Kansas City Royals vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction 8-28-23 MLB Picks

The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Kansas City Royals meet Monday in MLB action from Kauffman Stadium. The Pirates just finished up against the Cubs, losing two of the first three games. In the Sunday finale Pittsburgh took a blowout loss. As for Kansas City, they took on the Mariners over the weekend and lost the first pair. In the finale the Royals fell in a close one. Check back all season long for free MLB Picks at Sports Chat Place.

Pittsburgh Pirates 

The Pirates managed a 2-1 win in game two versus the Cubs over the weekend, but lost 5-4 in game one and 10-6 on Saturday otherwise. Both Ke’Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds each had two RBI in the game three loss. On Sunday Pittsburgh lost the series in a rough 10-1 result. Hayes had the only RBI, and Joshua Palacios had a pair of hits. 

In the starter role for the Monday game the Pirates are going with Johan Oviedo. This year in his 26 starts Oviedo is 7-13 with a 4.46 ERA and 129 Ks in 145.1 innings. Oviedo is 4-3 with a 4.26 ERA in his last seven starts. 

Pittsburgh Pirates Team Facts

• The Pirates have lost each of their last seven games at Kauffman Stadium.
• The Pirates have failed to cover the run line in 17 of their last 18 games as favorites against AL Central opponents.
• The Pirates have trailed after 3 innings in four of their last five games as favorites against American League opponents.
• The Pirates have trailed after 7 innings in each of their last six games at Kauffman Stadium.
• The 'Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs' market has hit in each of the Pirates' last five games.

Kansas City Royals 

Over on the Royals’ side, they lost 7-5 to the Mariners Friday and 15-2 in game two. In that Saturday defeat, KC’s Maikel Garcia and Drew Waters each had one RBI. On Sunday the Royals were out-hit 6-5 in a 3-2 defeat. Nelson Velazquez notched a two-run homer as the RBI. 

As starter Monday Kansas City will send out Zack Greinke. This year in 23 games (22 starts) Greinke is 1-12 with a 5.34 ERA and 78 strikeouts over 114.2 innings. Greinke is 0-4 in his last seven games (six starts) with a 5.40 ERA. 

Kansas City Royals Team Facts

• The Royals have won seven of their last eight games as home underdogs against National League opponents following a road loss.
• The Royals have covered the run line in each of their last seven home games against National League opponents.
• The 'Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs' market has hit in each of the last seven games between the Pirates and Royals.
• The Royals have led after 5 innings in each of their last five games against the Pirates at Kauffman Stadium.
• The Royals have led after 3 innings in four of their last six games as home underdogs against National League opponents.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Kansas City Royals ranks 2nd in the league for triples this season (35).
• The Kansas City Royals ranks 29th in the league for on-base percentage this season (.299).
• The Pittsburgh Pirates ranks 27th in the league for hits this season (1017).
• The Pittsburgh Pirates ranks 27th in the league for batting average this season (.234).

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’ll probably take a stab on the Pirates here. Oviedo needs to bag another good start, though. In his last outing versus the Cardinals, Oviedo was great with 5.0 innings and one earned in a win. In his previous two however, Oviedo went 0-2 with 10 earned in 9.0 total frames. On Sunday the Pirates offense didn’t come through with just four hits, and it was a tough day for Bailey Falter and Jose Hernandez. It’s going to take a strong outing from Oviedo—not to mention some input from the offense—but I think Pittsburgh can stay in range and should have a decent shot at a W in this opener.