Houston Astros vs Chi. White Sox White Sox Picks and Predictions August 17th 2024

From Minute Maid Park in Houston, we have the White Sox and Astros facing off in an AL matchup. First pitch for this one is set for 7:10 PM ET, and the Astros are the heavy favorite on the money line, with their odds sitting at -384. The White Sox are +305 on the money line, and they are 5th in the AL Central with a record of 30-93.

Chris Flexen is starting for the White Sox, while the Astros are going with Hunter Brown. Currently, the over/under line is at 8 runs, and the Astros are leading the AL West, with a record of 65-56.

Chicago vs. Houston Key Information

Chris Flexen gets the start for the White Sox today as he faces the Astros on the road. So far this season, he has made 23 starts and has a record of 2-11 with a 5.34 ERA. Flexen’s WHIP for the season is currently 1.50. In his 25 appearances, he has turned in seven quality starts. Looking back at his most recent outing, Flexen finished with a no-decision vs. the Cubs, going four innings and not giving up a run. Before that, he had given up at least two earned runs in three straight starts. Opponents are batting .269 off Flexen this year.

Chicago’s offense has been one of the worst in the league this season, as they are last in the league in runs scored and team on-base percentage. As a team, they are batting just .220 and have an on-base percentage of only .279. The White Sox are also near the bottom of the league in home runs and slugging percentage.

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Andrew Vaughn and Luis Robert Jr. are tied for the team lead in home runs, but both players are batting just .241 and .212, respectively. Andrew Benintendi has been hot of late, going 9/31 in his last seven games with three homers. This has improved his season batting average to .217.

Hunter Brown will be looking to build off his last outing, where he picked up the win vs. the Red Sox. In that start, he went 5 1/3 innings and gave up two earned runs. Looking at his overall numbers, Brown has made 23 starts and is 10-7 with a 3.96 ERA. Opponents are batting .250 off the right-hander this season. Brown has turned in 13 quality starts and is averaging 9.82 strikeouts per nine innings. For the year, he has allowed 15 homers and is walking 3.39 batters per nine innings.

Over the past nine games, Alex Bregman has been on fire for the Astros, going 16/41 with five home runs and eight RBIs. During this stretch, he has scored 12 runs. Yordan Alvarez has also been swinging a hot bat of late, going 12/35 with five homers and 10 RBIs in his last 10 games. Alvarez is currently 12th in the league with 25 homers and is batting .304 for the season.

As a team, the Astros are 4th in batting average and are averaging 4.6 runs per game. They are also one of the league’s top home run hitting teams, coming in at 11th in the league. Currently, they have three players with at least 19 homers, led by Alvarez’s 25.

Our lean for an over/under pick in this White Sox vs. Astros matchup is to take the over. As for a straight-up pick, we like the Astros to come out on top. Houston’s offense has the 3rd highest team hits projection and 4th highest team runs projection, and Astros starter Hunter Brown has the 5th best innings pitched projection among today’s starters.

Astros Aim to Rebound Against White Sox After Streak Ends

The Houston Astros will hope to return quickly on Saturday after their eight-game series of wins was snapped by the Chicago White Sox in a 5-4 misfortune on Friday. As the two groups proceed with their three-game end of the week series in Houston, the White Sox are expecting to get their most memorable series win since June, while the Astros mean to begin another streak and keep up with their situation in the American League standings.

White Sox Snap Astros’ Winning Streak

The White Sox figured out how to defeat the Astros in the series opener, because of a solid presentation from their expert, Garrett Knit. Notwithstanding being on a pitch count, Knit was prevailing, striking out nine players north of four innings of one-run ball. This outing was crucial for the White Sox, who have battled this season and are searching for any energy they can assemble.

“We’re trying to keep him on a set limit and protect him as much as we can, especially moving forward,” White Sox interim manager Grady Sizemore said, referring to Crochet, whose 124 2/3 innings this season are more than double his previous major league high.

Flexen’s Struggles Continue

The White Sox will send right-hander Chris Flexen to the mound on Saturday. Flexen (2-11, 5.34 ERA) has had a rough season, particularly in his last 17 starts, where he has gone 0-8 with a 5.79 ERA. The White Sox have lost all 17 of those games, putting additional pressure on Flexen to deliver a strong performance. His last victory came on May 8 against the Tampa Bay Rays, and since then, Flexen has struggled to find consistency on the mound.

Flexen has a career 1-6 record with a 4.37 ERA in 10 starts against the Astros. In his only appearance against Houston this year, he allowed one run over six innings in a 5-3 loss. The White Sox will need Flexen to find some of his early-season form if they hope to clinch the series against a strong Astros lineup.

Brown Leads the Charge for the Astros

The Astros will counter with right-hander Tracker Brown, who has been a consistent presence in their pivot this season. Brown (10-7, 3.96 ERA) is falling off a strong excursion against the Boston Red Sox, where he allowed two sudden spikes in demand for five hits north of 5 1/3 innings, striking out nine in a 10-2 triumph. Brown has been solid for the Astros, logging no less than six innings in 13 of his last 15 beginnings.

Brown has a good track record against the White Sox, with a 2-0 record and a 3.09 ERA in two career starts against them. He earned the win in his last start against Chicago on June 19, allowing just one run over six innings. The Astros will be counting on Brown to help them rebound from Friday’s loss and get back on the winning track.

Astros’ Outfield Woes

One of the challenges the Astros have faced recently is the absence of All-Star right fielder Kyle Tucker, who has missed 60 consecutive games due to a right shin contusion. The Astros have been rotating their outfielders in Tucker’s absence, but they have struggled to find consistent offensive production from the replacements.

On Friday, Jake Meyers furnished a flash with a two-run homer in the 6th inning that brought the Astros inside one run. Be that as it may, Meyers completed the game 1-for-4 with two strikeouts, and different outfielders like Chas McCormick have battled powerfully. McCormick, who went 0-for-2 on Friday and is batting only .196 on the season, is amidst a critical rut, going 2-for-27 over his beyond 13 games.

“We need to get him going,” Astros manager Joe Espada said of McCormick. “He’s trying to make some changes to his swing, trying to work on his approach. He needs to build his confidence because he’s getting good pitches to hit. He just hasn’t been able to get that big hit to get himself going.”

Conclusion: Astros Look to Regain Momentum

As the Astros get ready for Saturday’s down, they’ll be focusing on Tracker Brown to convey areas of strength for an and assist the group with quickly returning from Friday’s misfortune. The White Sox, then again, will mean to capitalize on their new achievement and secure their first series win in quite a while. With Chris Flexen’s battles on the hill and the Astros’ outfielders looking for consistency, Saturday’s matchup will be a pivotal game for the two groups as they explore the last option part of the time.