Kansas City Royals at St. Louis Cardinals 5/21/2018 Free MLB Picks and Predictions

Monday, May 21, 2018

Busch Stadium

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Ian Kennedy vs. Miles Mikolas

Busch Stadium is the site of the matchup between the Kansas City Royals and the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday, May 21, 2018. The probable starting pitchers are Ian Kennedy for the Royals and Miles Mikolas for the Cardinals.

Kansas City opens at +182 while St. Louis opens at -195. The Royals have a 18-25-2 over/under record and a 17-28-0 run line mark. The Cardinals are 18-25-0 against the run line and have a 17-22-4 over/under record.

Valuable Kansas City Royals Betting Trends

The Kansas City Royals are 18-25-2 against the over/under

The Kansas City Royals are 17-28-0 against the run line

Important St. Louis Cardinals Betting Trends

The St. Louis Cardinals are 17-22-4 against the over/under

The St. Louis Cardinals are 18-25-0 against the run line

Key Kansas City Royals Injuries

05/19/18 3B Cheslor Cuthbert Back 10-day DL (05/19)
05/15/18 1B Lucas Duda Foot 10-day DL (05/14)
04/25/18 P Justin Grimm Back 10-day DL (04/22)
03/30/18 P Nathan Karns Elbow 10-day DL (03/26)
03/26/18 CF Bubba Starling Oblique 10-day DL (03/26)
03/26/18 P Jesse Hahn Elbow 60-day DL (03/06)

Key St. Louis Cardinals Injuries

05/19/18 P Bud Norris Rest left last game, is "?" next start
05/19/18 P Matt Bowman Finger 10-day DL (05/17)
05/18/18 3B Paul DeJong Hand 10-day DL (05/18)
05/17/18 C Carson Kelly Hamstring 10-day DL (05/17)
05/16/18 P Luke Gregerson Shoulder 10-day DL (05/16)
05/15/18 P Adam Wainwright Elbow 60-day DL (05/14)
05/12/18 P Tyler Lyons Back 10-day DL (05/09)
05/10/18 P Carlos Martinez Back 10-day DL (05/09)
05/07/18 P Dominic Leone Arm 10-day DL (05/06)
05/06/18 C Yadier Molina Groin 10-day DL (05/06)
03/31/18 P Alex Reyes Elbow 60-day DL (03/31)

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Royals have a 14-31 overall record this season. Starting pitcher Ian Kennedy has a 1-4 record with an earned run average of 4.98 and a WHIP of 1.51 this year. He has 45 strikeouts over his 47 innings pitched and he's given up 55 hits. He's allowed 10.5 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 4.46. The bullpen has an earned run average of 5.38 and they have given up 166 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .282 against the bullpen and they've struck out 107 hitters and walked 59 batters. As a team, Kansas City allows 10.1 hits per nine innings while striking out 6.9 batters per nine innings. They are 30th in the league in team earned run average at 5.45. The Royals pitchers collectively have given up 447 base hits and 242 earned runs. They have allowed 67 home runs this season, ranking them 1st in the league. Kansas City as a pitching staff has walked 139 batters and struck out 308. They have walked 3.1 men per 9 innings while striking out 6.9 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.47 and their FIP as a unit is 4.95.

Hitting Statistics

As a team Kansas City is hitting .259, good for 4th in the league. The Royals hold a .392 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .323, which is good for 11th in baseball. They rank 7th in MLB with 8.9 hits per game. Whit Merrifield is hitting .299 with an on-base percentage of .361. He has 52 hits this season in 174 at bats with 16 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .437 and an OPS+ of 118. Mike Moustakas is hitting .295 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .335. He has totaled 52 hits and he has driven in 31 men in 176 at bats. His OPS+ is 133 while his slugging percentage is at .534. The Royals have 401 hits, including 81 doubles and 39 home runs. Kansas City has walked 133 times so far this season and they have struck out 319 times as a unit. They have left 323 men on base and have a team OPS of .715. They score 4.02 runs per contest and have scored a total of 181 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

St. Louis has a 24-19 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 2.63, Miles Mikolas has a 5-0 record and a 1.05 WHIP this season. He has 37 strikeouts over the 51.1 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 49 hits. He allows 8.6 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 3.57. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.14 and they have given up 152 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .250 against the Cardinals bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 145 batters and walked 64 opposing hitters. As a team, St. Louis allows 8.2 hits per nine innings while striking out 8 batters per nine innings. They are 8th in the league in team earned run average at 3.52. The Cardinals pitchers as a team have surrendered 364 base knocks and 156 earned runs this season. They have given up 36 home runs this year, which ranks 29th in Major League Baseball. St. Louis as a staff has walked 153 hitters and struck out 356 batters. They give up a walk 3.5 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.30 while their FIP as a staff is 3.85.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .235, good for 23rd in the league. The Cardinals hold a .389 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .319, which is good for 15th in baseball. They rank 22nd in MLB with 8.0 hits per contest. Jose Martinez comes into this matchup batting .314 with an OBP of .385. He has 49 hits this year along with 29 RBI in 156 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .487 with an OPS+ of 140. Marcell Ozuna is hitting .234 this season and he has an OBP of .275. He has collected 40 hits in 171 at bats while driving in 21 runs. He has an OPS+ of 63 and a slugging percentage of .316. The Cardinals as a unit have 343 base hits, including 59 doubles and 54 homers. St. Louis has walked 165 times this year and they have struck out on 381 occasions. They have had 298 men left on base and have an OPS of .708. They have scored 4.44 runs per game and totaled 191 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Royals/Cardinals MLB game against the spread?

Guy's Pick: Take the Cardinals -195

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