Boston Red Sox at Kansas City Royals Expert MLB Picks 6/5/2019

Wednesday, June 5, 2019

Kauffman Stadium

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Chris Sale vs. Jakob Junis

J.D. Martinez and the Boston Red Sox (30-29, 3rd in AL East) are headed to Kauffman Stadium on Wednesday where they'll take on the Kansas City Royals (19-40, 5th in AL Central). The Red Sox open this contest at -220 while the Royals are priced at +203. The O/U is set at 8.5.

The Red Sox have been a pretty good bet for baseball wagerers, having gone 30-29-0 SU. The Royals cover 32.2% of the time, going 19-40-0 straight up. The Red Sox have been solid for MLB bettors as the favorite, going 26-24-0 SU. Kansas City has gone 16-37-0 straight up as an underdog, so they cover 30.2% of the time.

Valuable Boston Red Sox Betting Trends

The Red Sox have been an awful Under play for O/U bettors, having gone 33-24-2.

Boston is covering 48.5% of the time on the road, having gone 16-17-0 straight up.

Important Kansas City Royals Betting Trends

The Royals cover 39.3% of the time at Kauffman Stadium, going 11-17-0 SU.

The Royals have been a solid Over play for O/U bettors, having gone 29-26-4.

Key Boston Red Sox Injuries

6/2/2019 Nathan Eovaldi SP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Jun 15
6/1/2019 Steve Pearce 1B Back Expected to be out until at least Jun 11
6/1/2019 Blake Swihart C Oblique Expected to be out until at least Jun 15
5/30/2019 Tzu-Wei Lin 2B Knee Expected to be out until at least Jun 6
5/30/2019 Hector Velazquez RP Back Expected to be out until at least Jun 9
5/29/2019 Brian Johnson RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Jun 7
5/29/2019 Mitch Moreland 1B Back Expected to be out until at least Jun 5
5/28/2019 Dustin Pedroia 2B Knee Expected to be out until at least Sep 1
5/23/2019 Tyler Thornburg RP Hip Expected to be out until at least Jun 18
11/1/2019 Austin Maddox RP Shoulder Out for the season

Key Kansas City Royals Injuries

6/3/2019 Hunter Dozier 3B Side Expected to be out until at least Jun 10
6/2/2019 Martin Maldonado C Forearm Probable for Jun 4
6/1/2019 Jesse Hahn SP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Jun 15
5/25/2019 Lucas Duda DH Back Expected to be out until at least Jun 4
3/28/2019 Trevor Oaks SP Hip Expected to be out until at least Aug 1
3/11/2019 Salvador Perez C Elbow Out for the season

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Red Sox have a 30-29 overall record this season. Starting pitcher Chris Sale has a 1-7 record with an earned run average of 4.35 and a WHIP of 1.08 this season. He has 98 strikeouts over his 68.1 innings pitched and he's given up 55 hits. He's allowed 7.2 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 3.51. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.09 and they have given up 189 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .224 against the bullpen and they've struck out 254 hitters and walked 96 batters. As a team, Boston allows 8.2 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.8 batters per nine innings. They are 17th in the league in team earned run average at 4.46. The Red Sox pitchers collectively have given up 478 base hits and 261 earned runs. They have allowed 75 home runs this season, ranking them 16th in the league. Boston as a pitching staff has walked 196 batters and struck out 573. They have walked 3.3 men per 9 innings while striking out 9.8 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.28 and their FIP as a unit is 4.09.

Hitting Statistics

As a team Boston is hitting .260, good for 5th in the league. The Red Sox hold a .443 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .340, which is good for 5th in baseball. They rank 5th in MLB with 9.1 hits per game. J.D. Martinez is hitting .294 with an on-base percentage of .373. He has 60 hits this season in 204 at bats with 32 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .525 and an OPS+ of 133. Mookie Betts is hitting .276 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .387. He has totaled 62 hits and he has driven in 27 men in 225 at bats. His OPS+ is 122 while his slugging percentage is at .458. The Red Sox have 534 hits, including 108 doubles and 86 home runs. Boston has walked 235 times so far this season and they have struck out 487 times as a unit. They have left 425 men on base and have a team OPS of .783. They score 5.34 runs per contest and have scored a total of 315 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Kansas City has a 19-40 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 5.35, Jakob Junis has a 4-5 record and a 1.44 WHIP. He has 61 strikeouts over the 67.1 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 72 hits. He's allowing 9.6 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 4.89. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.73 and they have given up 211 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .263 against the Royals bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 202 batters and walked 91 opposing hitters. As a team, Kansas City allows 9.4 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.1 batters per nine innings. They are 28th in the league in team earned run average at 5.22. The Royals pitchers as a team have surrendered 537 base knocks and 299 earned runs this season. They have given up 71 home runs this year, which ranks 23rd in Major League Baseball. Kansas City as a staff has walked 223 hitters and struck out 462 batters. They give up a walk 3.9 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.1 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.48 while their FIP as a staff is 4.65.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .246, good for 19th in the league. The Royals hold a .412 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .314, which is good for 20th in baseball. They rank 20th in MLB with 8.3 hits per contest. Adalberto Mondesi comes into this matchup batting .285 with an OBP of .322. He has 67 hits this year along with 42 RBI in 235 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .489 with an OPS+ of 113. Whit Merrifield is hitting .298 this season and he has an OBP of .352. He has collected 73 hits in 245 at bats while driving in 28 runs. He has an OPS+ of 125 and a slugging percentage of .502. The Royals as a unit have 491 base hits, including 95 doubles and 61 homers. Kansas City has walked 182 times this year and they have struck out on 510 occasions. They have had 390 men left on base and have an OPS of .726. They have scored 4.34 runs per game and totaled 256 runs this season.

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

Josh's Pick: Take the Royals +203

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