The Chicago White Sox (57-51) begin a three-game series tonight at Tropicana Field against the Tampa Bay Rays (64-44) in a matchup of division leaders. The Sox enter the weekend atop the AL Central, holding a two-game lead over Cleveland, while the Rays sit in first place in the AL East, 3½ games ahead of the Yankees.
The White Sox are coming off a series split with the Yankees following yesterday’s second straight win in extra innings. After winning 6-5 in 12 innings Wednesday, Chicago claimed a 2-1 win yesterday in 11 innings. Tristan Peters drew a bases-loaded walk to plate the winning run, but the star of the afternoon was Sean Burke, who delivered one of the best starts of his season. Burke worked six scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and two walks while striking out 10 Yankees hitters. Ryan Weathers actually threw seven shutout innings for New York, but the bullpen failed again allowing single runs in the tenth and eleventh.
The Rays also enter the weekend on a high note after completing a series victory over Texas. Tampa Bay secured a 3-2 victory over the Rangers yesterday to make it two straight and eight of their last ten. The Rays’ pitching was elite, allowing a total of two runs over the final two games of the series. Tampa’s opponents have scored but six runs over the last five games. All that good news, however, is slightly overshadowed by the departure of Rays’ starter Shane McClanahan in the fourth inning yesterday due to left mid-back tightness.
Tonight, Chicago will send veteran right-hander Erick Fedde (5-6, 4.25 ERA) to the mound. His results have been a mixed bag of late for the Sox. Fedde has allowed five runs over his last three starts but he failed to reach the fifth inning in two of the three starts and got one out in the fifth in the other. Tampa Bay counters with one of its most reliable starters in Nick Martinez (10-2, 2.45 ERA). Martinez has been outstanding recently. Over his last three starts Martinez has given up three earned runs over 17.1 innings.
Lets dive further into tonight’s game and find a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch first pitch, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long.
Game Details and How to Watch: White Sox vs. Rays
- Date: Friday, July 31, 2026
- Time: 7:10PM EST
- Site: Tropicana Field
- City: St. Petersburg, FL
- Network/Streaming: MLB.TV, Prime Video, CSN, Rays.TV
Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out.
The Latest Odds: White Sox vs. Rays
The latest odds as of Friday courtesy of DraftKings:
- Moneyline: Chicago White Sox (+118), Tampa Bay Rays (-142)
- Spread: White Sox +1.5 (-182), Rays -1.5 (+150)
- Total: 8.5 runs
Probable Starting Pitchers – White Sox vs. Rays for July 31
- White Sox: Erick Fedde
Season Totals: 97.1 IP, 5-6, 4.25 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 68K, 36 BB - Rays: Nick Martinez
Season Totals: 117.1 IP, 10-2, 2.45 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 67K, 20 BB
Who’s Hot? Who’s Not! White Sox vs. Rays
- Junior Caminero has not homered in 13 games
- Andrew Benintendi is 3-7 including 1 HR in his career against Nick Martinez
- Yandy Diaz is 6-31 over his last 8 games
- Cedric Mullins was 1-7 in the series against the Rangers
- Mullins is 2-5 in his career against Erick Fedde
- Nick Martinez has struck out a total of 9 batters in his last 5 starts covering 22.2 innings
- Munetaka Murakami is enjoying a 7-game hitting streak (9-28)
- Murakami has K’d twice in each of his last 3 games
Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type!
Top Betting Trends & Insights: White Sox vs. Rays
- The White Sox are 64-44 on the Run Line this season
- The Rays are 63-45 on the Run Line this season
- The OVER has cashed 61 times in Chicago’s 108 games this season (61-45-2)
- The OVER has cashed 47 times in Tampa Bay’s 108 games this season (47-56-5)
‘Be patient’ when betting Jaguars win total
Jay Croucher and Drew Dinsick assess the Jacksonville Jaguars in Year 2 of Liam Coen’s system after winning 13 games last season, with a 8.5 win total that feels like a market “overadjustment.”
Expert picks & predictions: White Sox vs. Rays
Rotoworld Bet Best Bet
Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.
Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for tonight’s game between the Rays and the White Sox:
- Moneyline: Rotoworld Bet is leaning towards a play on the Rays on the Moneyline.
- Spread: Rotoworld Bet is recommending a play on the Rays on the Run Line.
- Total: Rotoworld Bet is staying away from a play on the Game Total of 8.5
Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff:
- Jay Croucher (@croucherJD)
- Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper)
- Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports)
- Trysta Krick (@Trysta_Krick)
Read the full article here