Houston Astros at Kansas City Royals odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Thursday’s Houston Astros at Kansas City Royals odds and lines, with MLB expert picks, predictions and best bets.

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The Houston Astros (4-9) visit the Kansas City Royals (8-4) for the finale of a 3-game series Thursday afternoon. First pitch from Kauffman Stadium is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Astros vs. Royals odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.

Season series: Royals lead 2-0

The Astros fell 11-2 against the Royals Wednesday with RHP Spencer Arrighetti picking up the loss. Both Astros runs came in the 4th inning off RBI doubles from C Yainer Diaz and 1B Jose Abreu. Houston has now lost 4 of its last 6 road games.

RHP Seth Lugo picked up the win for Kansas City. The Royals got the scoring started with a 7-run 3rd inning, and 1B Vinnie Pasquantino had 5 RBIs and 2 runs in the game with a homer. Kansas City is seeking its 6th win in a row and back-to-back series sweeps.

Astros at Royals projected starters

RHP Hunter Brown vs. RHP Brady Singer

Brown (0-1, 6.43 ERA) makes his 3rd start. He has a 2.57 WHIP, 7.71 BB/9 and 10.29 K/9 in 7 innings.

  • Last start: Loss, 3 IP, 5 ER, 8 H, 4 BB, 3 K in 10-2 loss at Texas Rangers Friday
  • Astros are 0-2 in his starts this season; he hasn’t pitched past the 4th inning in either outing

Singer (1-0, 0.68 ERA) makes his 3rd start. He has a 0.53 WHIP, 2.81 BB/9 and 9.45 K/9 in 13 1/3 innings.

  • Last start: No-decision, 6 1/3 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 4 K in 2-1 home win vs. Chicago White Sox Friday
  • Royals are 2-0 in his starts this season; he hasn’t pitched past the 6th inning in either outing and has allowed 5 total hits

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Astros at Royals odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:05 a.m. ET.

  • Moneyline (ML): Astros -135 (bet $135 to win $100) | Royals +115 (bet $100 to win $115)
  • Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Astros -1.5 (+125) | Royals +1.5 (-150)
  • Over/Under (O/U): 9 (O: -105 | U: -115)

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Astros at Royals picks and predictions

Prediction

Royals 5, Astros 2

Moneyline

BET ROYALS (+115).

Kansas City is 8-2 in its last 10 games, including 6-0 in its last 6, all at home. It has scored a combined 15 runs in its 1st 2 games against the Astros. It has outscored opponents 35-10 during its 6-game win streak.

The Astros have lost 4 of their last 6, all on the road, and have been outscored 38-27 during that span.

With Singer taking the mound, expect a Royals win.

Run line/Against the spread

PASS.

The profit is better on the Royals to win outright.

Over/Under

BET UNDER 9 (-115).

With Singer on the mound, giving up just 5 combined hits in his 2 starts, expect the Astros to struggle getting runs on the board.

Even though the Royals have had hot bats recently, scoring 20 runs in their last 3 games, they have given up just 10 runs total in their last 6, and as a result, they have hit the Under in 4 of their last 5 games.

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Houston Astros at Kansas City Royals odds, picks and prediction

Analyzing Tuesday’s Houston Astros at Kansas City Royals odds and lines, with MLB picks and predictions.

The Houston Astros (70-48) and Kansas City Royals (50-67) meet Tuesday night for an 8:10 p.m. ET first pitch to continue a four-game series at Kauffman Stadium. Let’s analyze the lines around the Astros vs. Royals odds with MLB picks and predictions.

LHP Framber Valdez is the projected starting pitcher for the Astros. He is 8-3 with a 3.09 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 8.6 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 84 1/3 IP over 14 starts.

  • Struggled over back-to-back starts in early July but has since notched a 3.30 ERA in 5 starts.
  • Makes this start after back-to-back 100-pitch games.

LHP Daniel Lynch is the projected starter for the Royals. He is 2-3 with a 5.97 ERA, 1.61 WHIP, 7.4 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 31 2/3 IP over 7 starts.

  • Owns a 2.66 ERA, 1.18 WHIP over his last 4 starts. But that stretch has been aided by a .254 batting average on balls in play and an 88.7% left-on-base rate.

Astros at Royals odds, lines, picks and prediction

MLB odds courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 3:30 p.m. ET.

