Twins vs Royals Prediction & MLB Odds For Friday, September 6th
The forecast for Friday’s Twins vs. Royals matchup calls for clear skies and temperatures in the low 80s. This one gets started at 8:10 PM ET from Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO. APLTV is carrying this one on TV.
The Royals are the betting favorite at -147, while the Twins come in with a money line payout of +125. Friday’s over/under line is sitting at 7.5 runs, and Zebby Matthews is starting for the Twins, while the Royals are going with Cole Ragans. This is an AL Central matchup, and the Twins are 2nd in the division, while the Royals are 3rd.
Betting Odds & Lines for this Game
- Spread: Twins 1.5 (-176) | Royals -1.5 (+145)
- Total: 7.5
- MoneyLine: Twins +125 | Royals -147
All Odds are courtesy of (BetMGM | DraftKings | Fanduel | BetRivers)
Twins vs. Royals Prediction: Moneyline
The Twins’s offense was hot right out of the gates in their most recent game vs. the Rays, closing out their series with a 4-3 win. After allowing three runs to the Rays in the 3rd inning, the Twins responded with three runs of their own. Minnesota went on to add another run in the 2nd inning.
Pablo Lopez put together a good start for the Twins, going 6 2/3 innings and giving up just three runs on seven hits. He also issued only one walk and struck out nine Rays batters. Edouard Julien had only one hit, but it was a home run, and the Twins scored three runs in the 2nd inning.
Minnesota is 76-64 overall, putting them 2nd in the AL Central, four games behind the Guardians for the division lead. The Twins are 28-17 against other teams in the AL Central. They are just above .500 on the road this year, coming in with a 37-34 mark.
The Twins have been good as the favorite this year, going 60-37 in those games. As the underdog, they are 16-27 and have gone just 9-20 as the underdog on the road. Minnesota’s overall series record is 24-16-4 heading into their series opener vs. the Royals.
To close out their series vs. the Guardians, the Royals picked up a 4-1 win. Leading up to the game, they were the slight favorite at -128 on the money line. It was a four-run 4th inning that really turned things in their favor, and the Guardians could only score one run, which came in the 3rd.
Seth Lugo put together a good start for the Royals, going seven innings and giving up just one earned run, and picking up the win. Kansas City’s offense was carried by Tommy Pham, who went 2/4 with a homer and three RBIs.
Kansas City opens their series vs. the Twins at home, 4.5 games behind the Guardians for the AL Central lead. The Royals are 76-65 overall and have gone 30-16 in AL Central games this year. They have an overall series record of 20-22-2, and they have dropped two straight series.
At home, the Royals are 42-30 this year, and they are just above .500 at 34-35 on the road. As the favorite, the Royals are 44-26 this year, and they are 28-17 as the home favorite. Their overall record as the underdog is 32-39. Kansas City’s struggles have been on display recently, as they are just 3-7 over their last 10 games.
Twins vs. Royals Prediction: Over/Under
The Minnesota Twins are on the road today against the Kansas City Royals. The over/under line for the game is set at 7.5 runs, which is lower than their season average of 8 runs per game. The Twins have played 35 games this season with an over/under line of 7.5 runs, and their record in those games is 19-16.
Carlos Santana and Ryan Jeffers are tied for the team lead in home runs this season, with both players having gone deep 20 times. Santana also leads the Twins in RBIs, with 60, while Jeffers is 2nd on the team in RBIs, at 59. Byron Buxton and Royce Lewis have also been solid power threats this season, as they are both tied for 2nd on the team with 16 homers.
Currently, the Twins are among the league leaders in several offensive categories, including team on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS. As a team, they are averaging 4.8 runs per game, which is 9th in the league. One thing to watch will be the recent performance of Carlos Santana, as he is hitting just .208 over his last 8 games.
Today’s over/under line for the Kansas City Royals’ home game against the Minnesota Twins is set at 7.5 runs. The Royals have played 117 games this season with over/under lines higher than 7.5 runs, and their games have had an average combined run total of 8.9 runs per game. Their over/under record for the season is 64-72, and when the line is set at 7.5 runs, they have gone 4-12.
So far this season, the Royals are averaging 4.8 runs per game, which is 10th in the league. They have been even better at home, averaging 5.1 runs per contest. As a team, the Royals are batting .254, which is the 6th best mark in the MLB. They also have the 2nd fewest strikeouts in the league and have the 9th best slugging percentage in the league.
Bobby Witt Jr. has been a huge bright spot for the Royals this season, as he is batting .339 with 30 homers and 97 RBIs. He is currently on a two-game homer streak and has two homers in his last five games. Vinnie Pasquantino and Witt Jr. are the team’s top two power threats, with Pasquantino having 19 homers this season.
Twins vs. Royals Prediction: Spread
Minnesota has been a solid bet on the run line this season, going 66-74 overall. They’ve been even better on the road, going 37-34. They are 29-40 against the run line at home. Their average run differential is +0.3 runs per game, and they have a +0.2 run differential on the road and a +0.5 run differential at home. They are 43-54 against the run line as the favorite and 23-20 as the underdog. In their wins, they are winning by an average of 3.7 runs per game, while in their losses, they are losing by an average of 3.6 runs per game.
Zebby Matthews and the Twins are on the road to take on the Royals. Matthews has started 3 games so far this season, and he has a win and 2 losses. He has yet to go more than 5 innings in a start, and his last outing was a 9-5 loss to the Blue Jays in which he gave up 3 home runs in just 2 innings of work.
When the Royals win, they win big, with an average run margin of 4.0 runs per game. But when they lose, they lose big, with an average run margin of -3.4 runs per game. Overall, they have a run line record of 77-64, with a +0.6 run margin per game. They are 40-32 against the run line at home and 37-32 on the road. They are 36-34 against the run line as the favorite and 41-30 as the underdog.
Kansas City is sending left-hander Cole Ragans to the mound today vs. the Twins. He has made 28 starts this season and has a record of 10-9 with a 3.46 ERA. Ragans’ WHIP for the season is currently 1.17, and opponents are batting .212 off him this year. In his last outing, he took the loss, giving up five earned runs in five innings of work vs. the Astros. Before that, he had pitched well, going 7 innings and giving up just one earned run vs. the Twins. Ragans has one complete game and 17 quality starts this year.
Twins vs. Royals Pick: Royals ML -147
Our prediction for the Twins vs. Royals matchup is that the Royals will come out on top by a score of 6-5. However, with the money line payout for a Royals win sitting at -147, we would recommend taking them on the money line.
Looking at the starting pitchers, we have Cole Ragans of the Royals with a better chance of picking up a win than Zebby Matthews of the Twins. Ragans is also projected to finish with more strikeouts than Matthews.
