ERA of 4.35, a 1.825 strikeout to walk ratio and a WHIP of 1.328.
• He has 10 quality starts in 19 chances this season.
• In 19 starts, Keller has pitched through or past the fifth inning 14 times. He has a season average of 5.2 frames per outing.
• The White Sox have scored 440 runs this season, which ranks 18th in MLB. They have 901 hits, fourth in baseball, with 88 home runs (26th in the league).
• The White Sox have gone 11-for-50 with a double, two home runs and four RBI in two games against the right-hander this season.
• Among qualified pitchers this year, the 27-year-old’s 4.35 ERA ranks 54th, 1.328 WHIP ranks 53rd, and 6.1 K/9 ranks 60th.

White Sox Betting Picks & Insights

• This season, the White Sox have won 34 out of the 65 games, or 52.3%, in which they’ve been favored.
• Chicago has entered 14 games this season favored by -174 or more and is 9-5 in those contests.
• The implied probability of a win from the White Sox, based on the moneyline, is 63.5%.
• Games involving Chicago have gone over the total set by sportsbooks in 47 of 106 chances this season.
• The White Sox are 47-59-0 against the spread this season.

Royals Betting Picks & Insights

• The Royals have won in 31, or 37.3%, of the 83 contests they have been named as odds-on underdogs in this year.
• This year, Kansas City has won eight of 33 games when listed as at least +148 or worse on the moneyline.
• The moneyline set for this matchup implies the Royals have a 40.3% chance of walking away with the win.
• Kansas City and their opponents have gone over in 49 of their 105 games with a total set by sportsbooks this season.
• The Royals have an against the spread record of 48-57-0 in 105 games with a line this season.

White Sox Leaders & Batting Stats

• Jose Abreu paces the White Sox with 12 home runs.
• Abreu’s home runs put him 77th in the majors, and he is 53rd in RBI.
• Abreu takes a hitting streak of four games into this matchup. During his last five outings he is hitting .263 with a double, a home run, a walk and two RBI.
• Andrew Vaughn is hitting .284 with 18 doubles, 10 home runs and 19 walks.
• Vaughn ranks 106th in home runs and 53rd in RBI among all hitters in MLB.
• Tim Anderson has a team-best batting average of .311.
• Anderson has at least one base hit in six straight games. During his last 10 outings he is hitting .300 with two doubles, two walks and three RBI.
• A.J. Pollock is hitting .236 with 16 doubles, a triple, five home runs and 18 walks.

Royals Leaders & Batting Stats

• Bobby Witt Jr. has managed a team-leading 14 home runs and has driven in 51 runs.
• Witt Jr. ranks 54th in homers and 46th in RBI among all hitters in MLB.
• Whit Merrifield is hitting .235 with 23 doubles, a triple, five home runs and 30 walks.
• Merrifield is 216th among all hitters in the majors in home runs, and 92nd in RBI.
• Hunter Dozier leads the Royals with a team-high batting average of .257.
• MJ Melendez is hitting .236 with 13 doubles, two triples, 10 home runs and 33 walks.