  • Money line: Astros -200 (bet $200 to win $100) | Royals +160 (bet $100 to win $160)
  • Against the spread/ATS: Astros -1.5 (-122) | Royals +1.5 (-102)
  • Over/Under: 9.5 (O: -120 | U: -105)

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Prediction

Astros 7, Royals 5

Money line (ML)

Kansas City snapped a four-game skid with a 7-6 win in Monday’s series opener.

Valdez and the talented Houston offense give the visiting Astros the considerable edge in looking to bounce back Tuesday. But the money line price on Houston is too aggressive: PASS.

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Run line/Against the spread (ATS)

K.C. has been blown out frequently of late, and the Royals have the lesser bullpen in this matchup.

The Astros own an .835 OPS over their last 35 road games.

On a wind-out night, the ground-balling Valdez gets a marginal boost over the fly-balling Lynch.

HOUSTON -1.5 (-122) figures as the best-value side in this one.

Over/Under (O/U)

The Over is 11-4-1 in the last 16 head-to-head meetings in Kansas City.

The Royals are at their best against lefty pitchers, and they roll in with some confidence after a win in the series opener. Both bullpens may be overrated a bit due to low ERA figures of late. The expected-ERA numbers don’t jive, and there are some quality-of-contact metrics that swing the other way.

On a warm, humid night, breeze-out-to-left night at Kauffman Stadium, the price is right on betting the OVER 9.5 (-120) on Tuesday.

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Houston Astros at Kansas City Royals odds, picks and prediction

Analyzing Monday’s Houston Astros at Kansas City Royals odds and lines, with MLB picks and predictions.

The Houston Astros (70-47) meet the Kansas City Royals (49-67) Monday night for an 8:10 p.m. ET first pitch to open a four-game series at Kauffman Stadium. Let’s analyze the lines around the Astros vs. Royals odds with MLB picks and predictions.

RHP Jake Odorizzi is the projected starting pitcher for the Astros. He is 5-6 with a 4.59 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 7.9 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 through 68 2/3 IP spanning 16 games (15 starts).

  • Despite a clunker against the Los Angeles Dodgers two starts back, Odorizzi has pitched well since mid-June. He owns a 3.95 ERA over his last nine starts.
  • Draws a K.C. club which is at a platoon disadvantage vs. right-handers with a .673 OPS.

RHP Carlos Hernandez is the projected starter for the Royals. He is 3-1 with a 4.11 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 10.0 K/9 and 4.9 BB/9 across 46 IP over 17 games (five starts).

  • Has logged a 1.02 ERA and 0.85 WHIP over his last three starts despite facing the Chicago White Sox twice and the improved New York Yankees once.
  • Owns a 4.03 ERA over 44 2/3 career innings at Kauffman Stadium.

Astros at Royals odds, lines, picks and prediction

MLB odds courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 1:20 p.m. ET.

  • Money line: Astros -160 (bet $160 to win $100) | Royals +130 (bet $100 to win $130)
  • Against the spread/ATS: Astros -1.5 (-102) | Royals +1.5 (-122)
  • Over/Under: 10.5 (O: +100 | U: -125)

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Prediction

Astros 7, Royals 5

Money line (ML)

Houston has had an up-and-down month so far. The Astros went just 2-5 over their first 7 games in August but are 4-1 since. Houston allowed just 7 runs over those last five games.

Kansas City has lost four straight games and is just 4-11 over its last 15. The Royals notched a .596 OPS over that stretch which has put pressure on a second-tier pitching staff.

Respect the public on both sides of this risk/reward equation, though. PASS.

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Run line/Against the spread (ATS)

K.C. has been blown out frequently of late, and the Royals have the lesser bullpen in this matchup. The Houston-to-L.A.-to-K.C. trip makes for some caution but the Astros have been quite good in their mid-trip openers. Houston has won five straight series openers in the second or third stop on road trips.

HOUSTON -1.5 (-102) isn’t a full-unit play, but it’s the best on the board for a game the public looks to have a bead.

Over/Under (O/U)

The Over is 10-4-1 in the last 15 head-to-head meetings in Kansas City.

Both starters have some recent trends built a bit too much on difficult-to-reproduce marginal rates (low batting average on balls in play, etc.). The total is up there, but on a warm, humid night in Kansas City, the price is right on betting the OVER 10.5 (+100).

For more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com. Please gamble responsibly.

Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage. This information is for entertainment purposes only. We make no representations or warranties as to the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any content.

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