The Cleveland Indians are facing off against the Kansas City Royals at Progressive Field. The matchup will begin at 4:10 p.m. ET and fans can tune in to SportsTime Ohio to catch the game.
Kansas City Royals at Cleveland Indians Odds
Vegas is listing Cleveland (-190) as the favorite over Kansas City (+180). Bettors can wager on the game’s total with odds sitting at -110 for over 9.5 runs and -110 for under 9.5. Bettors can also wager on the game’s runline with the odds sitting at -125 for the Royals +1.5 runs and +105 for the Indians -1.5.
The Royals have gone 45-91 SU this year and are 66-69 against the spread (ATS). They’ve lost 28.6 units for moneyline gamblers and 11.7 units ATS. The Indians, on the other hand, are 77-59 SU and 65-70 ATS. The team’s lost 14.8 units for moneyline bettors and 13.7 units ATS.
Indians games have an over/under record of 65-63-7 in 2018. The Royals have been a decent under bet with a total record of 58-67-10.
Jakob Junis will get the start for the visiting Royals. The right-handed Junis is 7-12 with a 4.53 ERA and 139 strikeouts. He’s 0-2 with nine strikeouts and a 9.82 ERA against Cleveland this year (two starts).
The Indians will turn to righty Adam Plutko (4-4, 4.94 ERA), who’s got 44 punchouts and 19 walks to his credit as well as a 1.25 WHIP. Plutko hasn’t faced the Royals yet this year and did not record any MLB pitching stats last season.
As a unit, Cleveland’s pitching staff has yielded 4.0 runs per game overall in 2018. Its starters have an ERA of 3.40, a WHIP of 1.15 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 9.5. The bullpen has a 4.77 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 9.0 K/9. In 60 divisional games, Indians starters have an ERA of 2.62 and the bullpen’s ERA is 3.32.
Cleveland’s hitters have produced 5.0 runs per contest, including 5.3 per game against divisional foes and 3.6 per game over their last five. The team’s hit .212/.276/.327 over its last five contests and is 2-3 SU during that stretch.
Francisco Lindor has helped lead the Indians’ offense this season with 29 home runs, 78 RBIs, 111 runs and 22 stolen bases.
For the visiting squad, Kansas City’s pitching staff allowed 5.3 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 5.13 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 7.43 K/9. The bullpen has logged an ERA of 5.17, along with a K/9 of 7.32.
Royals hitters have slashed .245/.308/.386 on their way to 3.8 runs scored per game in 2018, including 4.3 runs per game against divisional foes and 7.6 per game over the team’s last five contests (5-0 SU).
Whit Merrifield has sparked Kansas City’s offense and is slashing .312/.377/.448 with 11 home runs, 51 RBIs, 69 runs and 30 stolen bases.
The Royals just got a 9-1 victory over the Orioles, while the Indians are coming off of a 6-4 loss against the Rays.
Kansas City Royals at Cleveland Indians Pick
Predictions: SU Winner – Indians, ATS Winner – Royals, O/U – OVER
Betting Notes
- The over has hit in three of Kansas City’s last seven outings.
- The Royals have hit 17 home runs in their last 10 games. The Indians have hit seven over their last 10.
- Cleveland has posted 20.3 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 contests and 16.8 over its last five.
- The Royals have won seven of their last eight games SU.
