Kansas City Royals at Minnesota Twins Expert MLB Picks Against the Spread 6/15/2019

Saturday, June 15, 2019

Target Field

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Glenn Sparkman vs. Jake Odorizzi

Whit Merrifield and the Kansas City Royals (22-46, 5th in AL Central) go to Target Field on Saturday where they'll take on the Minnesota Twins (45-22, 1st in AL Central). The Royals open this matchup at +220 while the Twins are coming in at -240. The over/under has been set at 9.5.

The Royals have been excellent for Vegas oddsmakers oddsmakers, having gone 22-46-0 SU. Minnesota is covering 67.2% of the time, going 45-22-0 straight up. The Twins have been lousy for oddsmakers as a favorite, going 29-12-0 SU. Kansas City is covering 29.3% of the time as the underdog, having gone 17-41-0 straight up.

Valuable Kansas City Royals Betting Trends

The Royals have been an inconsistent Under choice for O/U baseball wagerers, having gone 33-31-4.

The Royals cover 25.8% of the time as a visitor, having gone 8-23-0 straight up.

Important Minnesota Twins Betting Trends

The Twins cover 67.7% of the time at Target Field, going 21-10-0 SU.

The Twins have been an excellent Over choice for O/U baseball wagerers, having gone 37-27-3.

Related: MLB Baseball First Five Innings Betting Strategy

Key Kansas City Royals Injuries

6/13/2019 Alex Gordon LF Back Probable for Jun 14
6/12/2019 Hunter Dozier 3B Side Expected to be out until at least Jun 17
6/10/2019 Jesse Hahn SP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Jul 25
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

Key Minnesota Twins Injuries

6/1/2019 Adalberto Mejia RP Calf Expected to be out until at least Jun 20

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Royals have a 22-46 overall record this season. Starting pitcher Glenn Sparkman has a 1-2 record with an earned run average of 3.58 and a WHIP of 1.30 this season. He has 21 strikeouts over his 37.2 innings pitched and he's given up 40 hits. He's allowed 9.6 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 4.38. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.86 and they have given up 239 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .262 against the bullpen and they've struck out 230 hitters and walked 107 batters. As a team, Kansas City allows 9.2 hits per nine innings while striking out 7.9 batters per nine innings. They are 27th in the league in team earned run average at 5.1. The Royals pitchers collectively have given up 611 base hits and 338 earned runs. They have allowed 78 home runs this season, ranking them 27th in the league. Kansas City as a pitching staff has walked 253 batters and struck out 526. They have walked 3.8 men per 9 innings while striking out 7.9 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.45 and their FIP as a unit is 4.55.

Related: Get MLB tips & picks on all of today's games

Hitting Statistics

As a team Kansas City is hitting .244, good for 20th in the league. The Royals hold a .406 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .310, which is good for 22nd in baseball. They rank 21st in MLB with 8.3 hits per game. Whit Merrifield is hitting .294 with an on-base percentage of .344. He has 83 hits this season in 282 at bats with 31 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .482 and an OPS+ of 118. Adalberto Mondesi is hitting .277 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .310. He has totaled 76 hits and he has driven in 44 men in 274 at bats. His OPS+ is 102 while his slugging percentage is at .460. The Royals have 561 hits, including 114 doubles and 68 home runs. Kansas City has walked 201 times so far this season and they have struck out 601 times as a unit. They have left 450 men on base and have a team OPS of .715. They score 4.18 runs per contest and have scored a total of 284 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Minnesota has a 45-22 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 1.92, Jake Odorizzi has a 9-2 record and a 0.97 WHIP. He has 78 strikeouts over the 70.1 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 46 hits. He's allowing 5.9 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 2.7. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.83 and they have given up 216 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .259 against the Twins bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 226 batters and walked 91 opposing hitters. As a team, Minnesota allows 8.6 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.9 batters per nine innings. They are 9th in the league in team earned run average at 4.01. The Twins pitchers as a team have surrendered 564 base knocks and 264 earned runs this season. They have given up 83 home runs this year, which ranks 20th in Major League Baseball. Minnesota as a staff has walked 192 hitters and struck out 583 batters. They give up a walk 2.9 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.9 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.28 while their FIP as a staff is 4.10.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .275, good for 1st in the league. The Twins hold a .517 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .341, which is good for 3rd in baseball. They rank 1st in MLB with 9.6 hits per contest. Jorge Polanco comes into this matchup batting .338 with an OBP of .397. He has 88 hits this year along with 36 RBI in 260 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .569 with an OPS+ of 156. Eddie Rosario is hitting .267 this season and he has an OBP of .300. He has collected 68 hits in 255 at bats while driving in 52 runs. He has an OPS+ of 117 and a slugging percentage of .533. The Twins as a unit have 640 base hits, including 147 doubles and 132 homers. Minnesota has walked 209 times this year and they have struck out on 520 occasions. They have had 444 men left on base and have an OPS of .858. They have scored 6.03 runs per game and totaled 404 runs this season.

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

Josh's Pick: Take the Royals +220

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