The Kansas City Royals are playing host to their division foe Minnesota Twins at Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium. Fox Sports Kansas City will be televising the matchup and the game is scheduled to get going at 8:15 p.m. ET.
Minnesota Twins at Kansas City Royals Odds
Minnesota (-115) is entering this game as the favorite over Kansas City (+105) and oddsmakers have put the Over/Under for this night game at 8.5 runs (-110 for the over and -110 for the under). The game’s runline odds stand at +130 for betting the Twins -1.5 runs and -150 for the Royals +1.5 runs.
The Royals are 18-36 SU and 25-28 ATS. They’ve lost 11.0 units for bettors taking the moneyline and 7.7 units against the spread (ATS). Kansas City has covered the spread five times in its last seven games and the total has gone under in five of those seven. The Twins are 22-27 SU and have gone 28-20 ATS. Overall, the team’s lost 7.0 units for moneyline bettors, but have gained 6.0 units ATS. Minnesota has covered the spread five times in its last seven games and the under has cashed in all seven of them.
Royals games have an over/under record of 20-30-3 so far in 2018. The Twins have an over/under record of 22-25-1.
Kyle Gibson is getting the start for Minnesota. The right-handed Gibson is 1-3 with a 4.02 ERA and 58 strikeouts. He has yet to face Kansas City this year, but he did make four starts against the team in 2017, compiling a 1-0 record with a 3.09 ERA and 11 strikeouts.
The Royals are putting the ball in the hands of lefty Danny Duffy (2-6, 6.14 ERA), who’s got 50 strikeouts and 27 walks, as well as a WHIP of 1.60. Duffy only made one start against the Twins in 2017 (0-0, 1.50 ERA and eight strikeouts across six innings).
As a unit, Kansas City’s pitchers have given up 5.6 runs per game overall in 2018. The team’s starting pitching staff has a 5.33 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 7.5 strikeouts per nine innings. The bullpen has a 5.36 ERA, 1.49 WHIP and 6.8 K/9. In 24 divisional games, Royals starters have an ERA of 5.28 and the bullpen’s ERA is 5.06.
The Kansas City offense is putting up 4.0 runs per outing, including 3.7 per game against divisional foes and 5.0 per game over its last five. The team’s hit .268/.330/.410 over its last five games and is 2-3 SU during that stretch.
Left fielder Jon Jay and second baseman Whit Merrifield have led the charge for the Royals’ batters this year. Jay is slashing .305/.361/.362 with 64 hits, 14 RBIs and 23 runs scored, while Merrifield is batting .288 with four homers, 22 RBIs, 27 runs and 12 steals.
In the other dugout, Minnesota’s pitchers have allowed 4.4 runs per game and its starters own a 4.00 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 8.91 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 4.51, along with a WHIP of 1.30 and a K/9 of 9.27.
The Twins offense has slashed .238/.312/.392 on its way to 4.1 runs scored per game this season, including 4.5 runs per game against divisional foes and 2.8 per game over the team’s last five contests (1-4 SU).
Left fielder Eddie Rosario and second baseman Brian Dozier have led Minnesota’s hitters. Rosario is hitting .297/.322/.526 with nine home runs, 32 RBIs, 30 runs and five stolen bases, while Dozier (.243/.309/.406) is up to seven homers, 20 RBIs and 29 runs scored.
Rosario seemed to take a step back when hitting left-handed pitching on the road last season. Across 91 such plate appearances, he maintained a slash line of .267/.286/.372 (compared to his overall season line of .290/.328/.507).
The Twins have lost 0.6 units and are 9-4 ATS when facing a lefty starter this season. The over has cashed in five of those games, compared to eight that’ve gone under in such games. On the other hand, the Royals have lost 14.5 units and are 13-20 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher. The over has hit in 12 of those games, compared to 18 which went under the total.
Minnesota Twins vs. Kansas City Royals Free MLB Pick
Predictions: SU Winner – Royals, ATS Winner – Royals, O/U – OVER
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Notes
Betting Notes
The Twins have hit four home runs in their last 10 games. The Royals have hit eight over their last 10.
Kansas City has posted 20.7 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 outings and 24.6 over its last five.
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