Minnesota Twins vs Kansas City Royals Prediction, 3/28/2024 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Minnesota Twins vs Kansas City Royals

Date: Thursday, March 28, 2024

Location: Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO

TV: Bally Sports North

Odds/Point Spread: Minnesota (-130) Kansas City (+110)

The Kansas City Royals (56-106 last season) welcome the Minnesota Twins (87-75 last year) at Kauffman Stadium on Thursday. The moneyline on this matchup has Minnesota at -130 while Kansas City is at +110. The over/under is set at 7.5. The expected starting pitchers will be Pablo Lopez and Cole Ragans.

The Twins accumulated 264 two-baggers as a team and hit 233 balls out of the park. Minnesota had a slugging percentage of .427 and struck out 1,654 times, while drawing a walk on 594 occasions. As a unit, the Minnesota Twins put up 4.8 runs per game, which ranked them 10th in baseball. They accrued 745 RBI's and 1,335 base knocks during the previous year, while their batting average sat at .243. They were sitting with 778 runs while having a team OBP of .326.

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Their strikeout to walk ratio was 3.52 and the pitching staff held a collective WHIP of 1.20. Twins pitchers conceded 194 home runs and 659 runs in total (3rd in baseball). Minnesota relinquished 1,294 hits (8.0 per 9 innings) as well as 624 earned runs. The Twins had an earned run average of 3.87 during the previous year (6th in MLB), and their staff rung up 1,560 batters. They walked 443 opposing hitters and their FIP came in at 3.89 as a squad last season.

The Twins dispatched 490 relief pitchers to the hill in the prior season. The relievers inherited 160 runners over the course of the prior season and 28.1% of those runners ended up crossing the plate. They recorded 38 saves over the course of the prior season and missed out on 28 out of their 66 save opportunities. The Twins relief pitchers accumulated a save percentage of 57.6% and stepped onto the hill in 147 save situations. The relief pitchers notched 79 holds for the prior year (21st in MLB). Twins relief pitchers entered the game with runners on base 118 times in addition to having 186 games in high leverage situations.

The Minnesota Twins notched a total of 4,354 putouts last season, in addition to 1,286 assists and 66 errors. Their fielding rate was previously at .988 which was 4th in pro baseball, and they twisted 116 double plays. The Twins turned 69.7% of baseballs in play into outs out of their 13,062 innings, which had them sitting 9th in the majors.

Lopez has taken the hill for 704 innings and has totaled 723 K's so far in his MLB career. His earned run average is 3.86 (302 ER's allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.178. He has given up 639 base hits (8.2 hits per 9 innings) with 190 walks. Lopez (39-39 win-loss record in his career) has earned a FIP of 3.65 and he has faced 2,911 opposing hitters in the majors.

The Kansas City Royals held an OBP of .303 and a batting average of .244 for the previous season. They struck out on 1,396 instances (16th in MLB) and were sitting with 1,325 base hits. Kansas City tallied 163 home runs during the previous year to go along with 651 RBIs. The Royals held a team SLG% of .398 and they were scoring 4.17 runs per contest (23rd in the league). They hit 258 doubles, while getting a free base 411 times and earning 676 runs.

The Kansas City pitching staff surrendered 859 runs over the course of the prior season while having an ERA of 5.17 (809 earned runs yielded). They gave up 207 home runs and they yielded 5.49 runs per 9 innings (28th in the league). The Royals finished with a team WHIP of 1.407 and had a FIP of 4.70 as a staff during the previous year. Their K/BB ratio was 8.10 (1,270 strikeouts against 553 walks). They were ranked 26th in MLB as a staff in total hits surrendered with 1,429.

Kansas City bullpen pitchers had an inherited score percentage of 36.9% of 195 inherited base runners. Their bullpen pitchers took the field 136 times in high leverage situations and on 121 occasions with runners on base. Wrapping up the year with 119 save situations, the Royals compiled 66 holds and also 25 blown saves. They were ranked 26th in baseball with a save rate of 52.8%, and they dispatched 526 relievers to the hill last season. Kansas City had relief pitchers take the mound in 53 save opportunities and they earned 28 saves.

The Kansas City Royals had 123 double plays and accounted for a fielding rate of .986 (12th in professional baseball). The Royals had 1,391 assists, 80 errors and accumulated 4,227 putouts for the previous season. Out of their 12,681 innings played, the Royals earned a defensive efficiency of 68.5% (19th in professional baseball).

Ragans (7-8 career win-loss mark) has a 3.90 ERA and has surrendered 7.5 hits per 9 innings. He has a K/BB ratio of 2.46 and he has faced 566 opposing batters so far in his pro baseball career. He has surrendered a total of 59 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.250 and a FIP of 3.7. In his pro baseball career, Ragans has allowed 113 base knocks and he has 140 strikeouts in 136 frames.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Minnesota (-130)

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