Published May 23, 9:21am ET by
Demilade Adelekun - Betting Preview Analyst and Sports Writer
Last updated May 23, 9:21am ET
Updated May 23, 9:21am ET
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| San Francisco Giants | -123 |
| Chicago White Sox | +102 |
Bryan Hudson is a relief pitcher being used in an opener role, and the results have been historically clean. His ERA is 1.57, his FIP is 2.85, and he has gone 18 consecutive appearances without allowing a run. That streak covers 11.2 innings with 15 strikeouts. He has moved through the Cubs system, Milwaukee's bullpen, and landed in Chicago. He has not been throwing it past everyone; he has been generating weak contact and letting the White Sox defense do its job.
Munetaka Murakami leads Chicago with 15 home runs and has been the most dangerous bat in a lineup that carries a .724 OPS. Chase Meidroth is hitting .281 and has been on base consistently at the top of the order. The White Sox are 7-3 in their last ten and have been one of the more surprising teams in the AL.
San Francisco gave Adrian Houser a two-year, $22 million deal based on a 3.31 ERA split between the White Sox and Rays last season. In 2026, he is 2-4 with a 5.25 ERA, a 5.55 FIP, and a 1.48 WHIP across nine starts. Both numbers are bad. The FIP confirms the ERA is not a product of bad sequencing: hitters have been generating hard contact against him, and the box scores have reflected it consistently. Nine starts is enough of a sample to call it a real problem.
San Francisco's lineup is carrying a .666 OPS and has won three of its last ten. Luis Arraez is hitting .319 and is the one legitimate All-Star candidate in the order. Casey Schmitt has eight home runs and 21 RBI and has been productive in the middle. Outside of those two the lineup has not been threatening, and against a pitcher running a streak like Hudson's tonight they will need those individual contributors to carry an outsized load.
Hudson has not allowed a run in 18 straight appearances and carries a 2.85 FIP that backs up the streak. The White Sox have the lineup edge and the form edge. San Francisco is 3-7 in their last ten behind a pitcher who has not pitched like the contract suggests he should.
Getting Chicago at plus money in this spot is not complicated. The team with the better pitcher, the better lineup, and the better recent record is the underdog. Take the White Sox.
Pick: Chicago White Sox +102
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Pick
Chicago White Sox +102
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