There appears to be a chance for light rain in Kansas City on Monday, where the Diamondbacks and Royals face off. The forecasted temperature is 77 degrees. First pitch from Kauffman Stadium is set for 8:10 PM ET.
Arizona is 51-49 and they are 2nd in the NL West, while the Royals are 2nd in the AL Central with an overall record of 55-45. Kansas City is favored on the money line (-159), and they will be looking to extend their three-game winning streak. The over/under line is sitting at 8.5 runs, and BSKC will be televising this interleague matchup.
Diamondbacks Look to Gain Ground in NL West as Diaz Makes Second Start Against Royals,
Arizona is 51-49 overall and 19-14 in division games. They are 8 games back of the Dodgers in the NL West. The Diamondbacks are 20-19 as the road underdog and 25-25 overall on the road. Their over/under record is 52-45, and they have an average run total of 9.6 runs per game this season. When the line is set at 8.5 runs, they are 19-13. Today, they are on the road against the Royals, and Yilber Diaz is making his 2nd start of the season.
Arizona is 5th in runs per game this season, and their batting average of .252 is 7th in the league. Their OBP of .325 is 5th. Ketel Marte is hitting .289 with 19 home runs and 57 RBI, and Christian Walker is hitting .259 with 22 home runs and 68 RBI. Marte is hitting .375 over his last 7 games. The Diamondbacks have one player on a hitting streak, as Randal Grichuk has hit safely in 5 straight games. The over/under line for today’s game is set at 8.5 runs, and the Diamondbacks have a combined run average of 9.6 runs per game this season. Arizona is 52-48 against the run line this season, with an average run margin of +0.2 runs per game. They are 29-21 against the run line on the road.
Red-Hot Royals Surge to 2nd in AL Central with Stellar Home Performance,
The Kansas City Royals are 55-45 this season and are 2nd in the AL Central, five games behind the Guardians. They have won three straight games and are 19-10 in divisional games. Kansas City is 34-18 at home and 21-27 on the road. Their over/under record is 40-57, and the over/under line for their games at home is 8.5 runs. Their games have averaged 8.4 runs per game. The Royals have an over/under record of 10-19 when the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs.
Cole Ragans has a record of 6-6 and an ERA of 3.16. He is coming off a start where he went seven innings and gave up just one earned run. Ragans has 141 strikeouts this season, with an average of 10.88 per nine innings. The Royals are 58-42 on the run line this season, and their average run margin is +0.7 runs per game. When they win, their average run margin is 3.8 runs per game. The Royals are 2nd in scoring at home, averaging 5.2 runs per game.
Royals Edge Diamondbacks 7-6: Pitching Struggles and Hit Projections Highlight Matchup,
Our predicted final score for this one is 7-6 in favor of the Royals, which gives us a lot of value on the money line at -159. Looking at the starting pitchers, Cole Ragans is projected to finish with five strikeouts, which is third worst among starters, and he is projected to finish with a line of 8th in hits allowed and 11th in earned runs.
As for Yilber Diaz, he is projected to finish with five strikeouts, and his 5th worst in terms of starters’ average. Diaz is also projected to finish with the seventh most hits allowed among starters.
Looking at the Diamondbacks lineup, they are projected to finish with 11 hits, which is the fifth most among teams today. As for the Royals, they are projected to finish with nine hits, and their home run projection is 16th in the league.
