Chisox vs Bosox
MLB Betting Preview
7/16/12
Chicago White Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis will make his return to Fenway Park in Boston on Monday as his new team visits his former team the Red Sox to open a Four-Game series. The White Sox (49-39) remain atop the American League Central by 3.5 Games over the second-place Detroit Tigers while Boston (45-44) trails the AL East-leading New York Yankees by 9.5 Games.
Youkilis is batting .295 with Chicago in 16 Games, hitting three home runs with 15 RBI after struggling with the Red Sox earlier this season. He had Four homers and 14 RBI in 42 Games with Boston and was questioned by manager Bobby Valentine, who did not think his heart and soul was in the Game anymore. Valentine recently blamed Youkilis for never getting over those comments and has not been surprised that he has performed better since being traded to the White Sox.
Chicago improved to 25-17 on the road this season by taking two of three against the Kansas City Royals over the weekend, capped by a 2-1 victory on Sunday. Only the Yankees have been better away from home in the AL, and the White Sox swept a three-Game set at Fenway last year.
The Red Sox are just 22-24 at home this year but took two of three from the Tampa Bay Rays on the road over the weekend. They have won five of six against Chicago overall — all on the road — and welcomed outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury and Youkilis’ replacement Will Middlebrooks back to the lineup last Friday after they each missed time due to injuries, and both responded in a 7-3 win on Sunday with three hits apiece.
Boston will send veteran starting pitcher Aaron Cook (2-2, 4.37 ERA) to the hill in the series opener, and he will try to win for the third time in Four outings. Cook is 2-1 in his past three starts with a solid 2.25 ERA after losing his Red Sox debut against the Baltimore Orioles May 5. The UNDER has cashed in each of his past two trips to the mound.
The White Sox will counter with young Dylan Axelrod (1-2, 6.16), who is 0-1 in his last three starts with a 7.47 ERA. Axelrod pitched two innings of hitless relief against the Royals on Friday in a wild 14-inning affair and got credit for his first victory of the season as his team won, 9-8. In his last road start at New York on June 28, he walked away with a no-decision after allowing two runs and six hits in seven innings of an eventual 4-3 win.