Whit Merrifield and the Kansas City Royals are set to face off against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in a Sunday showdown. Fox Sports Kansas City will be televising this AL matchup and the action gets going at 1:05 p.m. ET.
Kansas City Royals vs. New York Yankees Odds
Sportsbooks have New York (-265) as the favorite over Kansas City (+235). The total currently stands at 8.5 runs and bettors can play the over for -125 or the under for +105. There’s a runline of Royals +1.5 (+105) and Yankees -1.5 (-125) for this matchup.
The Royals are only 7-14 SU and have gone 11-9 against the spread (ATS). They’ve lost 5.1 units for moneyline bettors through the early portions of the year, despite having gained 0.3 units ATS. The Yankees, on the other hand, are 10-10 SU and 10-9 ATS. They’ve lost 10.3 units for bettors taking the moneyline and 0.2 units ATS.
Yankees games have an over/under record of 8-11 so far in 2019. Royals games have gone over 11 times, gone under eight times and pushed on one occasion.
Jorge Lopez is getting the start for the visiting Royals. The right-handed Lopez is 0-2 with a 4.30 ERA and 23 strikeouts. He has yet to face the Yankees this year and did not record a start against them in 2018, either.
The Yankees will deploy lefty James Paxton (2-2, 3.91 ERA) to the mound. Paxton has 31 strikeouts and seven walks as well as a WHIP of 1.26. Paxton made two starts against the Royals in 2018, posting a 1-0 record with a 1.29 ERA and 21 strikeouts.
Kansas City’s pitching staff allowed 5.3 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 4.97 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 8.46 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 6.00, along with a WHIP of 1.34 and a K/9 of 8.35.
Royals hitters have slashed .239/.319/.421 on their way to 4.4 runs scored per game in 2019, including 4.5 runs per game over the team’s last 10 games and 3.0 per game over the team’s last five contests (2-3 SU).
Kansas City’s offense has been powered by second baseman Whit Merrifield and left fielder Alex Gordon. Merrifield is slashing .292/.319/.483 with three home runs, 10 RBIs, 15 runs and five steals, while Gordon has a .311 average with three homers, 17 RBIs and 13 runs scored.
In the other dugout, New York’s pitching staff has allowed 3.8 runs per game overall this year. Its starting pitching staff has an ERA of 3.60, a WHIP of 1.24 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 9.6. The bullpen has a 3.63 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 10.6 K/9.
The New York hitters have put up 5.1 runs per outing, including 5.0 per game over its last 10 games and 5.8 per game over their last five. The team has a slash-line of .263/.341/.513 over its last five games and is 4-1 SU during that stretch.
Outfielder Aaron Judge and second baseman DJ LeMahieu have paced the Yankees’ hitters so far. Judge is hitting .288/.404/.521 with five home runs, 11 RBIs and 13 runs scored, while LeMahieu’s line sits at .309/.364/.426 with 21 hits, 10 RBIs and 11 runs.
The Royals have lost 3.1 units and are 2-3 ATS when facing a left-handed starting pitcher this season. The over has hit in two of those games, as opposed to two that’ve hit the under against lefty starters. On the other hand, the Yankees have lost 7.8 units and are 9-7 ATS when facing a righty starter. The over’s cashed in eight of those games, compared to eight that went under.
Royals at Yankees Free MLB Tip
Predictions: SU Winner – Yankees, ATS Winner – Royals, O/U – OVER
Betting Notes
- The under has cashed in six of New York’s last seven games.
- The Yankees have won four of their last five games SU.
- Kansas City has recorded 20.3 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 games and 16.6 over its last five.
- The Royals have hit 16 home runs in their last 10 games. The Yankees have hit 15 over their last 10.
- The Royals have an OPS of .740 this season and an OPS of .650 when facing left-handed pitchers. The Yankees’ OPS stands at .809 overall and .630 against southpaws.
