Kansas City Royals at St. Louis Cardinals 5/22/2018 Free MLB Picks and Predictions

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Busch Stadium

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Jason Hammel vs. Luke Weaver

The Kansas City Royals visit Busch Stadium on Tuesday, May 22, 2018 to play the St. Louis Cardinals. The probable starters are Jason Hammel for the Royals and Luke Weaver for the Cardinals.

The opening line for this matchup has Kansas City at +199 and St. Louis at -215. The Royals have a 19-25-2 over/under record and a 17-29-0 run line mark. The Cardinals are 19-25-0 against the run line and have a 17-23-4 over/under record.

Valuable Kansas City Royals Betting Trends

The Kansas City Royals are 19-25-2 against the over/under

The Kansas City Royals are 17-29-0 against the run line

Important St. Louis Cardinals Betting Trends

The St. Louis Cardinals are 17-23-4 against the over/under

The St. Louis Cardinals are 19-25-0 against the run line

Key Kansas City Royals Injuries

05/21/18 3B Cheslor Cuthbert Back 10-day DL (05/16)
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 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 14-32 overall record this season. Starting pitcher Jason Hammel has a 0-5 record with an earned run average of 6.28 and a WHIP of 1.47 this season. He has 27 strikeouts over his 53 innings pitched and he's given up 62 hits. He's allowed 10.5 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 4.8. The bullpen has an earned run average of 5.47 and they have given up 172 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .284 against the bullpen and they've struck out 110 hitters and walked 61 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 5.55. The Royals pitchers collectively have given up 461 base hits and 252 earned runs. They have allowed 71 home runs this season, ranking them 1st in the league. Kansas City as a pitching staff has walked 143 batters and struck out 314. They have walked 3.1 men per 9 innings while striking out 6.9 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.48 and their FIP as a unit is 5.03.

Hitting Statistics

As a team Kansas City is hitting .256, good for 10th in the league. The Royals hold a .387 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .320, which is good for 12th in baseball. They rank 8th in MLB with 8.8 hits per game. Mike Moustakas is hitting .294 with an on-base percentage of .333. He has 53 hits this season in 180 at bats with 31 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .528 and an OPS+ of 132. Whit Merrifield is hitting .292 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .354. He has totaled 52 hits and he has driven in 16 men in 178 at bats. His OPS+ is 114 while his slugging percentage is at .427. The Royals have 405 hits, including 81 doubles and 39 home runs. Kansas City has walked 134 times so far this season and they have struck out 326 times as a unit. They have left 327 men on base and have a team OPS of .707. They score 3.96 runs per contest and have scored a total of 182 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

St. Louis has a 25-19 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 4.37, Luke Weaver has a 3-3 record and a 1.27 WHIP. He has 42 strikeouts over the 47.1 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 43 hits. He's allowing 8.2 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 3.33. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.10 and they have given up 152 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .248 against the Cardinals bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 146 batters and walked 66 opposing hitters. As a team, St. Louis allows 8.1 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.2 batters per nine innings. They are 4th in the league in team earned run average at 3.47. The Cardinals pitchers as a team have surrendered 366 base knocks and 157 earned runs this season. They have given up 37 home runs this year, which ranks 30th in Major League Baseball. St. Louis as a staff has walked 156 hitters and struck out 370 batters. They give up a walk 3.4 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.2 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.28 while their FIP as a staff is 3.81.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .237, good for 22nd in the league. The Cardinals hold a .391 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .319, which is good for 16th in baseball. They rank 21st in MLB with 8.0 hits per contest. Marcell Ozuna comes into this matchup batting .234 with an OBP of .275. He has 40 hits this year along with 21 RBI in 171 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .316 with an OPS+ of 63. Jose Martinez is hitting .313 this season and he has an OBP of .383. He has collected 50 hits in 160 at bats while driving in 30 runs. He has an OPS+ of 137 and a slugging percentage of .481. The Cardinals as a unit have 353 base hits, including 61 doubles and 55 homers. St. Louis has walked 166 times this year and they have struck out on 389 occasions. They have had 304 men left on base and have an OPS of .710. They have scored 4.45 runs per game and totaled 196 runs this season.

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

Guy's Pick: Take the Cardinals -215

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