New York Yankees vs. Kansas City Royals Predictions, Picks and MLB Preview – May 16, 2017

Where: Kauffman Stadium – Kansas City, MO

When: Monday, May 16, 2017 – 8:15 PM ET

Line:  New York Yankees (-115) at Kansas City Royals (+105) total: 9.5 – view all MLB lines

TV Broadcast: YES / FSKC / MLBN

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Betting on the New York Yankees (22-13)

Moneyline: -115

The Yankees will enter the game having lost four of their last five. It’s still good enough to have the lead in the American League-East, but a few more Ls will likely drop them out of the spot.

A bulk of this recent bumpy ride came in their four-game series with the Houston Astros, where they only went 1-3 and allowed 21 runs in the last three games.

Joe Girardi and his men aren’t sweating this one, though. We should see the defense pick things up in the coming days, and they are still well-equipped offensively – Aaron Judge and Starlin Castro are among the league-leaders in homers and hits, respectively, while Chase Headley is having one of the best years of his career.

In fact, although all three of the upcoming games against the Royals are on the road, they are expected to be named the favorites in each contest, which says a lot.

The starting pitcher duties will be on CC Sabathia (2-2, 5.77 ERA). He doesn’t have appealing numbers this season, but Kansas City’s batters are just hitting at the .239 mark against him all-time (21-for-89).

Betting on the Kansas City Royals (16-21)

Moneyline: +105

For the surging Royals, their confidence is on a high, as they are winners in six of their last seven games. They are still at the tail end of the American League-Central and the MLB’s overall standings, but basing on the recent performances from their other division rivals, a quick climb could be on the way.

Over that seven-game stretch, the Royals have nine homers, 31 RBIs, and 37 runs, while batting at .296 (74-for-250). Powering them, as always, is Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, Lorenzo Cain, and Salvador Perez, especially the latter three, who are all hitting at an impressive .414 or better in that span.

Those four will have to do a lot almost every game, though, since pitching isn’t exactly a strength of Kansas City’s. Tomorrow’s starter, Jason Hammel (1-4, 5.97 ERA), who got smashed for 13 hits and seven earned runs in his previous start, is a good example of that team weakness.

Writer’s Prediction

The Royals (+105) win a high-scoring affair, 11-9.

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