In this article we will formulate a Kansas City Royals vs Chicago Cubs prediction for this MLB game on Saturday, July 27th at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Let’s take a look at the prediction for game two in the series.
Royals Offense is Rolling
The Kansas City Royals are 57-47 this year and they have won five of their last seven games. Kansas City won the first game in this series by a score of 6-0 on Friday night. Prior to this series, the Royals lost two out of three against the Diamondbacks, swept the White Sox in three games, and lost two out of three against the Red Sox. Kansas City is 9-4 in their last 13 games and they are third in the AL Central.
The Kansas City pitching staff has a 3.72 ERA, a 1.26 WHIP, and a .242 opponent batting average. The Royals offense has scored 483 runs with a .251 batting average and a .309 on base percentage. Bobby Witt is batting .343 with 18 home runs and 70 RBI’s for the Royals this season. Kansas City has scored at least six runs in five of their last seven games.
Cubs Continue to Trail in the NL Central
The Chicago Cubs are 49-56 this season and they have lost three games in a row. Chicago lost the first game in this series on Friday and they were shutout in the game. Prior to this series, the Cubs lost two out of three against the Brewers, lost two out of three against the Diamondbacks, and lost two out of three against the Cardinals. Chicago is 3-7 in their last ten games and they are last in the NL Central.
The Chicago pitching staff has a 3.73 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP, and a .237 opponent batting average. The Cubs offense has scored 424 runs with a .232 batting average and a .310 on base percentage. Seiya Suzuki is batting .268 with 14 home runs and 47 RBI’s for the Cubs this season. Chicago has scored three runs or fewer in seven straight games.
Starting Pitchers
The projected starting pitcher for Kansas City is Seth Lugo, who is 12-4 with a 2.38 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP over 136.0 innings pitched this year. Lugo has allowed two earned runs or fewer in three of his last four starts. The projected starting pitcher for Chicago is Shota Imanaga, who is 8-2 with a 2.86 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP over 104.0 innings pitched this season. Imanaga has allowed one earned run in his last two outings (13.0 IP).
Why the Royals will beat the Cubs
- The Royals have won 21 of their last 22 home games against teams that held a losing record.
- The Cubs have lost each of their last eight night games following a loss.
- The Royals have covered the run line in 16 of their last 17 home games against teams that held a losing record.
- The Cubs have failed to cover the run line in each of their last seven night games against AL Central opponents.
- The Cubs have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last five games against AL Central opponents that held a winning record.
Total Runs Facts
- Each of the Cubs’ last seven games have gone UNDER the total runs line.
- Each of the Royals’ last four games as favorites against the Cubs have gone UNDER the total runs line.
- The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Cubs’ last four night games.
- The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Royals’ last four night games against NL Central opponents.
Kansas City Royals Player Prop Facts
- Garrett Hampson has recorded at least one Double in three of his last four home appearances against the Cubs after playing the previous day.
- Salvador Perez has hit a home run in each of the Royals’ last three games against NL Central opponents.
- Vinnie Pasquantino has recorded at least one RBI in 11 of the Royals’ last 12 home games against NL opponents.
- Vinnie Pasquantino has recorded two or more total bases in each of the Royals’ last five games as favorites.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has scored at least one run in 10 of the Royals’ last 11 home games.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has recorded at least one Single in each of the Royals’ last seven games against opponents that held a losing record.
- Vinnie Pasquantino has recorded at least one hit in each of the Royals’ last 14 games as favorites against NL opponents.
- Seth Lugo has recorded six or more strikeouts in each of his last four appearances with the Royals as home favorites.
- Seth Lugo has recorded a win in four of his last five home appearances against opponents that held a losing record.
Chicago Cubs Player Prop Facts
- Seiya Suzuki has recorded a Double in four of the Cubs’ last five games as underdogs against AL Central opponents.
- Shota Imanaga has recorded a win in each of his three previous road appearances against AL opponents.
- Seiya Suzuki has recorded at least one RBI in four of his last five appearances against AL opponents that held a winning record.
- Seiya Suzuki has scored at least one run in six of the Cubs’ last seven road games against AL Central opponents.
- Shota Imanaga has recorded five or more strikeouts in eight of his last nine appearances in night games.
- Patrick Wisdom has hit a home run in three of his last four Saturday appearances against teams that held a winning record.
- Nick Madrigal has recorded at least one hit in each of his 15 previous appearances with his team as an underdog against AL Central opponents.
- Nick Madrigal has recorded at least one Single in each of his 10 previous appearances with his team as a road underdog against AL Central opponents.
- Nick Madrigal has recorded at least one total base in each of his 15 previous appearances with his team as an underdog against AL Central opponents.
Kansas City Royals vs Chicago Cubs Prediction
Kansas City comes into this game looking for their fourth straight win and they are trying to chase down the Twins and Guardians in the AL Central. Kansas City plays their best baseball at home, where they are 36-20 on the season, while the Cubs are just 22-31 on the road. Chicago is last in the NL Central and their offense has been pitiful over the last week. The Cubs are starting Imanaga, who has pitched very well in his last two outings. The Royals are going with Lugo, who has been one of the best pitchers in the MLB this season. This is a very good pitching matchup and while I think runs will be at a premium, I have to take the Royals at home with their best pitcher on the mound. My Kansas City Royals vs Chicago Cubs prediction is for the Royals to win.