In the second of a three-game series between the Kansas City Royals (38-26) and the Boston Red Sox (38-26) at Kauffman Stadium, Edinson Volquez (6-4, 3.10 ERA) and Rick Porcello (4-7, 5.29 ERA) get the ball. The Red Sox won the last game 7-3 and Boston leads the series 1-0. The game starts at 7:10 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jun. 20 and will air on NESN and FSN-KC.
In his most recent outing, Volquez pitched 5.0 innings, allowing two runs, striking out two and walking two in an 8-5 victory over the Brewers. Eric Hosmer (.300, 38 Rs, 8 HRs, 38 RBIs, 3 SBs) continued his strong season yesterday, going 2 for 4 with one run, one home run, and one RBI. In his career against the Royals, Porcello is 8-5 with a 4.30 ERA. He meets a solid Kansas City offense that’s batting .273. Hanley Ramirez (.269, 38 Rs, 14 HRs, 35 RBIs, 3 SBs) has been hitting the ball well for the Red Sox, going 2 for 4 yesterday with one run, one home run, and two RBIs.
Kansas City, a -144 favorite, will look to capitalize at home against Boston. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is set at eight runs. The Royals have a winning record of 23-13 when playing as the favorite and an overall money line of +1,118. They are 8-2 SU and perfect as the favorite (7-0) in their last 10 games. The Royals have the top batting average in the league at .273. Don’t expect the Kansas City hitters to swing wildly. They average an AL-low 5.8 strikeouts per game. As for the pitching staff, the Royals lead the AL in ERA with a 3.34 team average. The Royals don’t give up many hits to opposing batters, leading the AL with only 7.7 hits allowed per game.
On the other side, the Red Sox have a record of 9-13 when they are the underdog and are -1,748 overall with the money line. Over the last 10 games, they were winless as the underdog with a 0-3 record and 2-8 SU. The Red Sox average just 6.4 strikeouts per game, one of the lowest marks in the AL.
The only other game between the two teams went Boston’s way. The Royals will take on a right-hander (Porcello) in this game. They have done very well against right-handed starting pitchers this season (28-16), especially at home where they have a 15-8 record. The right-handed Volquez will take the mound against the Red Sox, who have a 21-28 record against righty starters this season.
Predictions: SU Winner – KC, O/U – Over
Notes
When the Royals play into extra innings, they have a 3-1 record. The Red Sox are 2-2 when their games exceed nine innings.
The Red Sox are coming into this game after allowing two walks during their last outing. The Royals have a 24-21 record when opponents give up that many walks or fewer.
When they outhit their opponents, the Red Sox are 26-5. The Royals have a 33-4 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 16th in runs, Boston has earned 272 this season. Kansas City ranks 13th with 282 runs.
Ranking 30th, Kansas City is at the bottom of the league in walks, notching 134 this season. Boston ranks in the top five at fourth with 220.
When the Royals hit at least one home run, they are 25-12. When the Red Sox hit at least one homer, they have a 22-22 record.
