Sunday, April 17, 2016

O.co Coliseum

For Updated Odds on This Game Click Here

Probable Pitchers: Kris Medlen vs. Chris Bassitt

The Kansas City Royals visit O.co Coliseum on Sunday to play the Oakland Athletics. The probable starters are Kris Medlen for the Royals and Chris Bassitt for the Athletics. The opening line for this matchup has Kansas City at -123 and Oakland at +113. The over/under was set at 7.5. The Royals have a 1-8-1 over/under record and a 6-4-0 run line mark, meaning they cover 60% of the time. The Athletics are 5-6-0 against the run line and have a 2-8-1 over/under record. They cover the spread 46% of the time.

The Royals head into this matchup with a 8-2 record, including 4-1 on the road. Starting pitcher Kris Medlen has a 1-0 record with an earned run average of 3.60 and a WHIP of 2.00. He has 7 strikeouts over his 5 innings pitched and he has given up 6 hits so far this season. He has allowed 10.8 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 2.76. The bullpen this year has an earned run average of 2.45 and they have given up 30 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .238 against the bullpen while being struck out 43 times and walking 16 times this season. As a team, Kansas City has allowed 7.5 hits per nine innings while striking out 10.1 batters per nine. They are 4th in the league in team earned run average at 2.70. The Royals pitchers have collectively given up 75 base hits and 27 earned runs. They have allowed 7 home runs this season and they allow 0.7 homers per nine innings as a staff. Kansas City as a pitching staff has walked 44 batters and struck out 101. They walk 4.4 men per 9 innings while striking out 10.1 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.32 and their FIP as a unit is 3.46.

As a team, Kansas City is batting .259, good for 10th in the league while putting together a .282 average away from home. The Royals hold a .401 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .306 which is good for 17th in baseball. They rank 10th in baseball with 8.9 hits per game. Eric Hosmer comes into this game hitting .325 and his on-base percentage is at .372. He has 13 hits this season along with 5 runs scored and 5 runs batted in. He's struck out 6 times and has walked 3 times. Lorenzo Cain is hitting .243 and he has an on-base percentage of .349. He has totaled 9 hits so far while scoring 8 runs and he's driven in 5. He has walked 6 times and has struck out 14 times. The Royals have 89 hits, including 14 doubles and 9 home runs. They've stolen 4 bases while they've been thrown out stealing 1 times. Kansas City has walked 25 times this season and they've struck out 81 times as a unit. They've left 72 men on base and have a team OPS of .707. They score 3.8 runs per contest and have scored a total of 38 runs so far this year.

Oakland comes into this matchup with a 1-7 home record and a 4-7 overall mark. With an earned run average of 2.92, Chris Bassitt has a 0-0 record and a 1.46 WHIP. He has 8 strikeouts over the 12.1 innings he's pitched during which he has given up 11 hits. He has allowed 8 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 4.62. So far this season the bullpen has an earned run average of 3.07 and they have given up 38 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .247 against the Athletics bullpen while being struck out 35 times and walking 5 times this season. As a team, Oakland has allowed 8.19 hits per nine innings while striking out 7.47 batters per nine. They are 6th in the league in team earned run average at 3.15. The Athletics pitchers as a team have surrendered 91 base knocks and 35 earned runs so far this season. They have given up 8 home runs this year and they give up 0.7 home runs per nine innings as a staff. Oakland as a staff has walked 32 hitters and struck out 83. They give up a walk 2.9 times per 9 innings while they strike out 7.5 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.23 while their FIP as a staff is 3.71.

As a team, they are batting .212, good for 26th in the league while putting together a .205 average at home. The Athletics hold a .331 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .265 which is good for 29th in baseball. They rank 23rd in baseball with 7.18 hits per contest. Josh Reddick comes into this matchup batting .250 and he has an OBP of .341. He has 9 hits this year along with 3 runs scored and 5 RBI. He's struck out 7 times and has walked on 5 occasions. Billy Butler is hitting .167 and he has an OBP of .211. He has collected 3 hits so far while he's scored 0 runs and drove in 0. He has earned a walk 1 time and has punched out 3 times. The Athletics as a unit have 79 base hits, including 12 doubles and 10 homers. They have 6 stolen bases while they've been thrown out 0 times. Oakland as a team has walked 25 times this year and they have struck out 86 times. They've had 74 men left on base and have an OPS of .596. They score 2.64 runs per game and have totaled 29 runs so far this season.

Kansas City Royals Betting Trends

The Kansas City Royals are 1-8-1 against the over/under so far this season

The Kansas City Royals are 6-4-0 against the run line so far this season

Oakland Athletics Betting Trends

The Oakland Athletics are 2-8-1 against the over/under so far this season

The Oakland Athletics are 5-6-0 against the run line so far this season

Injuries to Watch

Kansas City Royals

04/15/16 3B Mike Moustakas Hamstring "?" Saturday vs. Oakland Athletics
04/10/16 P Mike Minor Shoulder 60-day DL (3/15)
04/04/16 RF Jarrod Dyson Oblique 15-day DL (3/25)
04/04/16 P Tim Collins Elbow 60-day DL; out for season
03/31/16 P Jason Vargas Elbow 60-day DL (3/15)

Oakland Athletics

04/10/16 P Henderson Alvarez Shoulder 15-day DL (4/6)
04/05/16 P Felix Doubront Elbow 15-day DL (4/4); out for season
04/03/16 2B Eric Sogard Shoulder 15-day DL (3/25)
04/01/16 CF Sam Fuld Shoulder 15-day DL (3/25)
03/31/16 P Jarrod Parker Elbow 60-day DL (3/13)
03/31/16 P R.J. Alvarez Elbow 60-day DL (3/25)

Tony's Pick: Take the Royals

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