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The Kansas City Royals and Atlanta Braves started their series with a 3-0 Braves victory on Friday night. The Royals needed a win to clinch a spot in the 2024 postseason but completed the task anyway because of the Minnesota Twins' loss. The Braves were chasing the New York Mets for the final wild card, and their chances also increased after the Mets lost to the Milwaukee Brewers. Atlanta's win over the Royals on Friday gave them five-straight, and four dating back to last season. The Braves have won those four games in the previous year by a combined score of 27-10. The Royals are severely limping into the playoffs, and they are lucky the Twins were even worse down the stretch. It's time to continue our MLB odds series with a Royals-Braves prediction and pick.
Royals-Braves Projected Starters
Seth Lugo vs. Reynaldo Lopez
Seth Lugo is 16-9 with a 3.03 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP.
Lugo's last start was at home against the San Francisco Giants, resulting in a 2-0 loss. He pitched 7 innings with 5 strikeouts, allowing 3 hits, no walks, and 2 earned runs.
Lugo is 9-3 on the road with a 2.67 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP.
Reynaldo Lopez is 8-5 with a 2.03 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP.
Lopez's last start was at home against the Colorado Rockies. He pitched 6 innings with 11 strikeouts, allowing 5 hits, no walks, and 2 earned runs.
Lopez is 4-2 at home with a 1.82 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP.
Here are the MLB Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Royals-Braves Odds
Kansas City Royals: +1.5 (-180)
Moneyline: +120
Atlanta Braves: -1.5 (+135)
Moneyline: -140
Over: 7.5 (-110)
Under: 7.5 (-110)
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How to Watch Royals vs. Braves
Time: 7:20 PM ET/4:20 PM PT
TV: Bally Sports Network
Stream: fuboTV (Free Trial)
Why The Royals Will Cover The Spread/Win
Seth Lugo has found his form with the Royals and is one of the main reasons they've been able to get a playoff spot this season. He has been successful recently, allowing two or fewer earned runs in four of his past five starts. The Braves are due for a regression game, as they've been in unbelievable form.
Why The Braves Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Braves had a top-notch pitcher on the mound on Friday with Max Fried, and have an even better one on the hill with Reynaldo Lopez. Lopez has allowed two or more earned runs in just two of his last seven outings and should be able to handle the Royals in this matchup.
Final Royals-Braves Prediction & Pick
It wasn't the storybook way that the Royals would've liked to clinch their postseason berth, but they did it by the Twins losing on Friday night. Regardless, that clinch will severely damage the Royals' motivation to win this game after they were able to celebrate the accomplishment. Nothing has changed for these two teams from Friday night's game, as every Braves game will be important until their doubleheader against the Mets on Monday. The Braves must win again; if Friday night showed us anything, they will.
We'll also add the under in this game, as the Royals' lack of motivation could cause their offense to sputter again on Saturday. They generated zero runs on Friday night, and the Braves were only able to score three. Seth Lugo and Reynaldo Lopez have been in top form over their past five starts and could continue that run in this game.
Final Royals-Braves Prediction & Pick: Braves -1.5 (+135) and Under 7.5 (-110)
