MLB Baseball
2009-07-30 - New York Yankees at Chicago White Sox
A Sports Betting Pick by BetOnline
Baseball: United States, MLB
Thursday, July 30th 2009, 8:11 PM ET / 01:11 GMT
MLB Betting – Pettitte aims for improvement at “The Cell”
Baseball betting lines could be stacked against Andy Pettitte and the New York Yankees when they begin a four-game series at U.S. Cellular Field against the Chicago White Sox, as starter Andy Pettitte has struggled there in the past.
New York Yankees (61-39 overall - 26-22 road)
Pettitte (8-6, 4.67) has a decent record against the White Sox in 22 career starts, going 11-9 with a 4.48 ERA. But it all changes at “The Cell”, where he is 3-7 in 11 starts with a 6.83 ERA.
The 37-year-old southpaw has had a brutal July, posting a 1-3 mark in five outings and a 5.52 ERA, and a win on Thursday would be considered an upset in your sports betting book.
Pettitte has given up at least four runs in three of his last four starts, and maybe he’s losing some of the juice in his 37-year-old arm.
Chicago White Sox (51-50 overall – 27-23 home)
Gavin Floyd (8-6, 4.24) has won five of his last six decisions, and he’s allowed three runs or less in eight of his last 10 starts.
The 26-year-old righthander has faced the Yankees three times in his career (two of which were starts), and he has a 1-0 mark against them despite a 6.75 ERA.
He’s also given up five homers in his 16 innings against the Bronx Bombers, not a good stat to hear when the Yankees are leading the majors in home runs.
The Betting Verdict
Betting services should favor the White Sox at home, where Floyd is 4-2 with a 2.70 ERA in nine outings, but early lines are going with the Yankees - which is worth opposing.
Pettitte is 10th in the American League in walks, while Floyd is right behind him in 11th place, so there could be a lot of runs scored in this one if the bats are working.
Pettitte was never a power pitcher in the vein of Randy Johnson or Roger Clemens, but hitters will jump on any type of velocity drops or ill-placed pitches.
As for Floyd, he’ll just be happy to be back at home as four of his last five starts have been away from “The Cell”, and that’s a major reason why you should make the White Sox one of your sports picks on Thursday.
The Pick :
Chicago White Sox
