The Minnesota Twins will head south to take on their AL Central rival Kansas City Royals at Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium. The action will get going at 8:15 p.m. ET and Fox Sports Kansas City will broadcast the game.
Minnesota Twins at Kansas City Royals Odds
Minnesota (-130) is entering this one as the favorite over Kansas City (+120) and oddsmakers have set the Over/Under for this night game at 8 runs. The odds for wagering on the game’s total currently sit at -110 for both the over and the under. Runline odds sit at +115 for picking the Twins -1.5 runs and -135 for the Royals +1.5.
The Twins have gone 2-1 SU this year and are 3-0 against the spread (ATS). They’ve accumulated 1.0 unit for moneyline bettors in this young season and 3.7 units ATS. The Royals, on the other hand, are 2-1 SU and 2-1 ATS. The team has gained 0.8 units for moneyline bettors and 2.2 units ATS.
Royals games have had an over/under record of 2-1 in 2019. The Twins have an over/under record of 1-2.
Right-hander Jose Berrios (1-0, 0.00 ERA) will get the ball for the visiting Twins. Berrios struck out 202 hitters across 192 innings last year with only 61 walks and finished the season 12-11 overall with a 3.84 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. He made four starts against the Royals in 2018 and put together a 2-1 record against them with a 2.08 ERA and 28 strikeouts.
The Royals are turning to righty Brad Keller (1-0, 0.00 ERA), who started 20 games last year and finished the season 9-6 overall with a 3.08 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. He made two starts against the Twins a year ago and compiled a 1-0 record with a 3.60 ERA and 11 strikeouts.
As a unit, Kansas City’s pitching staff has allowed 5.0 runs per game overall this season. The club’s starting pitching staff has a 3.57 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 8.2 strikeouts per nine innings. The bullpen has a 7.71 ERA, 2.04 WHIP and 5.8 K/9. In three games against AL Central opponents, Royals starters have an ERA of 3.57 and the bullpen’s ERA is 7.71.
Kansas City’s hitters are putting up 5.3 runs per outing so far this season and the team has a slash-line of .219/.299/.323 to begin the year.
Outfielder Jorge Soler and shortstop Adalberto Mondesi have led the charge for the Royals’ offense so far. Soler is hitting .455/.500/.727 with five hits and five RBIs, while Mondesi’s line is .333/.333/.750 with four hits, three RBIs and two runs scored.
In the visiting dugout, Minnesota’s pitchers have allowed 1.7 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 0.51 ERA, 0.45 WHIP and 13.25 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 3.86, along with a K/9 of 12.54.
Twins hitters have slashed .231/.307/.385 on their way to 4.0 runs scored per game this year.
Nelson Cruz and Byron Buxton have led Minnesota’s offense. Cruz is slashing .364/.462/.727 with four hits, three RBIs and two runs scored. Buxton (.400/.400/.700) has produced four hits and two RBIs.
The Twins just got a 9-3 victory over the Indians, while the Royals are coming off of a 6-3 loss against the White Sox.
Twins at Royals Free Pick
Predictions: SU Winner – Twins, ATS Winner – Twins, O/U – OVER
Betting Notes
- The Twins went 9-10 SU against the Royals last season.
- The Royals’ bullpen recorded an ERA of 5.15 against the Twins last year.
- The Twins have an OPS of .692 this season and an OPS of .686 against right-handed pitchers. The Royals’ OPS sits at .622 overall and their lefty-righty split is nearly identical.
