Opening Day is still two days away but that isn’t stopping OddsShopper’s Premium betting tool from finding the best values on the opening MLB odds board. The Chicago White Sox have the tall task of starting the year off in Houston against the Astros. And with SP Framber Valdez on the mound for the Astros and Dylan Cease taking the bump for the Sox the run total of 7.5 may not be low enough. According to the OddsShopper model, bettors should take a closer look at this White Sox-Astros bet.
Those looking for the sharpest MLB odds and expert analysis throughout the season should take advantage of OddsShopper Premium with a 7-day free trial. The tool tracks every betting market, using the sharpest sportsbooks to find the highest expected value bets out there.
Best MLB Bets: White Sox-Astros Run Total Too Low
The White Sox and the Astros went in completely different directions over the last couple months of the 2022 MLB season. The White Sox entered last year expecting to contend for the Central Division title but failed to accomplish that goal after a second-half swoon. Manager Tony La Russa was fired following the collapse, being replaced by Pedro Grifol.
On the other hand, the Astros won consistently through the entire campaign, ending up with a World Series victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. They’ll be without the services of Justin Verlander who left for the New York Mets, as well as Yuli Gurriel who is now playing for the Miami Marlins. They’ve added former White Sox star Jose Abreu to soften the blow, and he’ll join a lineup that is mostly in tack from last year’s World Series run.
Both team’s have solid pieces in their lineups, but their biggest strength is at the front end of their rotations. White Sox ace Dylan Cease will start on Thursday against Framber Valdez. Cease finished runner up for last year’s AL Cy Young Award, while Valdez came in fifth in the voting.
The presence of those two aces is leading to a run total of 7.5. However, the OddsShopper MLB betting model is still identifying value on the under at FanDuel Sportsbook. The price of -110 is simply too cheap, giving the bet a 2% long-term ROI. That’s not a huge degree of edge, and the 53% win odds bring in a great deal of variance. Nevertheless, it is still worth a small bet of around 1-1.5% of your bankroll to capture the value heading into the White Sox-Astros’ first game.
Best MLB Opening Day Bet: White Sox-Astros under 7.5 Runs (-110) at FanDuel.
