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An American League showdown is just on the horizon as the Kansas City Royals will square off with the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field on Thursday evening. Time to take a sneak peek at our MLB odds series, where our Royals-Rangers prediction and pick will be revealed for all to see.
After an 8-2 beatdown yesterday that snapped a three-game losing streak, the Royals come into this series finale eager to maintain a split against the Rangers to improve upon their 10-18 season record. Getting the nod after six minor league starts will be RHP Jonathan Heasley, who went 1-0 with a 4.44 ERA in those outings. In 2021, Heasley saw major league action with three starts under his belt with a similar 4.91 ERA.
The Rangers sit at 12-17 and have a losing record at home with a 5-10 mark. On the bump for the Rangers this evening will be lefty Taylor Hearn, who has compiled a 1-2 record with a lofty 6.52 earned-run average.
Here are the Royals-Rangers MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Royals-Rangers Odds
Kansas City Royals: +1.5 (-176)
Texas Rangers: -1.5 (+146)
Over: 8.5 (-114)
Under: 8.5 (-106)
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Why The Royals Could Cover the Spread
To begin, the Royals have been largely disappointing to start the 2022 MLB season, but the small glimpse of dominance was on full display in their victory against the Rangers not even 24 hours ago. With the bats scorching hot and the pitching arms keeping Texas off-balanced, there were an exuberant amount of smiles within the Royals clubhouse on Wednesday.
Since the long and grueling MLB season is considered to be a marathon rather than a sprint, Kansas City will need to use the same formula of success that was used in the commanding win moving forward to inch their way into playoff contention.
While postseason aspirations may still be a couple years away, the young and exciting upcoming talent on KC's roster is giving hope to a fan base that hasn't cheered for much since the Royals took home The Commissioner's Trophy in 2015.
Statistically, the Royals rank out as one of the bottom five teams in both hitting and pitching in the entire league. Wednesday's eight-run explosion that saw the Royals score four times in the ninth seemed to be simply an anomaly.
Offensively, Kansas City is only slugging .218 and has the second-fewest runs with 91 in all of baseball. If there is a silver lining at the plate, it has come in the form of OF Andrew Benintendi. The Royals left-fielder is raking .314 and has driven in 12 men, both team-highs through 28 games played.
Hearn has seen his earned-run average swell like a balloon and will be looking to turn his season around against Texas on Thursday. The 27-year-old has only squared off with the Rangers once, tossing 2 1/3 innings while giving up two runs on four hits last spring.
Why The Rangers Could Cover the Spread
Currently fourth in the AL West, Texas has won six of nine games and is trending upwards after a horrendous start to their 2022 campaign. Despite the 8-2 loss yesterday, the Rangers managed to beat the Royals in game one of this series by a score of 6-4. Star shortstop Corey Seager was as productive as it comes in the win, clubbing two home runs into the bleachers and providing his squad with a much-needed spark on offense. After Texas was held to only two runs on six hits in the 8-2 defeat, the Rangers will need more to take the rubber match from Kansas City at home.
As a whole offensively, Texas has been slightly better than their American League counterparts with 117 runs scored through 29 games, good for 20th in the majors. While their batting average collectively hasn't been a whole lot better at .219, right-fielder Adolis Garcia has been a sight for sore eyes with his club-leading 18 RBIs in his 110 at-bats thus far.
With a fresh face on the mound in Heasley, Texas is hoping to combat the Royals lineup with the young flamethrower. With a small sample size and not a whole lot of MLB pitching experience under his belt, the fact that there is limited film and scouting reports on Heasley may work in the Rangers' favor.
Final Royals-Rangers Prediction & Pick
With this deciding third game of the series set to take place in the heart of Texas, both squads would love to come out victorious and add to the win column. Unfortunately, only one of these squads will possess bragging rights when it is all said and done. At +1.5, there is great value in selecting the Royals in this one. Kansas City performed well yesterday against the Rangers, and they will pass the eye test again and cover the spread out on the road.
Final Royals-Rangers Pick: Royals +1.5 (-176)
