Guardians vs Royals Prediction & MLB Odds For Monday, September 2nd
At 4:10 PM ET, the Guardians and Royals face off in an AL Central matchup. This one is taking place at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, and the Royals are the slight favorite on the money line (-114). The Guardians are 78-59, while the Royals have won five straight to move to 75-63.
The over/under line is currently at 8.5 runs, and BSKC will be televising this one. Gavin Williams is starting for the Guardians, while the Royals are going with Michael Wacha.
Betting Odds & Lines for this Game
- Spread: Guardians 1.5 (-218) | Royals -1.5 (+177)
- Total: 8.5
- MoneyLine: Guardians -105 | Royals -114
All Odds are courtesy of (BetMGM | DraftKings | Fanduel | BetRivers)
Guardians vs. Royals Prediction: Moneyline
Cleveland closed out their series vs. the Pirates with a 6-1 win. Leading up to the game, they were the heavy favorite at -157. It was a big second inning that really turned things in their favor, and the Pirates could only score one run, which came in the 7th.
Alex Cobb put together a good start for the Guardians, going six innings and not giving up a run. He also issued just two walks and struck out six. Cleveland’s offense was carried by Kyle Manzardo, who went 2/3 with two homers and two RBIs.
Cleveland is on the road today to take on the Royals, and they lead the AL Central by 3.5 games, with an overall record of 78-59. The Guardians took two of three in their most recent series vs. the Pirates. So far, they are 22-20 in divisional games.
At home, the Guardians have gone 43-25 this season, and they are just above .500 at 35-34 on the road. As the underdog, Cleveland has dropped three straight, and they are 18-22 as the road underdog this year. So far, they have been good as the favorite, going 55-30.
Bobby Witt Jr. and the Royals will be looking to get back on track after closing out their series vs. the Astros with a 7-2 loss. Witt Jr. went only 1/4 at the plate, but his one hit was a home run. The Royals really needed a big game from Witt Jr., as they fell behind 3-0 in the 4th inning and couldn’t complete the comeback. Kansas City was the +134 underdog going into this road game.
Alec Marsh got the start for the Royals and took the loss. He only lasted five innings, giving up three earned runs on four hits. Marsh also issued three walks and hit a batter. Offensively, the Royals scored their only two runs in the of the 6th.
Kansas City is 75-63 overall this season, and they are 3.5 games behind the Guardians for the AL Central lead. The Royals will host the Guardians today with a five-game losing streak, spanning the Astros series and their first two games vs. the Mariners. So far, they have gone 29-14 in AL Central matchups.
This year, the Royals have been good as the favorite, going 43-25, and they are 34-38 as the underdog. At home, they are 41-28 this season and 34-35 on the road. The Royals’ overall series record is 19-22-2, and they lost their most recent series vs. the Astros.
Guardians vs. Royals Prediction: Over/Under
On the road against the Kansas City Royals, the Cleveland Guardians have an over/under line of 8.5 runs. The Guardians’ games have averaged 8.6 runs per game this season, and their over/under record is 65-63. When the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs, their record is 20-17. Overall, 53.3% of their games have had lower lines than 8.5 runs, and their current streak is two straight unders.
For the season, the Guardians are averaging 4.6 runs per game, which is 14th in the league. They have been a better offensive team at home, averaging 4.9 runs per game. As a team, they are batting .239, which is 14th in the league, and are 10th in the league in home runs. Cleveland’s offense has been led by José Ramírez and Josh Naylor, who have 34 and 28 homers, respectively.
Josh Naylor is currently on a four-game hitting streak and has gone 10/27 in his last seven games with seven RBIs. Over the same stretch, Andrés Giménez has gone 7/29 with two homers. Kyle Manzardo is also coming off a two-hit game for the Guardians.
When the Kansas City Royals play at home, the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs, which is higher than their season average of 8.0. The Royals have played 49 games with an over/under line set at 8.5 runs, and their record in those games is 15-23. Overall, the over/under record for the Royals this season is 64-70, and their games have averaged 8.9 runs per game.
Over his last six games, Bobby Witt Jr. has gone just 5/25, but three of those hits have left the yard. For the season, he is batting .340 and is 7th in the league with 30 home runs. Witt Jr. also leads the MLB with 97 RBIs. Salvador Perez and Vinnie Pasquantino have also been big power threats for the Royals, as Perez is 2nd on the team with 25 homers, and Pasquantino has 19 homers and is batting .262.
As a team, the Royals are 7th in scoring at 4.8 runs per game. They have been even better at home, averaging 5.2 runs per contest. Overall, they are 6th in batting average and have the 6th fewest strikeouts in the league. Kansas City comes into the game with the league’s 10th best OPS and have the 6th best slugging percentage in the league.
Guardians vs. Royals Prediction: Spread
When betting the run line on the Cleveland Guardians, it’s important to note that they have a losing record against the run line overall (68-69) and on the road (35-34). They have been a better bet to cover the run line at home (33-35) than on the road, where they have failed to cover in two straight games. They have been a better bet as an underdog (30-22) than as a favorite (38-47) this season.
Cleveland is sending Gavin Williams to the mound today vs. the Royals, and he comes in with a record of 2-7 and an ERA of 4.99. Looking back at his last outing, Williams took the loss, going five innings vs. the Royals and giving up two earned runs on six hits. Before that outing, he had lost three straight starts. Williams has a much better ERA on the road, coming in at 3.46 compared to 8.04 at home. He has made 11 starts this year and has turned in two quality starts. Per nine innings, Williams is averaging 9.97 strikeouts and 3.61 walks.
When it comes to the run line, the Royals have been a solid bet this season, going 76-62 overall. They have been particularly strong as the underdog, going 41-29 against the run line in those games. They have also been a good bet at home, going 39-30 against the run line in their home games this season.
Kansas City is sending Michael Wacha to the mound today vs. the Guardians. He has made 24 starts this year and has a record of 11-6 with a 3.50 ERA. Wacha’s WHIP for the season is currently 1.21, and he has turned in 13 quality starts. In his last outing, Wacha finished with a no-decision, giving up five earned runs in six innings of work. Before that, he had won three straight starts. His ERA for the season at home is 3.80 compared to 3.85 on the road.
Guardians vs. Royals Pick: Royals ML -114
Our predicted final score for this one is 7-6 in favor of the Royals, and with them on the money line at -114, we see this as a good value pick. Looking at the starting pitchers, we have Michael Wacha finishing with five strikeouts compared to Gavin Williams with seven.
Offensively, we have the Guardians finishing with 11 hits compared to the Royals with 10. However, we have the Royals finishing with more home runs, and in terms of total runs, we have the Guardians finishing with six compared to the Royals with seven.
