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A pair of American League contenders in the early part of the season will go head-to-head on the diamond as the Kansas City Royals take on the Seattle Mariners. It is time to take a look at our MLB odds series where our Royals-Mariners prediction and pick will be unveiled.
Entering play with a 25-17 record after being winners in four of their last five games, the Royals head to the Pacific Northwest as one of the more surprising teams in baseball. After having not appeared in the postseason since which happened to be Kansas City's World Series winning season, could this Royals team be destined to return to the playoffs? Tasked with keeping KC's winning ways will be savvy veteran Michael Wacha who is 2-4 with a 5.15 ERA.
While the Mariners record isn't all that flashy, it has been good enough to jump out to a slim AL West lead. Overall, Seattle is 22-19 and has compiled a 13-9 record in front of their home fans. Over Mother's Day weekend, the M's managed to take two of three games from division rivals Oakland. Getting the start will be RHP Logan Gilbert who is 3-1 with a 2.94 ERA and serves as Seattle's ace.
Here are the MLB Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Royals-Mariners Odds
Kansas City Royals: +1.5 (-162)
Moneyline: +134
Seattle Mariners: -1.5 (+134)
Moneyline: -158
Over: 7.5 (+100)
Under: 7.5 (-122)
How to Watch Royals vs. Mariners
Time: 9:40 ET/6:40 PT
TV: MLB.TV
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Royals Will Cover The Spread/Win
If there is one thing that the Royals have succeeded in, it has been the promising development with their younger players. After several seasons in full-blown rebuild mode, it seems like Kansas City's patience has paid off. Although there is plenty of games remaining in the regular season and the Royals will need to continue winning consistently, they are obviously off to a tremendous start.
For starters, Kansas City's pitching prowess has been tough to overcome for the opposition. Not only are the Royals tied for the league lead with 20 quality starts, but they are also 8th in ERA (3.42) and 12th in WHIP (1.24). In addition, hitters are only slashing an average of .236 against KC pitching this season. After giving up six runs in the series-opening loss to the Mariners, expect a bounce-back outing from this pitching staff and bullpen.
The welcoming veteran presence of Michael Wacha could very well be exactly what the doctor ordered on the pitching side of things, but it may be up to an offensive outing by the bats to put the Royals on top. Convincingly enough, Kansas City's offense is also nothing to scoff at. With near top-ten hitting statistics in runs scored, home runs, and batting average, the Royals could also very well take full control of this matchup and exact revenge upon the Mariners in the form of the sticks. If the meat of this lineup can come through when the opportunity presents itself, then they may be in pretty good shape.
Why The Mariners Will Cover The Spread/Win
From the naked eye, the Mariners are struggling mightily at the plate but are fortunately overcoming their hitting ineptitude with some strong performances on the mound. Arguably, Seattle may boast one of the top pitching units in the game. While the bullpen hasn't been too shabby, it's been the starting rotation that is a certified juggernaut nearly every night.
With 24 quality starts under their belt, Seattle's starters know how to pitch to supreme efficiency. Whether it's striking hitters out, inducing ground balls, or forcing harmless pop-flys, the Mariners from the mound are no joke. If the M's want to defeat the Royals in back-to-back games and also cover the spread in the process, look no further than Logan Gilbert to lead the charge in a big way.
Unfortunately, hitting the baseball at a high level has been a tough concept to grasp for Seattle. As it stands, the Mariners rank only 24th in runs scored and also have low slugging and on-base percentages. Despite having a narrow AL West lead, the Mariners cannot afford to be this lousy at the plate and expect to be taken seriously as an elite club from the rest of the league. After scoring six runs on eleven hits in the 6-2 victory over KC, could the Mariners finally be taking a step in the right direction?
Final Royals-Mariners Prediction & Pick
Both teams have shown positive glimpses so far this season, but the pick here is to side with the Mariners to once again defend their home field.
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Final Royals-Mariners Prediction & Pick: Mariners -1.5 (+134)
