Keyvius Sampson (2-1, 3.18 ERA) and Jeremy Guthrie (8-7, 5.63 ERA) take the hill in the second of a two-game series between the Cincinnati Reds (51-66) and the Kansas City Royals (72-46) at the Great American Ball Park. The Royals won the last game 3-1 and Kansas City leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 7:10 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Aug. 19 and can be seen on FSKC and FSOH.
Sampson pitched 5.0 innings in his most recent start, surrendering two runs, striking out three and walking three in a 10-3 win over the Dodgers. Guthrie went 6.0 innings, surrendering one run, striking out two and walking three in a 7-6 defeat to the Angels in his last outing. Lorenzo Cain (.313, 75 Rs, 12 HRs, 52 RBIs, 24 SBs) went 1 for 5 yesterday with two stolen bases.
Kansas City is a slim -112 favorite over Cincinnati. The Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at eight runs for this matchup. The Reds have recorded an overall money line of -1,311 and have shown a weak performance as an underdog this season with a record of 24-45. Cincinnati has recorded a disappointing 3-7 record as the underdog over its last 10 games. Cincinnati leads the MLB in steals, swiping 111 bases.
In the other locker room, Kansas City is coming in with an overall money line of +2,242 and an impressive record of 41-22 as the favorite. They played solid baseball as the favorite over their last 10 games with an 8-1 record, and an 8-2 record SU. The Royals are tough outs for opponents, leading the AL with 9.2 hits per road game. The Royals are an excellent base stealing team with 82 stolen bases, ranking fifth in the MLB. The Royals allow 3.7 runs per game, but does better whenever an NL opponent is on the schedule. They bring that runs allowed average down to 2.9 against teams from the NL.
The Royals have the edge in the season series, 3-0. The Reds have a 39-49 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Guthrie takes the mound. Sampson (RHP) will be on the hill against the Royals, who have a very good 48-28 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – KC, O/U – Over
Notes
Having scored one run in their last game, the Reds are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Royals have a 27-0 record in games where opponents scored that many runs or fewer.
It looks like the Royals have a slight leg up on the Reds, as the Royals have won their last four games while the Reds have lost their last four.
When they outhit their opponents, the Reds are 40-16. The Royals have a 57-8 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 23rd in runs, Cincinnati has earned 458 this season. Kansas City ranks 10th with 516 runs.
Ranking 29th, Kansas City is near the bottom of the league in walks, notching 265 this season. Cincinnati ranks in the top 10 at ninth with 361.
When the Reds hit at least one home run, they are 43-33. When the Royals hit at least one homer, they have a 49-18 record.
