Edinson Volquez (2-3, 2.10 ERA) gets the start for the Kansas City Royals (17-10) as they meet Corey Kluber (0-4, 4.62 ERA) and the Cleveland Indians (10-16) in the last of a three-game series at Kauffman Stadium. The Indians won the last game 10-3 and the series is currently tied 1-1. The game gets underway at 2:10 p.m. ET on Thursday, May. 7 and will air on STO and FSN-KC.
In his last start, Volquez pitched 6.0 innings, allowing two runs, striking out four and walking three in a 2-1 loss to the Tigers. Lorenzo Cain (.330, 20 Rs, 3 HRs, 13 RBIs, 6 SBs) went 1 for 4 yesterday with two runs. In his pitching opportunities against the Royals, Kluber is 4-2 with a 3.10 ERA. He meets a solid Kansas City offense that’s batting .289. Brandon Moss (.241, 13 Rs, 5 HRs, 21 RBIs) has been doing well, going 2 for 5 yesterday with two runs, one home run, and three RBIs.
Kansas City is favored by a small -108 margin in its matchup against Cleveland. The teams combine to set the Over/Under (O/U) at seven runs. The Royals have a winning record of 9-5 when playing as the favorite and an overall money line of +817. They are 3-1 as the favorite over their last 10 games. The Royals come into the game with the second-ranked scoring offense in the AL, averaging 5.1 runs per game. The Royals are a superb hitting team with an MLB-best .289 team batting average. Turning to the pitching staff, the Royals lead the AL in ERA with a 3.08 team average. The Royals are fifth in the league in WHIP at 1.13.
Switching gears, the Indians come into this game with a weak win percentage of .300 when playing as the underdog (3-7) and an overall money line of -1,015. Over the last 10 games, they were winless as the underdog with a 0-4 record and 3-7 SU. Opposing pitchers have routinely struggled to strike out the Cleveland batters, who rank third in the AL with 6.4 strikeouts per game. The last 10 games have really brought the worst out of the Cleveland pitchers. They allowed 6.6 runs per game during that span, which is higher than their season average of 5.0.
In their previous five games this season, the Royals have a 3-2 record. The Royals will take on a right-hander (Kluber) in this game and have a 9-6 record against right-handed starting pitchers this season. Taking the hill against the Indians will be the right-hander Volquez. They sport a 7-7 record against righties.
Predictions: SU Winner – KC, O/U – Over
Notes
When leading after 7 innings, Kansas City is 7-3, while Cleveland is 4-6.
The Royals managed to give up four walks in their last game. They’ll have to pick it up against the Indians who are coming in with a 5-6 record against opponents who give up that many walks or more.
When they are outhit, the Royals are 0-6. The Indians have a 2-12 record when opponents outhit them.
Kansas City ranks in the bottom half of the league at 19th when it comes to home runs, hitting 21 this season. Cleveland ranks in the top 10 at 10th with 26.
Ranking first in hits, Kansas City has earned 10.23 per game this season. Cleveland ranks ninth with 8.16 hits.
Ranking 13th, Cleveland is in the top half of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.714). Kansas City ranks in the top five at second with an OPS of .774.
When the Indians allow at least one home run, they are 8-11. When the Royals allow one or more homers, they have a 10-6 record.
