The Kansas City Royals are set to take on their AL Central foe Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. The game gets underway 4:10 p.m. ET and SportsTime Ohio is in line to televise the matchup.
Kansas City Royals vs. Cleveland Indians Odds
Oddsmakers have listed Kansas City (-115) as the favorite over Cleveland (-105). Gamblers are able to wager on the games total with odds sitting at +105 for over 7.5 runs and -125 for under 7.5. The games most recent runline odds stand at +190 for betting the Royals +1.5 runs and -210 for the Indians -1.5.
The Indians are 3-4 SU and 1-5 ATS. They’ve lost 3.5 units for bettors taking the moneyline and 4.7 units against the spread (ATS). The Royals have gone 1-4 SU this year and are 2-2 ATS. Overall, the teams lost 2.3 units for bettors taking the moneyline this year and 1.1 units ATS.
Indians games have a 3-3 over/under record so far in 2018. Kansas City has an over/under record of 1-3.
The Royals have lost 2.3 units and are 1-1 ATS when facing a righty starter this season. The over has cashed in one of those games, compared to one that’ve gone under against right-handed starting pitchers. On the other hand, the Indians have lost 3.0 units and are 1-3 ATS when facing a righty starter. The over’s hit in two of those games, compared to two that went under the total.
Right-hander Ian Kennedy (0-0, 1.50 ERA) will get the nod for the visiting Royals. Kennedy started 30 games last year and finished the season 5-13 overall with a 5.38 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. He made two starts against the Indians in 2017 and put together a 0-1 record against them with a 10.57 ERA and five strikeouts.
The Indians are going with righty Trevor Bauer (0-0, 3.60 ERA) as their starter. Bauer recorded 196 strikeouts over 176 innings last year with only 60 walks, while finishing the season 17-9 overall with a 4.19 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. He recorded three starts against the Royals a year ago and put up a 1-1 record with a 2.70 ERA and 10 strikeouts.
As a unit, Cleveland’s pitchers have yielded 4.3 runs per game overall this year. Its starting pitching staff has a 4.72 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 7.9 strikeouts per nine innings. The bullpen has a 3.47 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 8.1 K/9. In one games against AL Central foes, Indians starters have an ERA of 3.00 and the bullpen’s ERA is 0.00.
Cleveland’s offense has put up 3.4 runs per contest, including 3.4 per game over its last five. The team has a slash-line of .151/.255/.279 over its last five matchups and is 2-3 SU during that span.
The Indians hitters have been led by Edwin Encarnacion and Yonder Alonso. Encarnacion is slashing .174/.321/.565 with four hits, four RBIs and four runs scored, while Alonso’s line is .192/.276/.462 with five hits, five RBIs and five runs.
For the visiting squad, Kansas City’s pitching staff allowed 5.4 runs per game and its starters own a 4.55 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 7.16 K/9. The bullpen has logged an ERA of 7.63, along with a WHIP of 1.27.
The Royals offense has slashed .203/.272/.285 on its way to 2.8 runs scored per game in 2018.
Jon Jay and Cheslor Cuthbert have led Kansas City’s hitters. Jay is hitting .333/.455/.333 with six hits, zero RBIs and three runs scored, while Cuthbert is hitting .286 with four hits and two RBIs.
Cuthbert didn’t perform especially well against right-handed pitchers on the road last season, maintaining a slash line of .188/.231/.208 across 52 such plate appearances (compared to his overall season line of .231/.275/.322).
Kansas City Royals at Cleveland Indians MLB Tip
Predictions: SU Winner – Indians, ATS Winner – Royals, O/U – OVER
Betting Trends
- The Royals went 7-12 SU against the Indians last season.
- The Indians bullpen managed an ERA of 1.57 against the Royals last year.
