SEASON FORECASTS AND FUTURES PICKS

The Royals are off the betting board and have no odds to win the championship. They are projected to win 59 games and come in under their pre-season futures line of 69. In simulations, they have been eliminated from playoff contention. They were a +2000 'underdog' to make the playoffs in the preseason. Their preseason chances to win the division were 4.4% at 60/1, 1.6%. Their average wins per simulation puts them at #13 in the AL.

For winning picks against the spread, total and money line for all MLB games by our proven computer model and leading handicappers visit SportsLine.com where you can also get fantasy basketball and daily fantasy optimal lineups from CBSSports' Top Experts.

REGULAR SEASON RECAP AND UPCOMING GAMES

After 151 games, their expected win percentage is 42% based on the money line odds. At 56-95 they are in line with these expectations. If you bet on them to win every game you would be down quite a bit (-2250 units). They are not good against the spread (69-82) for a -1876 loss. Their over-under record is 77-69 with 5 pushes. In their next game vs the Athletics they are only winning 22% of the simulations. The table below shows their upcoming games, their simulation based win percentage and their recent head to head record (WL, ATS, OU).

TEAM STATISTICAL STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

Their average run differential is -1.09 which ranks #13 in the AL, which is the same as how they rank in win percentage. They are the #12 ranked team in run differential (based on all teams' road stats) and the #13 ranked team among home teams. Their average run differential in their past 13 games is -1.23 which ranks them #11 over this stretch, slightly better than overall.

TEAM STATS PER GAME (League Rank):

ALLOWED TO OPPOSING TEAMS (Lower # is Better):

TEAM FANTASY LEADERS

The table below show the most valuable fantasy players on the team led by Whit Merrifield who is projected to be the #11 second baseman the rest of the season. The Better Option column shows the player directly above him and the Better Than column shows the player directly below him in the projected position rankings.