The Cleveland Guardians (51-27) travel to face off against the Kansas City Royals (44-38) on Thursday, June 27th. This game will be played at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City and televised on FS1. The Royals are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Guardians are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Orioles. First pitch is set for 7:10 CT.
Guardians vs Royals
The Guardians will be looking to get back on track after closing out their series vs. the Orioles with a 4-2 loss. This was especially tough, as they held a lead going into the 8th inning before the Orioles scored two runs in the bottom of the 8th. Cleveland was the +191 underdog going into this road game.
Carlos Carrasco got the start for the Guardians, going five innings and giving up just two runs on six hits. He only had three strikeouts in the outing and took the loss. Gabriel Arias was hot at the plate, going 2/3 with a homer and a run scored. The Guardians also had a big game from Jhonkensy Noel, going 1/4 with a homer.
Cleveland is 51-27 overall and leads the AL Central by eight games over the Twins. The Guardians have gone 11-6 against other teams in the AL Central. This year, they have been really good at home, going 26-9, and they have also been strong on the road, putting together a record of 25-18.
As the road favorite, the Guardians are 12-7 this year, and they are 35-15 when favored overall. Cleveland has won five straight games as the favorite, and they are 18-6-2 in series this year, with a three-series winning streak.
When the Guardians win, they tend to do so by a wide margin, averaging a run differential of 3.5 runs per game. This has led to a strong run line record of 45-33 overall, including a 25-18 mark on the road. They have been a good bet as the underdog, going 20-8 against the run line in those games.
When the Cleveland Guardians are on the road, the over/under line has been set at 8.5 runs for their game against the Kansas City Royals. This season, the Guardians have played 72 games with an average combined run total of 8.8 runs per game. Their over/under record for the season is 37-35, and when the line has been set at 8.5 runs, their record is 8-11. So far, 21.8% of their games have had a higher over/under line than 8.5 runs.
Ben Lively Gets The Start For The Guardians
Right-hander Ben Lively gets the start for the Guardians today as he faces the Royals on the road. Lively has made 12 starts this season and has a record of 7-3 with a 3.03 ERA. Looking at his overall numbers, Lively has a WHIP of 1.16 and has issued just 2.76 walks per nine innings. Lively is coming off a start in which he gave up two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings of work. He has won three of his last four starts. So far, he has made three quality starts this year.
Guardians Offense Breakdown
Heading into today’s game, the Guardians are 3rd in the league in scoring at 5.1 runs per game. They have been even better at home, averaging 5.2 runs per contest. As a team, they are batting .245, which is 10th in the league, and are also near the top of the league in home runs. Cleveland’s offense has been led by José Ramírez and Josh Naylor, who have 21 and 20 homers, respectively.
Over his last nine games, José Ramírez has gone 12/38 with three homers and 10 RBIs. Naylor has also been hot of late, going 10/29 with three homers and eight RBIs in his last eight games. Gabriel Arias comes into the game on a four-game hitting streak.
To close out their series vs. the Marlins, the Royals picked up a 5-1 win. Leading up to the game, they were the heavy favorite at -209. Offensively, the Royals scored their five runs on json10 hits and didn’t hit a home run.
Brady Singer put together a good start for the Royals, going 7 1/3 innings and giving up just one earned run, and picking up the win. Kansas City’s offense was carried by Freddy Fermin, who went 2/4 with a double, two RBIs, and a run scored. The Royals also had three other players with two hits.
With an overall record of 44-38, the Royals are 3rd in the AL Central, trailing the Guardians by nine games. So far, they have gone 13-9 in divisional games. The Royals will take on the Guardians at home today, where they are 27-15 this season.
Kansas City has gone 17-23 on the road this year. They were able to take their most recent series vs. the Marlins, winning two of three games. Over the last week, the Royals are just 3-7 and have gone 2-8 over their last 10 games.
The Royals have been a solid bet against the run line this season, going 46-36 overall. They’ve been especially good at home, where they are 25-17 against the run line. Their average run margin is +0.6 runs per game, and they’ve been a profitable run line bet as an underdog, going 29-19. Their average run margin in wins is +3.7 runs per game.
When the Kansas City Royals play at home, the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs, which is their combined run average for the season. The over/under record for the Royals is 34-45, and their games have averaged eight runs per game. When the line is set at 8.5 runs, the over/under record is 8-16. Overall, 23.2% of their games have had higher lines than 8.5 runs, while 47.6% have had lower lines. The under has hit in their last five games.
Michael Wacha Gets The Start For The Royals
Right-hander Michael Wacha gets the start for the Royals today as he faces the Guardians at home. Wacha has made 13 starts this season and has a record of 4-6 with a 4.07 ERA. Looking back at his last outing, he took the loss, going five innings and giving up one earned run on three hits. In that start, he gave up one homer. Before that outing, he had given up a homer in three straight starts. Wacha has a WHIP of 1.22 and has issued just 2.59 walks per nine innings compared to 7.52 strikeouts.
Royals Offense Breakdown
For the season, the Royals are averaging 4.5 runs per game, which is 13th in the league. They have been a better offensive team at home, averaging 5.2 runs per game. Kansas City comes into the game with the league’s 14th ranked home run total. As a team, they are batting .243, which is 12th in the league.
Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez have been the Royals’ top power threats this season, with both players having 12 homers. Witt Jr. comes into the game with a team-high 53 RBIs, while Perez is right behind him at 47. Witt Jr. is also batting .311 for the season, and Perez is hitting .279. Vinnie Pasquantino is also near the top of the team’s home run leaderboard, but he is batting just .236 for the season.
Guardians vs Royals Prediction
Our pick for this Guardians vs. Royals matchup is to take the Royals on the money line at -104. We have the Royals winning this one by a score of 6-5. Given that payout for a Royals win is better than the payout for the over (-115), we like the Royals to pick up the win.
Looking at the starting pitchers, our projections have Michael Wacha finishing with four strikeouts, which is better than Ben Lively, who we have finishing with just two. Offensively, we do have the Guardians finishing with more hits than the Royals, but we have the Royals hitting more home runs.
All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!
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Last updated:June 27, 2024 Guardians, Royals