Yordano Ventura (3-6, 4.68 ERA) and Mike Fiers (3-6, 4.04 ERA) take the hill in the first of a two-game series between the Kansas City Royals (36-25) and the Milwaukee Brewers (24-42) at Kauffman Stadium. Action begins at 8:10 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Jun. 17 and can be seen on FSN-WI and FSN-KC.
Ventura pitched 3.0 innings in his most recent start, surrendering two runs, striking out two and walking one in a 4-0 defeat to the Cardinals. Mike Moustakas (.326, 35 Rs, 6 HRs, 22 RBIs, 1 SB) continued his strong play yesterday, going 3 for 5 with two runs, one home run, and one RBI. Fiers went 7.0 innings, surrendering three runs, striking out eight and walking three in an 8-4 win over the Nationals in his last outing.
Kansas City is a -121 favorite against Milwaukee and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at eight runs. The Royals have recorded an overall money line of +818 and have shown high-level performance as a favorite this season with a record of 20-13. Against the NL, they have had a solid season, earning 5-1 and 6-4 records as the favorite and SU respectively. The Royals have seen a decline in scoring as of late, averaging 3.0 runs during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 4.3 runs per game. The Royals have no trouble scoring as they rank fourth in the AL in offense with 4.3 runs per game. The Royals are one of the best in the AL in terms of hits with an impressive 9.1 per game. Kansas City strikes out the least of any team in the AL at home, with only 5.2 per game. As for the pitchers, opposing offenses have been stifled by the Royals, who have a team ERA of only 3.41. The Royals are the second-best team in the AL at limiting hits to their opponents, allowing only 7.7 hits per game so far this season.
In games where it is the underdog, Milwaukee has a 18-25 record and an overall money line of -1,575. Milwaukee is 4-3 as the underdog and 5-5 SU against American League opponents. Offensively, the Brewers have really picked up the pace in interleague games. They have exceeded their season average of 3.7 runs per game by averaging 4.6 in those contests. The Brewers allow 4.7 runs per game, but have improved upon those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 3.5 runs per game during that span.
The Royals have the edge in the season series, 2-0. The Royals have a 25-16 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Fiers takes the mound. Ventura (RHP) will be on the hill against the Brewers, who have a inferior 18-34 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – KC, O/U – Over
Notes
The Royals are 3-1 in games that go into extra innings. Meanwhile, the Brewers are 2-2 in such matchups.
The Brewers are coming into this game after allowing zero walks during their last outing. The Royals have a 1-8 record when opponents give up that many walks.
When they are outhit, the Royals are 2-20. The Brewers have a 6-34 record when opponents outhit them.
Ranking 26th in home runs, Kansas City has hit 48 this season. Milwaukee ranks 13th with 59 home runs.
Ranking 15th, Milwaukee is in the top half of the league in hits, notching 7.88 per game. Kansas City ranks in the top five at second with 9.10.
Ranking 28th, Milwaukee is near the bottom of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.659). Kansas City ranks in the top half at 12th with an OPS of .725.
The Brewers are 15-29 in games where they allow one or more home runs. The Royals are 16-17 when they allow at least one homer.
