KBO Picks & Odds (July 16): All In on LG

The LG Twins own a .607 winning percentage on the road in 2020. Photo by @sung_minkim (Twitter).

• LG’s offense exploded for 9 runs on Wednesday and have another favorable matchup on Thursday
• NC’s Drew Rucinski is 8-1, with a 2.24 ERA and 1.10 WHIP this season
• Find odds and best bets for the KBO’s five-game slate on July 16th in the article below

LG snapped a four-game winless streak on Wednesday, racking up 14 hits and crossing the plate nine times in a blowout win versus Lotte. It marked the first time in nearly a month that the Twins have scored nine runs in a game, and they’re in prime position for another major offensive output in the rubber match versus the Giants on Thursday at 5:30 am EST.

 KBO Odds: Thursday, July 16th

Odds as of July 15th.

Advantage LG

Lotte will trot out Won Sam Jang, who’s been a borderline disaster in three starts this season. He’s given up 15 runs in 15 innings, and has walked just as many batters as he’s struck out (4). He allowed four runs to light-hitting Hanwha last time out, and was roughed up badly by NC and Doosan prior to that.

His 7.20 ERA and 1.60 WHIP are far from outliers either. He hasn’t posted an ERA below 5.61 since 2014 and he averaged 0.88 runs allowed per inning last year pitching for LG.

????HYUN-SOO KIM WITH ANOTHER BLAST????

This go-ahead 3-run shot in the 5th gives him 11 HRs on the year through 60 games. Kim had 11 HR in 140 games all of last season. #KBO #LGTwins @MyKBO pic.twitter.com/NA6qRuLj50

— Connor Newcomb (@ConnorNewcomb_) July 15, 2020

The Twins meanwhile, are certainly no offensive powerhouse, but they have scored at least six runs in seven of their last 10 and should be able to capitalize on this very favorable matchup.

Pick: LG Twins -1.5 (-115)

NC Gets Back on Track

How nice must it be for the Dinos to bolster two of the KBO’s top-four pitchers. Both Chang Mo Koo and Drew Rucinski are having phenomenal seasons, with the latter looking to pick up his ninth win of the season on Thursday versus Kiwoom.

Drew Rucinski Last Four Starts

The 31-year-old ranks fourth in ERA (2.24) and WHIP (1.10) in 2020, and has won four straight starts. He’s allowed just five earned runs total during that stretch, and has lasted at least six innings in all but one of his 12 outings this season.

Drew Rucinski, Filthy 72mph Curveball…and an artistic ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/HTc9NWEHg1

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 10, 2020

Kiwoom will counter with Seung Hyun Moon, who will be making just his second start of the season. Moon has performed well primarily out of the bullpen so far in 2020, but he doesn’t exactly have a sparkling track record. In eight KBO seasons, he has a 4.99 ERA and 1.57 WHIP. He’s posted a quality start in just 32% of his 31 career starts, and that spells trouble against the league’s highest scoring offense.

Pick: NC Dinos -1.5 (-130)

KIA and Samsung Go Over

Last week, the KIA offense couldn’t be stopped but so far this week they’re off to a slow start. They’ve scored just five runs in their first two games versus Samsung, but we should expect a much bigger offensive performance on Thursday. The Tigers will face Yoon Dong Heo, who lasted just one inning in his previous start versus KT Wiz.

The 19-year-old hasn’t gone more than five innings in any outing this season, and has more walks on his resume than strikeouts.

KIA will send Hyun Jong Yang to the mound, who’s been roughed up in back-to-back starts, and was hammered by the Lions last month. He allowed 10 hits and eight runs to Samsung on June 21st, and has surrendered 21 runs in his last four outings.

Pick: Over 10.0 (-125)

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