Tonight the Boston Red Sox go to Chicago to face the White Sox. Boston will be looking to get back on track. After a minor skid, they resumed their winning ways yesterday. However, they must face the hot Chicago White Sox now. The Red Sox are 3 games up on the Yankees and 5 up and the Blue Jays. The White Sox, on the other hand, are very hot and just 1 game back of division leading Detroit. A win tonight and a Detroit loss would put them in the driver’s seat.

Chicago has fought hard this first half with Detroit. Nothing would be sweeter than going into the All Star break tied or in the sole possession of first place in the AL Central. Chicago is a -140 favorite. Some have them up to -145. The Red Sox are +130. Fireworks are expected. The under/over is currently at 10.

The Red Sox have lefthander Jon Lester pitching tonight. In five starts, he has a 3.08 ERA. He’s been better on the road. His ERA on the road is 2.45. Most of his starts have been against the National League. His worst start was against the lone American League team he faced—Texas. In that start, he gave up 3 runs from 9 baserunners in 4.1 innings. It’s tough to gauge Lester. He has four starts against National League East teams—Atlanta, New York, Washington and Florida. He is 3-0 against the National League—but that’s not a major accomplishment.

The White Sox are sending in lefthander Mark Buehrle. He has 3.86 overall and pitches much better in Chicago. His home ERA is 2.81. The main issue at hand is his digression. Each month Buehrle has had a slightly higher ERA than the last. If his lone July start is any indicator for this month, look out. On the 2nd, he pitched against cross town rivals, Chicago Cubs. He lasted 5 innings, but gave up 10 runs over 17 baserunners, including 3 home runs. Remember, this was against the Cubs. Looking back over his past performances this season, when he had a bad outing, he bounced back with some nice ones. It’s something to think about.