The Kansas City Royals (18-42) and the Miami Marlins (33-28) play the middle contest of a 3-game interleague series Tuesday at loanDepot park in Miami. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Royals vs. Marlins odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: Marlins lead 1-0
Miami won Monday’s series opener 9-6. The Royals took a 2-0 lead in the top of the 1st inning and were ahead 4-2 midway through the 3rd inning. However, the Marlins rolled up 7 unanswered runs from the bottom of the 4th through the 6th inning to earn the victory.
The Marlins might want to petition Commissioner Rob Manfred to move to the American League. Miami has won 11 of the past 12 interleague games while going 6-0 in the past 6 games at home against the AL. It is also 5-1 in the past 6 games at against the AL Central.
[gambcom-standard rankid=”3011″ ]
[gambcom-standard rankid=”3012″ ]
Royals at Marlins projected starters
RHP Zack Greinke vs. LHP Jesus Luzardo
Greinke (1-5, 4.19 ERA) makes his 13th start. He has a 1.14 WHIP, 1.3 BB/9 and 6.8 K/9 in 62 1/3 innings.
- Last start: No-decision, 5 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 6 K in a 2-1 road loss vs. the St. Louis Cardinals last Tuesday
- 2023 Road splits: 0-3, 5.52 ERA (29 1/3 IP, 18 ER – 7 HR) with 4 BB, 23 K and a .267 opponent batting average (OBA) in 6 starts
Luzardo (4-4, 4.05 ERA) makes his 13th start. He has a 1.35 WHIP, 2.7 BB/9 and 10.5 K/9 in 66 2/3 innings.
- Last start: Loss, 5 1/3 IP, 5 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 8 K in a 10-1 home loss vs. the San Diego Padres Thursday
- 2023 Home splits: 1-2, 3.35 ERA (40 1/3 IP, 15 ER – 4 HR) with a .230 OBA in 7 starts
Royals at Marlins odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 6:08 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Royals +135 (bet $100 to win $135) | Marlins -160 (bet $160 to win $100)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Royals +1.5 (-155) | Marlins -1.5 (+125)
- Over/Under (O/U): 8 (O: -115 | U: -105)
Win your fantasy baseball league with BaseballHQ.com. For decades, BHQ has been helping players just like you win! Use the couple code SBW23 for $15 OFF a full-season subscription. New customer offer; expires 9/30/2023. Subscribe today and start winning!
Royals at Marlins picks and predictions
Prediction
Marlins 6, Royals 3
Moneyline
The MARLINS (-160) are worth backing again in Game 2 of this interleague series.
Miami has rattled off 7 consecutive victories against the American League, and Luzardo has respectable numbers in front of the home fans. The Royals have struggled against the AL — and everybody else — while Greinke has also had some uneven performances away from home.
Run line/Against the spread
The MARLINS -1.5 (+125) are a solid play on the run line at home.
Miami has been cleaning up against the dregs of the American League, winning and covering each of the past 4 games against the Oakland Athletics and Royals in the previous 4 home outings.
If you like Miami to win, you should like it on the run line, too. The Marlins have won the past 7 interleague games by 2 or more runs.
Meanwhile, the Royals are just 2-6 on the run line in the last 8 games overall.
Play our free daily Pick’em Challenge and win! Play now!
Over/Under
The OVER 8 (-115) is worth a look in Game 2 after a high-scoring series opener.
The Under is still 6-2 in the past 8 games overall for the Royals, but the Over is 8-3 in the past 11 against the NL East, while cashing at a 22-10-1 clip in the past 33 games against winning teams.
The Over has cashed in 6 of the past 7 games against a right-handed starting pitcher for the Marlins and is 5-0 in their past 5 games after a win.
[gambcom-standard rankid=”5″ ]
For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.
Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Additional MLB coverage:
BaseballHQ Fantasy Baseball
BaseballPress.com: Your source for every MLB lineup
[lawrence-newsletter]
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1372]