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Rangers vs. White Sox prediction and odds for Tuesday, June 20 (Back both starters early)

By Peter Dewey

Jun 15, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi (17) pitches in the third inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 15, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi (17) pitches in the third inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Texas Rangers and Chicago White Sox are having opposite seasons in 2023, but they do have one thing in common on Tuesday night in their matchup: strong starting pitching.

Nathan Eovaldi (9-3, 2.59 ERA) gets the ball for the Rangers against last year’s AL Cy Young Award candidate Dylan Cease (3-3, 4.31 ERA).

On the surface, Cease is having a bit of a drop off from last season, but his Fielding Independent Pitching (4.05) and strikeout numbers (91 in 79.1 innings) suggest he’s going to get back to the ace he was in 2022.

Texas is on a three-game winning streak, opening up a five-game lead in the AL West. Meanwhile, Chicago has been a massive disappointment, sitting in fourth in the AL Central.

Let’s examine the odds and make a pick for this Tuesday night matchup:

Rangers vs. White Sox odds, run line and total

Rangers vs. White Sox prediction and pick

While the Rangers are the far superior team this season, my favorite bet in this game is to trust both of the starters to keep this game low scoring early on.

So, I’m rolling with the under in the first five innings. Here’s why:

Eovaldi has been one of the best pitchers in the American League, allowing more than three earned runs in just two of his 14 starts this season. He’s also pitched at least five innings in all of those outings, setting a nice base for what to expect from him tonight.

Cease hasn’t been as dominant, but he’s coming off a 10-strikeout performance against the Los Angeles Dodgers where he allowed just two earned runs in 5.1 innings of work.

The right-hander has really turned things around after a slow start, posting a 3.00 ERA and 3.77 FIP over his last seven starts.

Finally, while Texas is an elite offense, the White Sox are not, ranking 25th in MLB in OPS this season.

With the first five total set at 4.5, there is plenty of value in taking the UNDER.

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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.