Royals Favored to Roll Against Lowly White Sox
White Sox vs Royals MLB Picks Has KC Favored Against Worst Road Team In Majors
Can Seth Lugo Pick Up Another Win Against the White Sox?
The Kansas City Royals have some work to do if they want to reach the MLB playoffs for the first time since winning the 2015 World Series.
Opening the second half of the season against the dreadful Chicago White Sox could be a good place to start. The White Sox vs Royals MLB picks have the Royals as the favorite in the series opener.
The White Sox snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Royals with a 2-1 win in April after Kansas City outscored the White Sox 26-7 in the first six meetings this season. The Royals also won the last two games against the White Sox in 2023.
The last six games between the Royals and the White Sox have finished under the total.
- The MLB betting picks have the Royals priced at -200 to win the series opener with -110 odds at -1.5 on the run line.
- The White Sox, who have only been favored on the road once this season, have +165 odds to win on Friday behind starting pitcher Chris Flexen.
The odds of winning the World Series for the Royals have moved from +12500 to +5000 since the start of the season. The White Sox are tied for the longest MLB World Series odds of +50000.
White Sox vs Royals 
Day/Time:
Location: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO
Records: White Sox 27-71/Royals 52-45
Streaming: NBC Sports Chicago, Bally Sports Kansas City
White Sox vs Royals Probable Starting Pitchers
- Friday: Chris Flexen (White Sox); Michael Wacha (Royals)
- Saturday: Jonathan Cannon (White Sox); Brady Singer (Royals)
- Sunday: Drew Thorpe (White Sox); Seth Lugo (Royals)
Young Pitchers Could Be Under-the-Radar Prop Options
It would be quite the understatement to suggest that this has been a nightmare of an MLB season for the White Sox with Chicago on pace for 117 losses.
It has not been all bad news. Garret Crochet leads the majors in the strikeouts and the players selected in the second and third rounds in the 2022 MLB Draft have had a chance to make an impact.
Drew Thorpe, selected by the New York Yankees in the second round, was part of the package that the Yankees used to acquire All-Star outfielder Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres. A few months later, the Padres shipped Thorpe to the White Sox in the Dylan Cease trade.
Thorpe, who is set to pitch in the series finale, is 3-0 with an ERA of 1.85 over his last four MLB games.
Third-round pick Jonathan Cannon picked up his first MLB win last month as he fell (one out) short of a shutout against the Houston Astros. He has a 3.75 ERA in July.
When looking at the White Sox vs Royals MLB picks, keep in mind that four of the last five games went under the total for the White Sox.
Royals Dialing Long Distance
Kansas City’s .223 team batting average in seven games against the White Sox is nothing to write home about. However, the Royals do have nine doubles and eight home runs in those games.
MJ Melendez has three of those home runs to go with a team-best seven RBIs. However, he recently went on the MLB injured list with a tender left ankle.
Hunter Renfroe and Nelson Velazquez have combined for five extra-base hits so that is something to keep in mind as potential MLB player prop options.
Seth Lugo goes after his third win against the White Sox this season as he has allowed one earned run in 13.2 innings against the White Sox. That could factor into the White Sox vs Royals MLB picks.
It is worth noting that when looking at the MLB scores and odds, 14 of Kansas City’s last 20 games went under the total.
Who’s Hot
- Kris Bubic, Kansas City Royals P: Bubic has given up one hit in five strikeouts in four innings in three games since making his 2024 season debut.
- Luis Robert Jr., Chicago White Sox OF: Robert is hitting .318 with four extra-base hits and nine RBIs over his last 12 games.
- Steven Wilson, Chicago White Sox P: Wilson hasn’t allowed an earned run in his last four outings with one hit allowed and six strikeouts in 3.2 innings of work.
- Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals SS: Witt is hitting .438 with four home runs, 12 runs, and 10 RBIs over his last 12 games.
Who’s Not
- Justin Anderson, Chicago White Sox P: Anderson has allowed seven hits and seven runs in 6.1 innings over his last six appearances.
- Mike Massey, Kansas City Royals 2B: Massey is 5-for-19 with no extra-base hits in his last six games.
- Gavin Sheets, Chicago White Sox OF: Sheets is 2-for-20 with four strikeouts in his last six games.
- Chris Stratton, Kansas City Royals P: Stratton has surrendered seven hits and four runs with five walks allowed over his last 4.1 innings.
White Sox vs Royals Injury Update
Pitchers Mike Clevinger, Jimmy Lambert, Matt Foster, and Dominic Leone are out for the White Sox.
Pitchers Dan Altavilla and Josh Taylor join Melendez on the injured list.
White Sox vs Royals Betting Preview
The Royals have won eight of the last nine home games against the White Sox. The Royals lead the American League with 31 home wins while the White Sox are last in the majors with just 10 wins on the road.
Eight of Kansas City’s last 11 home games went under the total. The total is currently at 8.5 for Friday’s series opener.
- The Royals are 25-12 as a favorite and they have covered in 28 of 49 home games.
- The White Sox have seen 25 of 47 road games land over the total.
The Royals have covered in 14 of 25 games as the home favorite with the White Sox 20-26 against the run line as a road underdog.
The White Sox have lost 15 of its last 20 road games. At their current pace, Chicago would finish 17-64 on the road this season.
Five of the last seven games that the White Sox played against MLB American League teams went over the total.
The Royals lost their last two games before the MLB All-Star break. However, they are facing the team with the worst slugging percentage on the road.
For MLB futures, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
