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The Cleveland Indians will be squaring off against their divisional rival Kansas City Royals at Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium. The matchup will get going at 2:15 p.m. ET and fans looking to watch it can tune in to SportsTime Ohio.

Cleveland Indians at Kansas City Royals Odds

Cleveland (-215) is favored over Kansas City (+195) and oddsmakers have set the Over/Under for this afternoon game at 9 runs. Odds for betting on the game’s total sit at -115 for the under and -105 for the over. The game’s current runline odds stand at -145 for taking the Indians -1.5 runs and +125 for the Royals +1.5.

The Indians have gone 73-56 SU this year and are 61-67 against the spread (ATS). They’ve lost 12.5 units for bettors taking the moneyline and 13.8 units ATS. Cleveland has covered the spread just twice over its last seven games and the total has gone under in three of those seven. The Royals, on the other hand, are 40-90 SU and 61-68 ATS. The team’s lost 34.4 units for moneyline bettors and 17.6 units ATS. Kansas City has covered the spread five times in its last seven games and the total has gone under in three of those seven.

Kansas City games have an over/under record of 55-65-9 in 2018. Cleveland has an over/under record of 63-59-6.

The right-handed Shane Bieber will get the nod for Cleveland. Bieber is 7-2 with a 4.36 ERA and 76 strikeouts. He’s 1-0 with two strikeouts and a 6.00 ERA against Kansas City this year.

The Royals are sending righty Jorge Lopez (0-3, 3.99 ERA) to the mound. Lopez has 21 strikeouts and 18 walks to his credit, as well as a 1.60 WHIP. Lopez is 0-0 with a 4.50 ERA against Cleveland this year.

As a unit, Kansas City’s pitchers have yielded 5.4 runs per game overall in 2018. The club’s starting pitching staff has a 5.26 ERA, 1.48 WHIP and 7.4 strikeouts per nine innings. The bullpen has a 5.12 ERA, 1.53 WHIP and 7.3 K/9. In 52 divisional games, Royals starters have an ERA of 5.19 and the bullpen’s ERA is 5.08.

The Kansas City hitters have produced 3.7 runs per contest, including 4.2 per game against divisional foes and 3.8 per game over their last five. The team has a slash-line of .259/.306/.457 over its last five matchups and is 2-3 SU during that stretch.

Second baseman Whit Merrifield and catcher Salvador Perez have led the Royals’ batters this year. Merrifield is slashing .306/.374/.433 with nine home runs, 46 RBIs, 61 runs and 28 stolen bases, and Perez’s line is .232/.272/.432 with 22 homers, 64 RBIs and 42 runs.

In the other dugout, Cleveland’s pitching staff allowed 4.1 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 3.42 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 9.41 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 4.85, along with a K/9 of 8.88.

Indians hitters have slashed .258/.331/.438 on their way to 5.0 runs scored per game in 2018, including 5.2 runs per game against divisional foes and 3.0 per game over the team’s last five contests (1-4 SU).

Shortstop Francisco Lindor and left fielder Michael Brantley continue to lead Cleveland’s offense. Lindor is hitting .285/.364/.533 with 29 home runs, 76 RBIs, 105 runs and 19 stolen bases, while Brantley (.300/.356/.467) has produced 14 homers, 69 RBIs and 73 runs scored.

The Indians have lost 9.6 units and are 45-50 ATS when facing a righty starter this season. The over has hit in 47 of those games, compared to 43 that’ve gone under against right-handed starting pitchers. On the other hand, the Royals have lost 28.9 units and are 39-49 ATS when facing a righty starter. The over has cashed in 41 of those games, compared to 40 that’ve gone under.

Cleveland Indians at Kansas City Royals MLB Prediction

Predictions: SU Winner – Indians, ATS Winner – Indians, O/U – OVER

Betting Trends

  • The over has cashed in only two of Cleveland’s last seven contests.
  • Kansas City has recorded 19.9 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 contests and 20.6 over its last five.
  • Each team has hit 12 home runs over its last 10 outings.