TOM STRYKER’S FREE BASEBALL SELECTION THURSDAY, AUGUST 26TH
#965 CHICAGO with Rodon (-110) over Toronto with Ryu at 3:07 PM EST
Off yesterday’s 3-1 blemish to the Blue Jays and with losses in five of their last seven games, the White Sox will rally the troops and swipe this important victory. Chicago’s lead rests at 9.0-games over Cleveland right now in the AL Central and manager Tony La Russa would like to push that margin to double-digits with a win here.
Southpaw Carlos Rodon will return to the bump for the Pale Hose. Out with shoulder fatigue since August 8th, No. 55 has been a force for the ChiSox this season allowing only 29 earned runs and 75 hits in 109.2 innings of work. Rodon assembled a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 160-30 and sports a solid 9-5 mark with an elite 2.38 ERA. The road has been kind to Carlos too. On foreign soil, Rodon has been touched for only 15 earned runs and 46 hits through 61.0 frames. That’s good enough for a 6-2 tally with a strong 2.21 ERA.
Left-hander Hyun Jin Ryu will counter for the home team. In four August starts against the Tigers, M’s, Red Sox, and Indians, No. 99 was scratched for 13 earned runs and 25 hits in 24.0 innings. Ryu fanned 17 and walked four on his way to a 2-1 tally with a 4.88 ERA. Back on June 10th, Hyun Jin faced the Pale Hose in the Windy City and was torched for three earned runs and five hits in 6.0 frames. Ryu whiffed three, walked one, served up one home run, and was tagged with the loss in the Sox’s 5-2 victory.
There are a number of reliable trends that support this investment. Chicago has won five of its last seven after scoring two runs or less in its previous contest and 37 of its last 52 when matched up against a left-handed starter. On the other side of the field, Toronto has slipped in four straight when coming off a win and eight of its last 12 overall.
With shortstop Tim Anderson back in the lineup, the Sox will salvage a split of this four-game series with a huge win here. Take Chicago with Rodon. Thanks and best of luck, Tom.
TOM’S 20-9 MLB GRAND SLAM ELITE BEST BET
Stryker scooped up another nice payday on the Indians run-line last night and, on a sizzling 8-0 run in his last eight MLB selections, he heads back to the diamond armed with one more power play that will deliver. Solid pitching supports this money-maker along with one strong 20-9 trend. Grab Tom’s MLB Grand Slam Elite Best Bet for $30.