The Chicago White Sox will host the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday. The White Sox lost to the Houston Astros on Sunday, falling to 31-33 on the year. The Blue Jays avoided getting swept by the New York Yankees and now sit at 38-28 entering Monday. The Jays swept the three-game series between these two a few weeks ago in Toronto and will look to extend their wild card lead this week.
The White Sox will have Lance Lynn on the hill on Monday in what will be his second start of the year. Lynn tossed 4 1/3 innings in his only outing this year, allowing three earned runs in a game his team would go on to win 9-5. Last season, the veteran righty was in the Cy Young race and pitched to a 2.69 ERA and 1.07 WHIP. While he may not be back at that level just yet, he can still provide a boost for his club that's five games out of first place in the American League Central.
The Blue Jays lineup that Lynn's up against is third in OPS and just put up 10 runs facing the Yankees, who have the best ERA in the MLB. Lynn pitched well against Toronto in 2021, but with him just coming off the injured list, it might be difficult to replicate that success in his second start of the season.
"Lance Lynn off the IL His first pitch of the season…" - Starting 9
Toronto will tab righty Jose Berrios in the opener, sporting a 4.65 ERA and 1.24 WHIP. Berrios has been up and down this year, but his strikeouts have been up recently, which is a good sign. He's fanned 26 in his last 22 innings, but the White Sox hitters have been good at making contact this season. They avoid Ks at the seventh-best rate, and they have the eighth-highest average in the league.
"Very encouraging last 3 starts for Jose Berrios: 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA, 0.64 WHIP 10.64 K/9, 1.23 BB/9, 13.7% swinging-strike rate." - Josh Goldberg
Berrios is very familiar with this lineup as he faced them 20 times as a member of the Minnesota Twins. He's 12-5 career-wise now against Chicago, with a 3.12 ERA. His one start as a Blue Jay versus the White Sox didn't go so well in 2021, but he'll have a chance to redeem himself on Monday.
Chicago White Sox vs. Toronto Blue Jays Match Details
Fixture: Toronto Blue Jays @ Chicago White Sox
Date & Time: Monday, June 20, 8:10 p.m. EDT
Venue: Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago, IL
Chicago White Sox vs. Toronto Blue Jays Betting Odds
The total has gone over in all of the last four White Sox home games and in all five of Berrios' previous starts on a grass surface. The Blue Jays have firepower up and down the lineup to take advantage of Lynn, who isn't at 100%, and a sub-par White Sox bullpen. This should help the over hit for what would be the sixth time in seven games for Toronto.
Chicago White Sox vs. Toronto Blue Jays Betting Prediction
The Blue Jays should ride the momentum from their come-from-behind win on Sunday to start this road series off on a good note. It may take Lynn a few starts to get back to his normal self, so back the visitors on Monday.
Prediction: Toronto Blue Jays ML (-120) & Over 8.5 (-130)