Minnesota Twins vs Kansas City Royals Prediction, 5/20/2022 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Minnesota Twins vs Kansas City Royals

Date: Friday, May 20, 2022

Location: Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO

TV: Bally Sports Kansas City

Odds/Point Spread: Minnesota (-120) Kansas City (+100)

The Kansas City Royals (14-22) welcome the Minnesota Twins (22-16) at Kauffman Stadium on Friday. The odds on this game have the Twins at -120 and the Royals are opening at +100. The over/under has been set at 7.5. The starting pitchers are Devin Smeltzer and Daniel Lynch.

As a team, the Minnesota Twins are putting up 4.1 runs per game, which is 17th in the league. They have accounted for 156 runs scored while holding a team OBP of .320. The Twins have accounted for 68 two-baggers as a squad and have hit 40 balls out of the park. They have 148 RBI's and 299 hits over the course of the season, and their team batting average comes in at .241. Minnesota owns a slugging percentage of .394 and have been called out on strikes 321 times, while taking a walk on 131 occasions.

Get all of our MLB Picks Today

The Twins are sitting with a team ERA of 3.35 on the year (6th in MLB), and the staff has struck out 330 batters. Their pitching staff has walked 110 players from the other team and their FIP is 3.71 as a squad this year. They have earned a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.00 and their pitching staff has earned a collective WHIP of 1.19. Twins pitchers have given up 39 home runs and also 135 total runs (5th in the league).

Twins relief pitchers have entered the game with runners on base 29 times in addition to having 36 appearances in high leverage situations. The relievers have notched 21 holds on the campaign (15th in MLB). The Twins bullpen have compiled a save rate of 75.0% and has entered the game in 33 save situations. They have compiled 9 saves on the season and have missed out on 3 of their 12 chances to save the game. The relief pitchers have inherited 45 runners on the year with 33.3% of them earned a run for their team. The Twins have dispatched 122 relief pitchers to the mound on the campaign.

The Minnesota Twins have 1,008 putouts thus far, as well as 299 assists and 18 errors. Their fielding rate is currently at .986 which has them ranked 10th in MLB, and they have twisted 26 double plays. The Twins have turned 71.0% of baseballs in play into outs out of 3,024 innings on the field, ranking them 13th in MLB.

Smeltzer has pitched in 74 frames and has totaled 58 punch outs so far in his MLB career. Smeltzer (4-2 career win-loss record) is the owner of a FIP of 4.35 while facing 310 hitters during his time in the major leagues. His ERA is 4.10 (34 earned runs allowed) and his WHIP is 1.246. He has conceded 73 base knocks (8.8 hits per nine innings) and has 20 walks.

The Kansas City Royals have earned a team OBP of .292 as well as a batting average of .229 for the year. They have struck out on 275 occasions (27th in the league) and have tallied 276 hits. Kansas City has 24 home runs so far this season as well as 119 runs batted in. The Royals hold a slugging percentage of .345 and they are scoring 3.58 runs per game (25th in the league). They have recorded 50 two-baggers, while walking 102 times and putting up 129 runs.

The Royals have a WHIP of 1.368 and are the owners of a FIP of 4.23 as a unit for the year. Their K/BB ratio comes in at 1.96 (245 strikeouts against 125 walks). They are sitting at 24th in the league as a pitching staff in total hits surrendered with 310. They have surrendered 34 homers and they relinquish 4.87 runs per 9 innings (26th in MLB). The Kansas City pitching staff have given up 172 runs on the year while holding a team ERA of 4.42 (156 earned runs conceded).

With 32 save situations, the Royals have compiled 18 holds in addition to 5 blown saves. Kansas City has had relief pitchers step onto the hill in 13 save chances and they have tallied 8 saves. Their bullpen pitchers have stepped onto the mound 52 times in high leverage situations in addition to 47 occasions with runners on base. Kansas City relievers have an inherited score percentage of 31.4% out of 70 inherited base runners. They are ranked 25th in the league with a save rate of 61.5%, and they have sent 131 relievers to the hill so far this year.

The Kansas City Royals have gotten 36 double plays and hold a fielding percentage of .989 (4th in baseball). The Royals have racked up 338 assists, 14 errors and have a tally of 954 putouts for the year. In 2,862 innings played, the Royals have accumulated a efficiency on defense of 70.0% (19th in the majors).

So far in his career, Lynch has given up 106 base hits while totaling 84 strikeouts in 98 frames. Lynch (6-8 career win-loss mark) has a 4.96 ERA while conceding 9.7 hits per 9 innings. He has conceded a total of 54 ER's while earning a WHIP of 1.531 and having a FIP of 4.7. His strikeout to walk ratio is 1.91 and he has gone up against 440 opposing hitters during his pro baseball career.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Kansas City (+100)

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here