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Those who bet on college football are usually waiting for rivalry week to see their team play their big rivals, but in baseball, your rival is usually the closest team to you in the standings, and the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins are annually battling for the American League Central crown. The two will wrap up a three-game set in Chicago on Thursday.

Twins White Sox Betting – Thursday, August 12, 8:10 PM ET

Francisco Liriano (10-7, 3.33) had a four-start winning streak ended by a no-decision in a 7-6 loss at Cleveland, and he was all over the place, allowing four runs on seven hits over 4.2 innings, along with six strikeouts and six walks. Liriano was said to have a bit of a dead arm after that game (those betting NFL odds will hear that a quarterback has a dead arm sometimes as well), and this start will come after an extra day of rest. The 26-year-old finally earned his first career win in his second start of the season against the White Sox, but he’s now only 1-3 in eight games (five starts) against them with a 5.82 ERA.

Gavin Floyd (8-8, 3.49) is 6-1 in his last 10 starts, and he picked up another win in a 4-2 victory in Baltimore, scattering two runs on six hits over seven innings, striking out five and walking three. Floyd also gave up his first home run since June 2nd, a span of 13 starts, but we think the White Sox will happily take a one-homer-in-every-13th-start average. Floyd was on the losing end of Liriano’s first win over the White Sox last month, and he’s now 4-5 in 10 career outings against the Twins with an ERA of 4.04.

The White Sox should be favored at home by MLB betting odds, as Liriano is an average 4-4 in 11 road starts with a 4.57 ERA, while Floyd is 5-2 in 12 home starts with a 3.45 ERA this season. Floyd is hitting his stride for the White Sox, who would probably be well in the lead in the Central if they were only a bit more consistent. Heading into Wednesday’s meeting between the two, the Twins had taken over the division lead with a three-game winning streak, while the White Sox had dropped three in a row, and a sweep in this series would be awful for their moral. We’re going to go with the White Sox and Floyd, who has pitched as well as anyone in the majors over the last month or two. He knows how important this game is to the White Sox’s playoff chances, so look for a dominant performance on Thursday.

BSNblog pick: Chicago White Sox