Baseball Betting Odds: White Sox Set for Home Opener vs 0-5 Rays

Thursday, April 07, 2011

by Bodog Sportsbook

Baseball Betting Odds: White Sox Set for Home Opener vs 0-5 Rays - Paul Konerko

Many baseball betting experts expected the reigning AL East champion Tampa Bay Rays to slip back some this season after cutting the payroll nearly 50 percent and losing guys like Carl Crawford, Matt Garza and Rafael Soriano. But the Rays were still supposed to be good yet they enter Thursday afternoon’s game in Chicago as one of three winless teams (Boston, Houston) and already four games out of the division lead. The White Sox are -120 favorites on Bodog Sportsbook’s MLB betting odds for their home opener.

White Sox fans won’t get a chance to boo Manny Ramirez today. He was acquired by Chicago late last season but did pretty much nothing in his short tenure. Ramirez was a surprise signing by Tampa Bay late this offseason but has been struggling, going 1-for-17 with one RBI after hitting .311 with 10 RBIs in spring training. He was scratched from Wednesday’s game (he did pinch-hit in the eighth and popped out) and will sit out today for personal reasons.

The Chicago White Sox (3-2) have been one of the hottest offenses in the early going. They are third in baseball in runs with 40 and third in team average at .314. They again will be without slugger Adam Dunn, who is likely out the rest of the weekend after undergoing an emergency appendectomy after Tuesday’s game. Chicago staged an epic comeback on Wednesday in Kansas City, scoring four ninth-inning runs with two outs off All-Star closer Joakim Soria before winning 10-7 in 12 innings. White Sox outfielder Carlos Quentin is raking, hitting .500 with five doubles, two home runs, 10 RBIs and only one strikeout so far. And Paul Konerko is just the second player in Sox history to have at least one RBI in each of the first five games.

The Tampa Bay Rays offense, without an injured Evan Longoria, has been scuffling big time. In four of the five games so far, the Rays have been held to one run and exactly four hits. After their third-ever winless homestand, the Rays are batting .136 and have 21 hits and just seven runs. They have yet to lead a game. The Rays are the first reigning division champion to start a season 0-5 since the 1996 Red Sox. And now that have to face former Tampa Bay pitcher Edwin Jackson (1-0, 3.00), who no-hit the Rays last June 25 while pitching for Arizona. Tampa Bay starts David Price (0-1, 5-14), last year’s AL Cy Young runner-up. Against the White Sox, the 25-year-old left-hander was 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA in 12 innings in 2010.

Get the best Rays-White Sox Betting Odds at Bodog Sportsbook!

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adam dunn - baseball betting - carl crawford - carlos quentin - chicago white sox - cy young - david price - edwin jackson - evan longoria - joakim soria