The Kansas City Royals will look to solidify their hold of the first place in the American League wild card race when they face the Chicago White Sox tonight. The White Sox have struggled mightily this season but will look to end their year on a high especially with club legend Paul Konerko playing his final home series after an illustrious 18-year career in the majors.
Read on for an in-depth preview of this match and while you’re at it you can check the Oakland vs. Texas game preview as the MLB postseason draws ever closer.
[sc:MLBArticles ]Kansas City Royals vs. Chicago White Sox Betting Preview and Prediction
Where: U.S. Cellular Field, Chicago
When: September 25, 2014, 8:10 PM ET
Line: Kansas City Royals (-136) at Chicago White Sox (+126); total: 7.0 – view all MLB lines
What’s at Stake
[sc:MLB240banner ]Only four games remain for the Royals who trail the Tigers by two games in the AL Central. The Royals can be celebrating tonight though, as they can clinch their first ever playoff berth since 1985 with a win tonight coupled with a Seattle loss against Toronto.
Betting on the Kansas City Royals
Even though they failed to complete a series sweep against the Cleveland Indians, losing 6-4 on Wednesday night, the Kansas City Royals will be heading into their next series with confidence sky-high knowing that they are on the verge of nabbing their first postseason appearance in 29 years.
Their magic number for the wild card is now down to two after the Mariners slumped to another defeat to the Blue Jays last night. They will next face the Chicago White Sox with the knowledge that a combination of a Seattle defeat today and a win for them tonight is enough to send them back to the playoffs for the first time since 1985.
They will need to take care of their own business though, with James Shields (14-8, 3.18 ERA) on the mound later.
Shields is 1-1 with an ERA of 2.67 in his four starts against the White Sox this year. In his last start against the White Sox, he gave up three runs and 10 hits while striking out six in seven innings of action in a tight 4-3 victory.
His record at U.S. Cellular Field is even more impressive, posting a 3-1 record with a 1.83 ERA in his last six starts there.
He is coming off his first defeat in five games, though, losing 3-2 to the Detroit Tigers last Saturday. He allowed three runs on six hits in 6.2 innings of action as he lost for the first time since August 25th.
He will be looking to get more offensive production from the Royals tonight and Eric Hosmer might be the man to do just that. The first baseman is 10 for 24 with five doubles in his last six games. The only problem is he is 3 for 28 with seven strikeouts against Jose Quintana who is the scheduled starter for the White Sox tonight.
The Royals are 5-5 in their last 10 road games.
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Betting on the Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox may already be out of the running for the postseason but fans will surely flock to U.S. Cellular Field tonight as they will bid farewell to one of the franchise’s all-time greats.
Paul Konerko, part of the White Sox team that claimed the World Series back in 2005, will finally retire after 18 seasons in the majors. Konerko, who has 439 homers in his career, will be best remembered for his grand slam in Game 2 of the World Series against the Houston Astros that swung the series in Chicago’s favor.
Unfortunately, time has caught on with the 38-year-old. He has struggled recently, hitting only 6 for 49 with one RBI and 16 strikeouts in his last 18 games.
Looking to pick up the slack is starting pitcher Jose Quintana (9-10, 3.22 ERA) who has been tremendous for the White Sox in his last four starts. He is 3-0 with an ERA of 1.65 in his last four assignments.
Quite concerning though is his recent form against the Royals. He is 0-2 with a 4.43 ERA in his three starts against Kansas City this season. In his last outing against the Royals, however, he allowed just one run on seven hits in seven innings of action as he settled for the no-decision in a 2-1 loss.
Interestingly, the opposing pitcher in that game was James Shields, the scheduled starter for the Royals tonight. Alexei Ramirez will be licking his chops with his matchup with Shields as he is 23-for-55 (.418) lifetime against the 32-year-old. This season, he is hitting 5-of-13 (.384) against the right-hander.
The White Sox are 7-3 in their last 10 home games.
Writer’s Prediction
The Royals (-136) win to keep in step with the Tigers in the AL Central race.
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