Houston Astros at Kansas City Royals MLB Game Picks 9/13/2019

Friday, September 13, 2019

Kauffman Stadium

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Gerrit Cole vs. Danny Duffy

Kauffman Stadium is the venue where Whit Merrifield and the Kansas City Royals (54-92, 4th in AL Central) will play the Houston Astros (95-52, 1st in AL West) on Friday. The odds on this contest have the Astros coming in at -335 and the Royals are at +295. The total opens at 9.

The Astros have been a very good bet for wagerers, having gone 95-52-0 SU. Kansas City covers 37.0% of the time, going 54-92-0 straight up.

Valuable Houston Astros Betting Trends

The Astros have been a dicey Under pick for over/under baseball bettors, having gone 66-75-6.

Houston covers 52.9% of the time away from home, having gone 37-33-0 straight up.

Important Kansas City Royals Betting Trends

The Royals cover 38.9% of the time at Kauffman Stadium, going 28-44-0 SU.

The Royals have been a dicey Under pick for over/under baseball bettors, having gone 74-66-6.

Related: Gambling 101 - MLB Betting Tips - Tony George of Doc's Sports

Key Houston Astros Injuries

9/11/2019 Yuli Gurriel 1B Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Sep 13
9/10/2019 Ryan Pressly RP Knee Expected to be out until at least Sep 20
9/9/2019 Collin McHugh RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 24
9/9/2019 Brad Peacock SP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 20
9/5/2019 Carlos Correa SS Back Expected to be out until at least Sep 20
9/5/2019 Aaron Sanchez SP Shoulder Out for the season
6/9/2019 Lance McCullers SP Elbow Out for the season

Key Kansas City Royals Injuries

8/29/2019 Brad Keller SP Rest Out for the season
8/16/2019 Trevor Oaks SP Hip Expected to be out until at least Sep 20
3/11/2019 Salvador Perez C Elbow Out for the season

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Astros have a 95-52 overall record this season. Starting pitcher Gerrit Cole has a 16-5 record with an earned run average of 2.73 and a WHIP of 0.92 this season. He has 281 strikeouts over his 184.1 innings pitched and he's given up 126 hits. He's allowed 6.2 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 2.8. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.91 and they have given up 438 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .228 against the bullpen and they've struck out 547 hitters and walked 181 batters. As a team, Houston allows 7.5 hits per nine innings while striking out 10.2 batters per nine innings. They are 4th in the league in team earned run average at 3.79. The Astros pitchers collectively have given up 1,104 base hits and 558 earned runs. They have allowed 220 home runs this season, ranking them 8th in the league. Houston as a pitching staff has walked 414 batters and struck out 1,501. They have walked 2.8 men per 9 innings while striking out 10.2 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.15 and their FIP as a unit is 4.13.

Related: Get MLB predictions on all of today's games

Hitting Statistics

As a team Houston is hitting .277, good for 1st in the league. The Astros hold a .495 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .353, which is good for 1st in baseball. They rank 2nd in MLB with 9.6 hits per game. Alex Bregman is hitting .296 with an on-base percentage of .416. He has 150 hits this season in 507 at bats with 103 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .578 and an OPS+ of 157. Michael Brantley is hitting .323 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .382. He has totaled 172 hits and he has driven in 85 men in 532 at bats. His OPS+ is 135 while his slugging percentage is at .523. The Astros have 1,408 hits, including 300 doubles and 254 home runs. Houston has walked 572 times so far this season and they have struck out 1,056 times as a unit. They have left 1,047 men on base and have a team OPS of .848. They score 5.71 runs per contest and have scored a total of 839 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Kansas City has a 54-92 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 4.71, Danny Duffy has a 6-6 record and a 1.38 WHIP. He has 98 strikeouts over the 112.2 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 114 hits. He's allowing 9.1 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 4.94. The bullpen has an earned run average of 5.04 and they have given up 539 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .272 against the Royals bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 473 batters and walked 229 opposing hitters. As a team, Kansas City allows 9.6 hits per nine innings while striking out 7.8 batters per nine innings. They are 27th in the league in team earned run average at 5.15. The Royals pitchers as a team have surrendered 1,374 base knocks and 735 earned runs this season. They have given up 196 home runs this year, which ranks 17th in Major League Baseball. Kansas City as a staff has walked 513 hitters and struck out 1,113 batters. They give up a walk 3.6 times per 9 innings while they strike out 7.8 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.47 while their FIP as a staff is 4.83.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .246, good for 23rd in the league. The Royals hold a .401 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .309, which is good for 25th in baseball. They rank 22nd in MLB with 8.3 hits per contest. Whit Merrifield comes into this matchup batting .306 with an OBP of .353. He has 188 hits this year along with 72 RBI in 614 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .472 with an OPS+ of 115. Hunter Dozier is hitting .289 this season and he has an OBP of .362. He has collected 133 hits in 460 at bats while driving in 79 runs. He has an OPS+ of 135 and a slugging percentage of .546. The Royals as a unit have 1,217 base hits, including 244 doubles and 152 homers. Kansas City has walked 416 times this year and they have struck out on 1,226 occasions. They have had 947 men left on base and have an OPS of .710. They have scored 4.27 runs per game and totaled 624 runs this season.

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

Guy's Pick: Take the Royals (+295)

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