MLB: Oakland A’s vs. Kansas City Royals Predictions
Major League Baseball betting sees the Oakland A’s taking on the Kansas City Royals on Friday April 17 at Kaufmann Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Cappers Picks provides complimentary handicapping picks all MLB season long.
The Royals got off to a hot start but now they are looking to get back to winning after back to back losses to the Twins.
Oakland A’s (5-5) vs. Kansas City Royals (7-2)
Friday April 17
8:10PM
Kaufmann Stadium – Kansas City, MO
MLB Betting Line: Oakland -115, Kansas City -105
MLB Betting Total: 7.5
Probable Pitchers:
OAK: Sonny Gray (R)
KC: Jeremy Guthrie (R)
Oakland
The first ten games of the season has been spent back and forth between extremes for the A’s. Four times they have shutout their opponent and five times they have scored 7 or more runs but they have just a 5-5 record to show for it. They have not won a single game where they have given up more than a single run and they are going to have to do something about that if they are going to be competitive this season. It is a small sample size but Oakland needs less variance.
Sonny Gray is certainly showing that he is the ace of the staff. He dominated on opening day with 8 innings of one hit ball and was only slightly less dominating in his second start, giving up 1ER over 7 against Seattle. Though not the most intimidating on the mound he has amazing presence and executes his game plan every time out. He has given up just 7 hits over two starts and is the reason the A’s are favoured.
Kansas City
The Royals started the season with seven straight victories but have lost their last two. Nobody thought they were going to go undefeated but I think most believed they wouldn’t see their streak end against the Twins. The pitching we got used to has been a factor for the Royals but the big surprise is that they are the top scoring team in baseball so far. We will see how long they can keep that up with Alex Rios on the shelf for a month. He was actually contributing.
This will be Jeremy Guthrie’s second turn of the season and the first was unimpressive. He is by far the weak link of the staff but the Royals have a knack for winning more often than they lose when he is on the hill. The Oakland lineup has been like KC’s so far. It is not loaded but they are putting a bunch of runs on the board. Guthrie will have to pitch deep into the game because the pen has been beat up the last couple of games.
MLB Betting Trends:
- Under is 9-3-1 in OAK last 13 road games.
- Over is 6-2 in OAK last 8 overall.
- Over is 6-2 in OAK last 8 on grass.
- KC are 10-2 in their last 12 home games.
- KC are 13-3 in their last 16 games as an underdog.
- KC are 8-3 in their last 11 games following a loss.
- Under is 12-5-1 in the last 18 meetings.
MLB Betting Prediction: Oakland -105
MLB Score Prediction: Oakland 4 – Kansas City 2
The A’s have their best on the hill against the Royals’ worst. Not exactly a likely win for KC but you are still getting pretty good value on the other side.
