Chicago Cubs at Kansas City Royals, MLB forecast
Win probability
Starts from the pregame forecast, then moves with the score and the time left after each inning. Above the line favors KC.
Game center
From the ESPN box score.
Top performers
Cubs- Seiya SuzukiBatting2-3
- Kyle HendricksPitching5.0 IP, 6 ER, 4 K
Royals- Salvador PerezBatting1-4, 1 HR, 3 RBI
- Brady SingerPitching7.0 IP, 0 ER, 5 K
Scoring summary
- 5Perez homered to left (429 feet), Witt Jr. scored and Pasquantino scored.0–6
- 5Pitch 6 : Ball In Play0–6
- 5Pitch 5 : Ball 30–6
- 5Pitch 4 : Ball 20–6
- 5Pitch 3 : Ball 10–6
- 5Pitch 2 : Strike 2 Foul0–6
- 5Pitch 1 : Strike 1 Foul0–6
- 5Pasquantino singled to right, Frazier scored, Witt Jr. to third.0–3
- 5Pitch 4 : Ball In Play0–3
- 5Pitch 3 : Strike 2 Foul0–3
- 5Pitch 2 : Strike 1 Looking0–3
- 5Pitch 1 : Ball 10–3
- 5Frazier singled to right, Hampson scored and Isbel scored.0–2
- 5Pitch 3 : Ball In Play0–2
- 5Pitch 2 : Strike 1 Looking0–2
- 5Pitch 1 : Ball 10–2
The pick
Reconstructed from what was known before the game: the ratings at that point and the closing line.
Royals 59%
Forecast Elo ratings alone
How often that comes true: MLB favorites the forecast gave 55–60% have won 55.5% of 2,596 graded games.
- Market
- KC 59%
- ML CHC +135 / KC -160
- Pre-line forecast
- KC 57%
- Elo + market-implied
- Elo ratings
- KC 54%
- Ratings vs. market
- −5.3 pts
- KC: Elo 53.8%, market 59.1%
- Fair odds
- KC -145
- CHC +145 · the forecast as odds, no margin
- Pregame projection
- CHC 3.8 – 4.7 KC
- Margin from the forecast, posted total 8.5
How the number is built
Elo inputs in rating points (higher favors that team; 25–28 Elo is about a point of spread in football and basketball), then how the pieces combine.
| Factor | CHC | KC | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team rating | 1505 | 1495 | Elo entering the game; 1500 is league average |
| Home field | — | +18 | Worth 18 Elo in MLB |
| Starting pitchers | −14 | +4 | CHC: Kyle Hendricks: team allows 0.72 more runs than with its usual starter (≈10 weighted starts) · KC: Brady Singer: team allows 0.20 fewer runs than with its usual starter (≈10 weighted starts) |
| Elo ratings | KC +26 Elo | KC 53.8% | |
| Market-implied ratings | KC 57.0% | Team strength as past closing lines priced it, same game context | |
| Pre-line forecast | KC 56.5% | 15% Elo, 85% market-implied (log-odds blend) | |
| Forecast | KC 59.1% | Follows the market (vig removed): in testing, adding the ratings made it less accurate | |
Tale of the tape
This season coming into the game, regular season, each number with its league rank (the longer the bar, the higher). Home and road: the host's record at home against the visitor's on the road.
| CHC | Stat | KC |
|---|---|---|
| 24th of 304.1 | Runs scored | 4.611th of 30 |
| 11th of 304.2 | Runs allowed | 3.95th of 30 |
| 20th of 30−0.1 | Margin | +0.77th of 30 |
| 21st of 304–6 | Last 10 | 6–49th of 30 |
| 24th of 3022–30 | Road vs home | 35–204th of 30 |
Rating history
Each team's Elo over the last two seasons. Hover or drag to compare on any date.
Recent form
Last five results, and whether the forecast hit.
Against the line
How each team has done against the closing spread and total, coming into this game.
| This season |  CHC |  KC |
|---|---|---|
| Run line | 52–52 | 59–43 |
| Last 10 | 4–6 | 7–3 |
| Favorite | 12–33 | 24–23 |
| Underdog | 40–19 | 35–20 |
| Overs–unders | 45–58–1 | 42–59–1 |
| Overs–unders, last 10 | 3–7 | 3–7 |
Against each game's closing line. Books set every line knowing these records: across 3,901 past games, the team with the better record against the spread so far that season covered 51.2%, short of the 52.4% a standard −110 bet needs, and over/under streaks held 48.0% of the time. They describe the past.
Head to head
CHC 2–1 KC in their last 3 meetings; the forecast called 2 of 3.