Kansas City Royals vs Houston Astros Betting Pick & Prediction 8/31/24
First pitch for this AL matchup is set for 7:10 PM ET from Minute Maid Park in Houston, TX. The Astros are currently on a three-game winning streak and are 1st in the AL West, while the Royals have lost three straight and are 2nd in the AL Central.
The over/under line is currently at 8 runs, and the Astros are the money line favorite, with their odds sitting at -140. The Royals are starting Cole Ragans, while the Astros are going with Yusei Kikuchi.
KANSAS CITY ROYALS VS HOUSTON ASTROS BETTING PICK
The Pick: Kansas City Royals Moneyline +118
This game will be played at Minute Maid Park at 7:10 ET on Saturday, August 31st.
HOW TO BET THE ROYALS VS ASTROS:
- We have the Royals winning by a score of 5 to 4
- If you’re looking for a run line pick, we also like the Royals to cover
- As for an over/under pick, we have this game finishing with 9 runs and like the over
Thanks to a two-run 9th inning for the Royals’ offense, they picked up a 2-1 road win over the Astros in the most recent game of this series. Heading into the game, the Astros were favored at -185 on the money line.
The starting pitching matchup for this game featured Framber Valdez for the Astros, and he went seven innings while giving up just one hit and no earned runs. Valdez finished with seven strikeouts but issued three walks. Josh Hader came out of the bullpen for the win.
Seth Lugo put together a good outing for the Royals, getting the win after going seven innings and giving up one earned run on six hits. Lugo finished with nine strikeouts and issued just one walk.
Royals Records & Stats
The Royals are 75-61 overall and trail the Guardians by 2.5 games in the AL Central. Kansas City will be looking to pick up a win today, as they have dropped three straight games, and they are down 0-2 in their series vs. the Astros. So far, they have gone 29-14 against other teams in the AL Central.
At home, the Royals have gone 41-28 this year and are just above .500 at 34-33 on the road. As the underdog, the Royals are 18-24 this year, and they are 43-25 when favored. Kansas City’s overall series record is 20-21-2, and they have won two straight series on the road.
When the Royals are on the road, they have been a strong bet on the run line, going 37-30. Their average run differential on the road is +0.7 runs per game, and they have covered the run line in four straight road games.
With a combined run average of 8.9 runs per game, the Kansas City Royals have an over/under record of 63-69 this season. The average over/under line for their games is 9 runs, but when the line is set at 8 runs, the Royals have gone over 14 times, under 11 times, and pushed twice. Overall, 63.2% of their games have had over/under lines set at 8 or higher.
Kansas City is sending left-hander Cole Ragans to the mound today vs. the Astros. He has made 27 starts this year and has a record of 10-8 with a 3.28 ERA. Looking at his overall numbers, Ragans has a WHIP of 1.16 and opponents are batting .212 off him this year. In his 27 appearances, Ragans has turned in 17 quality starts and is averaging 10.77 strikeouts per nine innings. Ragans’ last outing came vs. the Guardians, where he gave up one earned run in four innings of work. He finished with a no-decision in that outing. Before that, he had won two straight starts.
Heading into the game, the Royals are 7th in the league in scoring at 4.8 runs per game. They have been even better at home, averaging 5.2 runs per contest. As a team, the Royals are batting .256, which is the 4th best mark in the league. They also have the 2nd fewest strikeouts in the league. Kansas City’s offense is led by Bobby Witt Jr., who is batting .341 for the season and has gone deep 28 times.
Maikel Garcia and Paul DeJong have been swinging the bat well for the Royals of late. Garcia has gone 7/15 in his last five games, while DeJong has three homers in this stretch. Kansas City is also waiting for Vinnie Pasquantino to get back on track, as he is batting just .262 for the season but does have a team-high 97 RBIs.
Astros Records & Stats
The Astros are currently 73-62 overall and lead the AL West by four games over the Mariners. Houston has taken the first two games of their series vs. the Royals and have an overall series record of 23-18-2 this year. At home, the Astros are 37-29 this year and 36-33 on the road.
As the favorite, the Astros have gone 55-43 and 18-19 as the underdog. They have also won three straight games as the favorite. Looking at their overall record, they are 5-5 over their last 10 games and have won three straight games.
When it comes to the run line, the Astros have been a much better bet on the road this season, going 39-30 compared to 30-36 at home. They have been the favorite in 98 games and have gone 44-54 on the run line in those contests. They have been the underdog in 37 games and have gone 25-12 on the run line in those contests.
Today’s over/under line for the Houston Astros’ game against the Kansas City Royals is set at 8 runs. The Astros have played 81 games with over/under lines higher than 8 runs, which accounts for 60.0% of their games this season. Their games have averaged 8.5 runs per game, and their over/under record for the season is 53-77. When the line is set at 8 runs, their over/under record is 11-13-2.
Left-hander Yusei Kikuchi gets the start for the Astros today as he faces the Royals at home. Kikuchi has made 27 starts this season and has a record of 6-9 with an ERA of 4.38. So far, he has turned in eight quality starts and is averaging 10.34 strikeouts per nine innings. In his last outing, Kikuchi finished with a no-decision, giving up three earned runs in 5 2/3 innings of work. Before that, he had won two straight starts. One area of concern for Kikuchi is his home ERA of 4.82 compared to 5.5 on the road.
Yordan Alvarez has been on a tear for the Astros, going 11/29 in his last seven games with three homers and five RBIs. Alvarez’s 28 homers this season is the best mark on the team and 8th best in the MLB. Yainer Diaz has also been a big run producer for the Astros, as his 72 RBIs is the best mark on the team, and he is batting .299 for the season.
As a team, the Astros are 2nd in the MLB with a team batting average of .261. Overall, they are averaging 4.6 runs per game, which is 13th in the league. At home, they are scoring 4.7 runs per game, which is 11th best in the league.