New York Yankees at Kansas City Royals 5/18/2018 Free MLB Picks and Predictions

Friday, May 18, 2018

Kauffman Stadium

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: CC Sabathia vs. Jakob Junis

The New York Yankees visit Kauffman Stadium on Friday, May 18, 2018 to play the Kansas City Royals. The probable starters are CC Sabathia for the Yankees and Jakob Junis for the Royals.

The opening line for this matchup has New York at -165 and Kansas City at +155. The Yankees have a 23-16-1 over/under record and a 23-17-0 run line mark. The Royals are 16-27-0 against the run line and have a 17-24-2 over/under record.

Valuable New York Yankees Betting Trends

The New York Yankees are 23-16-1 against the over/under

The New York Yankees are 23-17-0 against the run line

Important Kansas City Royals Betting Trends

The Kansas City Royals are 17-24-2 against the over/under

The Kansas City Royals are 16-27-0 against the run line

Key New York Yankees Injuries

05/02/18 CF Jacoby Ellsbury Oblique 60-day DL (03/26)
05/02/18 P Jordan Montgomery Elbow 10-day DL (05/02)
04/21/18 P Adam Warren Back 10-day DL (04/21)
04/20/18 P Luis Cessa Oblique 10-day DL (04/18)
04/17/18 P Tommy Kahnle Shoulder 10-day DL (04/16)
04/04/18 P Ben Heller Elbow 60-day DL (03/27)
04/01/18 RF Billy McKinney Shoulder 10-day DL (04/01)
03/29/18 LF Clint Frazier Concussion 7-day DL (03/26)
03/29/18 1B Greg Bird Ankle 10-day DL (03/26)

Key Kansas City Royals Injuries

05/16/18 LF Jorge Soler Ribs is "?" Friday vs New York Yankees
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)

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Yankees have a 28-12 overall record this season. Starting pitcher CC Sabathia has a 2-0 record with an earned run average of 2.23 and a WHIP of 1.02 this season. He has 28 strikeouts over his 36.1 innings pitched and he's given up 32 hits. He's allowed 7.9 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 3.61. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.53 and they have given up 122 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .217 against the bullpen and they've struck out 210 hitters and walked 56 batters. As a team, New York allows 7.6 hits per nine innings while striking out 10.2 batters per nine innings. They are 10th in the league in team earned run average at 3.69. The Yankees pitchers collectively have given up 315 base hits and 152 earned runs. They have allowed 42 home runs this season, ranking them 25th in the league. New York as a pitching staff has walked 126 batters and struck out 420. They have walked 3.1 men per 9 innings while striking out 10.2 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.19 and their FIP as a unit is 3.46.

Hitting Statistics

As a team New York is hitting .251, good for 12th in the league. The Yankees hold a .445 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .340, which is good for 1st in baseball. They rank 13th in MLB with 8.5 hits per game. Aaron Judge is hitting .307 with an on-base percentage of .441. He has 46 hits this season in 150 at bats with 35 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .593 and an OPS+ of 174. Didi Gregorius is hitting .255 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .343. He has totaled 38 hits and he has driven in 31 men in 149 at bats. His OPS+ is 130 while his slugging percentage is at .537. The Yankees have 349 hits, including 85 doubles and 58 home runs. New York has walked 183 times so far this season and they have struck out 376 times as a unit. They have left 289 men on base and have a team OPS of .785. They score 5.71 runs per contest and have scored a total of 234 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Kansas City has a 13-30 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 3.53, Jakob Junis has a 4-3 record and a 1.04 WHIP. He has 45 strikeouts over the 51 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 42 hits. He's allowing 7.4 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 5.01. The bullpen has an earned run average of 5.52 and they have given up 158 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .284 against the Royals bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 100 batters and walked 58 opposing hitters. As a team, Kansas City allows 10 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 5.47. The Royals pitchers as a team have surrendered 425 base knocks and 232 earned runs this season. They have given up 62 home runs this year, which ranks 2nd in Major League Baseball. Kansas City as a staff has walked 134 hitters and struck out 294 batters. They give up a walk 3.2 times per 9 innings while they strike out 6.9 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.46 while their FIP as a staff is 4.89.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .260, good for 5th in the league. The Royals hold a .392 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .323, which is good for 12th in baseball. They rank 4th in MLB with 9.0 hits per contest. Whit Merrifield comes into this matchup batting .289 with an OBP of .355. He has 48 hits this year along with 16 RBI in 166 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .422 with an OPS+ of 112. Mike Moustakas is hitting .294 this season and he has an OBP of .328. He has collected 50 hits in 170 at bats while driving in 30 runs. He has an OPS+ of 132 and a slugging percentage of .541. The Royals as a unit have 386 base hits, including 75 doubles and 38 homers. Kansas City has walked 125 times this year and they have struck out on 302 occasions. They have had 310 men left on base and have an OPS of .715. They have scored 4.02 runs per game and totaled 173 runs this season.

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

Josh's Pick: Take the Yankees -165

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