The Kansas City Royals will head west to take on the Oakland Athletics at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. NBC Sports – California will televise this AL matchup and the action gets going at 10:05 p.m. ET.
Kansas City Royals at Oakland Athletics Odds
Vegas has listed Kansas City (+150) as the underdog to Oakland (-160). The total sits at 8.5 runs and gamblers can wager on the over or the under for -110. The game’s most recent runline odds sit at -145 for taking the Royals +1.5 runs and +125 for the Athletics -1.5.
The Royals are only 21-41 SU and have gone 29-32 against the spread (ATS). They’ve lost 12.4 units for moneyline bettors and 8.3 units ATS. Kansas City has covered the spread four times in its last seven games and the under has hit in three of those seven. The Athletics, on the other hand, are 31-31 SU and 29-32 ATS. The team has gained 1.8 units for bettors taking the moneyline while gaining 4.7 units ATS. Oakland has covered the spread four times in its last seven games and the under has hit in three of those seven.
Oakland games have an over/under record of 28-29-4 so far in 2018. The Royals have been a decent under bet with a total record of 24-33-4.
Jason Hammel will get the nod for Kansas City. The right-handed Hammel is 2-5 with a 5.17 ERA and 46 strikeouts. He’s 0-0 with three strikeouts and a 4.50 ERA against Oakland this year (two starts).
The Athletics are going with righty Paul Blackburn (0-0, ERA), who has zero punchouts and zero walks to his credit, as well as a WHIP. Blackburn has yet to face the Royals this year and only made one start against them in 2017 (0-0, 9.00 ERA and two strikeouts across four innings).
Kansas City’s pitchers have allowed 5.6 runs per game and its starters own a 5.30 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 7.39 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 5.60, along with a WHIP of 1.45.
Royals hitters have slashed .253/.318/.386 on their way to 4.0 runs scored per game in 2018, including 3.8 runs per game over the team’s last 10 games and 3.0 per game over the team’s last five outings (1-4 SU).
Left fielder Jon Jay and second baseman Whit Merrifield continue to lead Kansas City’s hitters. Jay is hitting .307/.363/.374 with 73 hits, 18 RBIs and 28 runs scored, while Merrifield (.289/.368/.418) is up to 67 hits, 22 RBIs, 29 runs and 14 steals.
For the home team, Oakland’s pitching staff has given up 4.4 runs per game overall this season. Its starters have an ERA of 4.25, a WHIP of 1.19 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 6.8. The bullpen has a 3.62 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 8.4 K/9.
The Oakland hitters have put up 4.4 runs per outing, including 4.3 per game over its last 10 games and 6.2 per game over their last five. The team has slashed .295/.361/.486 over its last five contests and is 2-3 SU during that span.
Second baseman Jed Lowrie and shortstop Marcus Semien have led the Athletics’ offense this year. Lowrie is hitting .299/.364/.490 with nine home runs, 42 RBIs and 25 runs scored, while Semien’s line is .252/.305/.362 with five homers, 24 RBIs and 36 runs scored.
The Royals have lost 14.9 units and are 16-24 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher this season. The over has hit in 16 of those games, as opposed to 20 that’ve gone under in such games. On the other hand, the Athletics have netted 5.7 units and are 19-21 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher. The over has hit in 20 of those games, compared to 18 which went under the total.
Kansas City Royals at Oakland Athletics Pick
Predictions: SU Winner – Athletics, ATS Winner – Royals, O/U – OVER
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Notes
Betting Trends
The Royals have lost five of their last six games SU while the Athletics have lost three of their last four SU.
Kansas City has posted 21.2 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 contests and 15.8 over its last five.
The Royals have hit 10 home runs in their last 10 games. The Athletics have hit 12 over their last 10.
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