The Cleveland Indians are trying to stave off their fourth consecutive loss as they play host to the Kansas City Royals at Progressive Field. The game gets underway 7:10 p.m. ET and Fox Sports Kansas City will be televising the matchup.
Kansas City Royals vs. Cleveland Indians Odds
Vegas has listed Cleveland (-170) as the favorite over Kansas City (+160). The total sits at 9.5 runs and bettors can take the over for -115 and the under for -105. Runline odds sit at -135 for betting the Royals +1.5 runs and +115 for the Indians -1.5.
The Royals are 45-83 SU and are 58-69 against the spread (ATS). They’ve lost 23.1 units for moneyline bettors and 24.6 units ATS. The Indians, on the other hand, are 74-54 SU and 69-58 ATS. The team has gained 3.6 units for moneyline bettors and 10.7 units ATS.
Indians games have had an over/under record of 56-67-4 in 2019. Royals games have gone under 60 times, gone over 59 times and pushed on eight occasions.
The right-handed Jakob Junis is the projected starter for the visiting Royals. Junis is 8-11 with a 4.78 ERA and 142 strikeouts. He’s 1-3 with 24 strikeouts and a 6.52 ERA against Cleveland this year (five starts).
The Indians are turning to Zach Plesac (6-4, 3.53 ERA). Plesac has 61 punchouts and 30 walks, along with a 1.21 WHIP. Plesac is 2-0 with 11 strikeouts and a 2.30 ERA over three starts against Kansas City this year.
As a unit, Cleveland’s pitching staff has yielded 4.0 runs per game overall this season. Its starting pitching staff has a 3.87 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 9.6 strikeouts per nine innings. The bullpen has a 3.47 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 9.0 K/9. In 54 games against AL Central foes, Indians starters have an ERA of 3.89 and the bullpen’s ERA is 2.80.
The Cleveland hitters are putting up 4.7 runs per contest, including 4.9 per game against divisional foes and 3.6 per game over their last five. The team has a slash-line of .222/.286/.377 over its last five matchups and is 1-4 SU during that span.
Francisco Lindor has helped lead the Indians’ offense this season with 21 home runs, 53 RBIs, 74 runs and 18 stolen bases.
In the other dugout, Kansas City’s pitchers have allowed 5.2 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 5.06 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 7.43 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 4.90, along with a WHIP of 1.41 and a K-per-9 of 8.50.
The Royals offense has slashed .243/.307/.397 on its way to 4.2 runs scored per game this season, including 4.7 runs per game against divisional foes and 2.6 per game over the team’s last five outings (1-4 SU).
Kansas City’s offense has been paced by Whit Merrifield. Merrifield is hitting .299/.351/.478 with 15 home runs, 65 RBIs, 85 runs and 16 stolen bases.
The Indians are coming off of a 2-0 loss against the Mets, while the Royals just lost an 8-1 game to the Orioles.
Royals vs. Indians MLB Pick
Predictions: SU Winner – Indians, ATS Winner – Royals, O/U – OVER
Betting Notes
- The over has hit in four of Cleveland’s last seven games.
- The Royals have hit nine home runs in their last 10 games. The Indians have hit 19 over their last 10.
- Cleveland has posted 23.4 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 outings and 18.4 over its last five.
- The Royals have lost four of their last five games SU while the Indians have dropped five of their last six.
