Ballpark Figures – Week 6


Editor's Note: Don't miss out on 30 days of Winning Baseball Picks from Joe Williams for the 2018-19 MLB regular season. Click to win!
Streaky Teams (entering Monday)
Wins and Losses Streak Over/Under Streak
Minnesota 7-2 past nine games overall Houston Under 4-0-1 past five games
Texas 2-5 past seven games overall Seattle Over 6-1-1 past eight games
Toronto 7-2 past nine games overall Texas Over 5-0-1 past six games

Rays of Hope
The first-place Tampa Bay Rays (18-9) look to stay hot on the road against the lowly Kansas City Royals (7-16) in Monday's series opener. The Rays lead the major leagues with a plus-45 run differential, while the Royals are 27th in the majors with a minus-23 in the category. Monday's battle with feature RHP Ryne Stanek up against RHP Brad Keller, and it's not as lopsided as the game appears on paper.

 The Rays are 7-1 in the past eight Game 1s of a new series, while going 4-1 in the past five games on the road against a right-handed starter. The Rays are also 13-3 in their past 16 battles against American League Central Division clubs, while going 10-3 in Stanek's past 13 starts overall. They're also 9-3 in the past 12 starts by Stanek against teams with a losing overall record. However, they are just 4-10 in Stanek's past 14 on the road, and 0-9 in his past nine starts on a grass surface.

For the Royals, they're 4-1 in their past five at home vs. RHP, while going 6-1 in Keller's past seven home starts and 9-4 in the past 13 starts on grass. However, they're just 1-4 in the past five starts against a team with a winning record, and just 15-37 in the past 52 games against AL East foes. The Royals are also just 8-44 in the past 52 games against teams with a winning percentage over .600. The Royals are 1-10 in the past 11 meetings, while going 0-4 in the past four at home against Tampa. The under has hit in four of the past five meetings at Kauffman Stadium.

Looking Ahead

Monday, April 29
The A's and Red Sox will do battle at Fenway Park in Boston in Monday's series opener, and it's a great pitching matchup between RHP Frankie Montas and LHP Eduardo Rodriguez. The A's have dropped four games in a row on the road, and they're 0-6 in the past six against AL East clubs are getting swept north of the border against the Blue Jays over the weekend. Montas might put a stop to that, as the A's are 6-2 in his past eight road outings, 4-1 in his past five overall and 7-1 in his past eight starts against teams with a losing overall mark.

For the Red Sox, they're just 1-5 in the past six against AL West, and 2-5 in the past seven vs. RHP at home. However, like Montas, E-Rod could be the guy to snap the BoSox out of their funk. Boston is 20-6 in his past 26 starts at Fenway, and 21-5 in his past 26 starts against teams with an overall losing record. However, they are 1-4 in the past five starts by Rodriguez against AL West clubs.

The Dodgers and Giants battle in the Bay Area, and it's RHP Kenta Maeda and RHP Jeff Samardzija facing each other. The Dodgers are 1-4 in Maeda's past five road outings, while the Giants are 3-9 in Samardzija's past 12 starts overall and 1-4 in his past five against teams with a winning overall record. They're also a dismal 9-22 in the past 31 games overall vs. RHP. L.A. has cashed in six of the past seven against San Francisco, while the over is 5-2 in the past seven in the Bay Area, and 4-1 in the past five meetings overall.

Weather Report
The weather forecast is super favorable for Monday's slate of MLB games. There is a 20 percent or less chance of precipitation across the board, and winds are 10 mph or less are all venues but one. At Oracle Park in San Francisco the Dodgers and Giants will see winds blowing out to left field from 9-12 mph, potentially helping 'over' bettors.

Tuesday, April 30
The Indians and Marlins hook up in South Florida in a rematch of the 1997 World Series, but this time the venue is Marlins Park and not Hard Rock Stadium. The Indians will be heavily favored on the road with ace RHP Trevor Bauer squaring off against untested RHP Sandy Alcantara. However, Alcantara saw the Indians once already this season, yielding two runs - one earned - and four hits with four walks over five innings in a no-decision. The Marlins are 0-3 over his past three outings, and the under has cashed in eight of his past 10 starts overall. Cleveland enters play 4-0 in the past four interleague road games, and they're 5-2 in the past seven games on the road. They're also 5-1 in Bauer's past six in Game 1 of a new series. Cleveland is also 10-4 in the past 14 starts overall, including 7-2 in his past nine on the road, and 8-3 in the past 11 starts against teams with a losing record.

Dodgers RHP Walker Buehler takes the ball against LHP Drew Pomeranz in Game 2 of the series. L.A. is 5-2 in Buehler's past seven starts, and 4-1 in his past five against NL West foes. They're also 4-1 in his past five road outings against teams with a losing overall record. However, L.A. is just 4-9 in the past 13 tries vs. LHP, including 2-5 in their past seven on the road against southpaws. As far as the total is concerned, the under is 6-1-1 in the past eight starts by Buehler inside the division, while going 10-4-1 in his past 15 starts overall. The under is 5-0 in Pomeranz's past five outings overall, while going 23-10-2 in the past 35 vs. RHP.

Weather Report
There will be a slight drizzle for the Tigers-Phillies interleague battle, but they should be able to get the game in without delay. The rains will be much heavier at Target Field, and the Astros-Twins game has the potential to be postponed with a 60 percent chance or greater of rain throughout the evening and overnight. If they do get the game in somehow, the Astros and Twins will face a stiff 10-13 mph wind blowing in from center field to home plate.

In Texas, the Pirates and Rangers will also faced a very stiff wind from 17-20 mph blowing in from right field to home plate working to keep scores down, especially hurting left-handed hitters trying to get the ball up in the air. The Orioles and White Sox will also face a potential postponement, as there is an 80 percent or greater chance of rain. If they see the field, they'll face gusty winds of 12-15 mph blowing into the face of the batters from left-center field.

For the Rays and Royals on Tuesday, the forecast also calls for heavy rain (80 percent chance of precipitation or greater), so look for this game to be postponed as well.

Wednesday, May 1
Mariners LHP Marco Gonzales takes the ball against Cubs LHP Jon Lester in a southpaw battle at T-Mobile Park. The Mariners are 6-1 in Gonzales' seven starts this season, while the under is 3-1-1 in his past five outings. Lester has managed a 1-1 record with a 2.37 ERA and 19 strikeouts over 19 innings in four starts this season, and the 'over' is 3-1 in his four outings this season. In Lester's past four outings on the road, the Cubs are 3-1, too. He might pitch with a little extra effort in SoDo, too, as he was born in nearby Tacoma.

It's a righty-on-righty battle when the Blue Jays and Angels face each other at the Big A. RHP Marcus Stroman and RHP Felix Pena square off with the Angels looking for a little consistency after a rough start. Stroman enters with a 1-3 record, but an outstanding 1.43 ERA in his six outings, including just one earned run with 10 hits and eight walks allowed over the past 19 innings over his past three starts. In six starts the Toronto offense has produced a total of 15 runs of support, however. Pena is 0-1 with a 3.63 ERA across 22 1/3 innings in his five outings, with the Angels 0-2 in his past two starts. He did allow just two runs - one earned - with a season-high eight strikeouts over five innings in a no-decision against the Yankees last time out. The 'under' has cashed in four of his five outings this season, with the 'under' 5-1 in Stroman's six assignments.