Cleveland Indians vs Kansas City Royals Prediction, 9/2/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Cleveland Indians vs Kansas City Royals

Date: Wednesday, September 2, 2020

Location: Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO

TV: STOh/FSKC

Odds/Point Spread: Indians (-163) Royals (+150)

Carlos Santana and the Cleveland Indians (21-14, 2nd in AL Central) are headed to Kauffman Stadium on Wednesday where they'll meet the Kansas City Royals (14-21, 5th in AL Central). The Royals open this game at +150 while the Indians are coming in at -163. The over/under opens at 9. The expected starting pitchers will be Triston McKenzie and Jakob Junis.

Key Cleveland Indians Injuries

No key injuries to report

Key Kansas City Royals Injuries

8/31/2020 Ian Kennedy RP Calf Expected to be out until at least Sep 8
8/28/2020 Salvador Perez C Eye Expected to be out until at least Sep 3
8/16/2020 Daniel Tillo RP Elbow Out for the season
8/15/2020 Foster Griffin RP Elbow Out for the season
8/10/2020 Franchy Cordero RF Wrist Expected to be out until at least Sep 24
8/8/2020 Mike Montgomery SP Lat Expected to be out until at least Sep 15
8/7/2020 Glenn Sparkman RP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 18
7/16/2020 Kelvin Gutierrez 3B Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 1

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Indians have a 21-14 overall record this season. McKenzie (1-0 win-loss record) sits with a FIP of 4.40 and he has faced 38 hitters during his time in the majors. His earned run average is 2.70 (3 earned runs allowed) and his WHIP is 0.900. He has conceded 5 base hits (4.5 hits per 9 innings) and has 4 walks. McKenzie has taken the mound for 10 innings and has racked up 13 strikeouts. The bullpen has an earned run average of 2.63 and they have given up 79 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .180 against the bullpen and they've struck out 122 hitters and walked 35 batters. As a team, Cleveland allows 6.9 hits per nine innings while striking out 10.3 batters per nine innings. They are 2nd in the league in team earned run average at 2.87. The Indians pitchers collectively have given up 241 base hits and 100 earned runs. They have allowed 36 home runs this season, ranking them 27th in the league. Cleveland as a pitching staff has walked 91 batters and struck out 360. They have walked 2.6 men per 9 innings while striking out 10.3 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.06 and their FIP as a unit is 3.34.

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

Hitting Statistics

As a team Cleveland is hitting .220, good for 26th in the league. The Indians hold a .353 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .321, which is good for 17th in baseball. They rank 25th in MLB with 7.2 hits per game. Carlos Santana is hitting .212 with an on-base percentage of .386. He has 25 hits this season in 118 at bats with 17 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .331 and an OPS+ of 96. Francisco Lindor is hitting .266 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .323. He has totaled 38 hits and he has driven in 15 men in 143 at bats. His OPS+ is 99 while his slugging percentage is at .427. The Indians have 252 hits, including 49 doubles and 33 home runs. Cleveland has walked 152 times so far this season and they have struck out 314 times as a unit. They have left 248 men on base and have a team OPS of .674. They score 4.09 runs per contest and have scored a total of 143 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Kansas City has a 14-21 overall mark this year. So far in his career, Junis has given up 490 hits while totaling 418 strikeouts in 462 innings. He has conceded 241 earned runs while earning a WHIP of 1.343 and a FIP of 4.7. His SO/W ratio is 3.19 and he has gone up against 2,008 batters so far in his career. Junis (27-29 career record) has earned a 4.69 ERA and has allowed 9.5 hits per 9 innings. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.70 and they have given up 134 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .209 against the Royals bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 159 batters and walked 75 opposing hitters. As a team, Kansas City allows 8.6 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.2 batters per nine innings. They are 11th in the league in team earned run average at 4.24. The Royals pitchers as a team have surrendered 283 base knocks and 140 earned runs this season. They have given up 46 home runs this year, which ranks 10th in Major League Baseball. Kansas City as a staff has walked 137 hitters and struck out 303 batters. They give up a walk 4.2 times per 9 innings while they strike out 9.2 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.41 while their FIP as a staff is 4.73.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .242, good for 17th in the league. The Royals hold a .409 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .311, which is good for 25th in baseball. They rank 16th in MLB with 8.0 hits per contest. Hunter Dozier comes into this matchup batting .234 with an OBP of .395. He has 15 hits this year along with 8 RBI in 64 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .422 with an OPS+ of 124. Jorge Soler is hitting .250 this season and he has an OBP of .352. He has collected 31 hits in 124 at bats while driving in 22 runs. He has an OPS+ of 127 and a slugging percentage of .492. The Royals as a unit have 279 base hits, including 62 doubles and 42 homers. Kansas City has walked 104 times this year and they have struck out on 306 occasions. They have had 229 men left on base and have an OPS of .720. They have scored 4.03 runs per game and totaled 141 runs this season.

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

Guy's Pick: Take the Royals (+150)

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