The Minnesota Twins look to make it two in a row over the visiting Kansas City Royals. It's time to continue our MLB odds series with a Royals-Twins prediction, pick, and how to watch.
The Kansas City Royals have been awful this year, now sitting at 6-20 on the campaign. Yesterday it was another loss to the Minnesota Twins. The Twins took the first three games of the season from the Royals, shutting them out twice in the series. Yesterday it was not a shutout, but it was a 7-1 victory for the Twins in which the Royals managed just three hits and scored just one run in the loss. The Twins have won four of their last five now, and sit in first place in the division at 15-11.
Here are the Royals-Twins MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Royals-Twins Odds
Kansas City Royals: +1.5 (-102)
Minnesota Twins: -1.5 (-118)
Over: 7.5 (-108)
Under: 7.5 (-111)
How To Watch Royals vs. Twins
TV: BSKC/BSNO
Stream: MLB.TV
Time: 4:10 PM ET/1:10 PM PT
*Watch Royals-Twins LIVE on fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Royals Could Cover The Spread
The Royals are struggling just about everywhere. They are hitting just .215 and an on-base percentage of .271, which are both last in the majors. they are slugging .339, which is 29th in baseball, which has led them to be the second-lowest-scoring team in the majors. If the team cannot score, it has to be able to pitch well, but the Roaysl are not doing that either. They are 28th in the majors with a team ERA of 5.38 and they give up the fourth most home runs as well.
Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino have been the most productive on offense for the Royals. Witt Jr. is hitting .243 with an OBP of .284, but he does have three doubles, two triples, and four home runs for his nine RBIs. He has also stolen five bases this year, which is the most on the team. Pasquantino is hitting the best on the team at .283 and also leads the team with a .371 OBP. He has five home runs on the season, but that has led to just eight runs batted in. If the Royals want to turn things around, they have to get on base more, or it is going to be a long season.
Jordan Lyles will take the hill today and he is currently boasting an 0-4 record with a 4.88 ERA. On his last time out he gave up three home runs and four earned runs to take the loss. He has given up four or more runs in each of his last four starts. The first start of the season was his best, and it came against the Twins. He went 5.1 innings giving up two runs and only one earned.
Why The Twins Could Cover The Spread
While the Royals cannot hit, the Twins have not been much better, hitting just .234 on the season with an on-base of .304. Both of those are in the bottom third of the league. Unlike the Royals though, the Twins make the most of their opportunities on offense. They are one of the better teams with runners in scoring position and have scored 116 runs this year, which is 16th in the majors. What is carrying this team is pitching. They have a team ERA of 3.42, which is 4th in the bigs. They are also top ten in both saves and quality starts.
Joey Gallo came back to the lineup and continued his power-hitting. Although he was out of the game for the win against the Royals, he has been hot this year. Since coming back from injury he has hit four home runs in the nine games, with seven RBIs. Beyond Gallo's power, Byron Buxton and Trevor Larnach have bee great. Larnach has three home runs with 18 RBIs on the year and hitting well with runners in scoring position. Buxton is doing the same, with five home runs and 13 RBIs on his season.
Pablo Lopez will be the pitcher today. HE is currently 1-2 on the season with a 3.00 ERA. He is coming off his worst start of the year, giving up five runs in four innings to the Nationals last time out. In his first start of the year, he faced these Royals and gave up just two hits while striking out either in 5.1 scoreless innings of work.
Final Royals-Twins Prediction & Pick
At some point, the Royals will be the Twins this year. They play each other a lot, and in a large sample of games, it is bound to happen. That day is not today. The Twins feast on bas pitching, and that is likely to happen again today. The Royals cannot hit at all, and no indication will change against Lopez.
Final Royals-Twins Prediction & Pick: Twins -1.5 (-118)
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