The Cleveland Indians battle the visiting Kansas City Royals on Friday in MLB betting action at Progressive Field.

Bruce Chen gets the ball in front of a hostile crowd for the Royals on this day; he's 0-0 on the season. The Indians, meanwhile, will counter with Corey Kluber, who will be looking to improve on his 5-5 mark.



View Kansas City vs Cleveland Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
The Royals were listed as +-138 underdogs on the baseball moneyline at many online sportsbooks, including Sportsbook. The total was set at 9.5 before betting started earlier on Monday over at Sportsbook.

Power Rankings:
According to new MLB Power Rankings here, it's the American League No. 9-ranked Indians and the American League No. 4-rated Royals in this matchup.



How They Match Up:
The game also pits Cleveland's No. 3-rated American League offense, averaging 4.8 runs per game, against a Royals defense that ranks No. 3 in the American League at 4 in runs allowed per game. The Indians have averaged 8.7 hits per game so far, less than Royals batters have averaged on the year (8.8 hits per game).

Comparing defensive stats, Kansas City owns the American League's No. 2-rated road mark, allowing 3.8 runs per game on the highway. Cleveland, on the other hand, rates No. 9 in scoring at home.

In their last action, Kansas City was an 8-4 loser on the road against the Yankees. Bettors on New York at -116 on the moneyline collected their winnings from that game, while the total score (12) sent OVER bettors home happy as well. Kansas City looks to rebound from a loss to the Yankees, who beat them 8-4 on Thursday behind a start from Andy Pettitte at Yankee Stadium.

The Indians were a 4-2 Sportsbook in their most recent outing at home against the Blue Jays. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Cleveland at +107 on the moneyline, while the total score (6) was good news for UNDER bettors. Cleveland got the job done in their last match in a 4-2 victory over Toronto on Thursday at Progressive Field behind starter D Salazar.


Kansas City Royals Trends:
When playing on Friday are 7-3
Before playing Cleveland are 7-3
After playing NY Yankees are 2-8
After a loss are 7-3

Cleveland Indians Trends:
When playing on Friday are 4-6
Before playing Kansas City are 5-5
After playing Toronto are 4-6
After a win are 4-6

A few Royals at Indians trends to consider:
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Kansas City's last 5 games when playing Cleveland
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Kansas City's last 9 games when playing on the road against Cleveland
Kansas City is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Cleveland
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Cleveland's last 5 games when playing Kansas City
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Cleveland's last 9 games when playing at home against Kansas City
Cleveland is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Kansas City
Cleveland is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games


Next up:
Kansas City at Cleveland, Saturday, July 13