In a rematch of the 1985 World Series, interleague clubs collide as the Kansas City Royals battle the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday night. Welcome to another edition of our MLB odds series, where our Royals-Cardinals prediction and pick will be revealed.

 

The Royals enter this contest after playing .500 ball over the weekend, splitting their opening season series with the Cleveand Guardians. Kansas City hopes to get more out of its pitching in the start of this matchup, with lefty Daniel Lynch and his rather lofty 2021 ERA of 5.69 taking the mound.

After the day off due to a weather postponement against Pittsburgh, St. Louis will turn to 6-foot-5 flamethrower Dakota Hudson, who impressed in limited action last season.

Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Royals-Cardinals MLB odds.

MLB odds: Royals-Cardinals Odds

Kansas City Royals: +1.5 (-146)

St. Louis Cardinals: -1.5 (+122)

Over: 9 (-106)

Under: 9 (-114)

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Why Royals Could Cover the Spread

The Royals are statistically the worst pitching team in the majors thus far, as they are ranked last in opposing batting average and overall WHIP. Yes, there is plenty of time to right the ship and get things moving in a positive direction, but KC can't afford to wait too long. Surprisingly, KC only allowed a total of one run total in the first two matchups with Cleveland before most of the damage was done by the Guardians in the two games following. The Royals were pelted with a whopping 27 runs in 18 innings.

As expected, the bullpen is already gassed having to pitch overtime in their series split with Cleveland, so the Royals will be counting on the former-first round pick in Daniel Lynch to provide relief.

Lynch started off his MLB career in the worst possible way, surrendering 14 earned runs (and one unearned) in only eight innings pitched before being demoted back to the minors. However, Lynch fixed some mechanical issues and returned late in the season to the KC pitching staff, and to the surprise of Royals fans alike was much-improved in amassing a 2.23 ERA in more than 40 innings pitched. Kansas City is desperate for Lynch to tap into those late-season numbers from a year ago and is also long-term hoping that the highly anticipated southpaw can live up to expectations as his career marches on.

Not to mention, the Royals have to hit the ball with more productivity. Kansas City has managed to only score three runs a trio of times through four games this season. Obviously, this is not a recipe for success and will be something that needs to get figured out. If the Royals want to snap a two-game skid and put some runs up on the scoreboard, more is needed from impact guys such as Whit Merrifield and Salvador Perez.

Why Cardinals Could Cover the Spread

St. Louis is an offensive threat to many teams, as NL Player of the Week Nolan Arenado is already giving the opposition fits in his second season in a Cardinals jersey. Arenado is belting .500 through three games and has also already hit a pair of home runs to start off 2022. Already a nine-time NL Gold Glove winner, Arenado is looking to improve his .255 batting average from last season, as the Cardinals slugger is a .289 career hitter.

St. Louis, fresh off a NL Wild Card berth in 2021, will be a fun team to watch the rest of the way. The Cardinals arguably obtain one of the most exciting offenses top-to-bottom in all of baseball. They currently sit within the top 10 of statistical categories such as batting average, runs scored, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage.

If there is a cause for concern, it has been the inconsistency throughout the pitching staff and the bullpen. In St. Louis' recent loss versus Pittsburgh, Steven Matz was the poster boy of unsteadiness, as the lefty was shelled for seven runs in only three innings pitched. Likewise, the bullpen could not change the tide, giving up two more runs in a loss.

On the rubber in this one will be RHP Dakota Hudson, who has been hit with a flurry of injuries in his young career. The 27-year-old has only managed 41 career starts in four seasons as a Cardinal thus far.

Final Royals-Cardinals Prediction & Pick

Like previously stated, the good news is that the Royals have been even worse on the mound, and the Cardinals have the more elite offensive firepower to make them pay in comparison to Kansas City. Lynch sure does have the talent, but can he pitch up to standard versus a fearsome St. Louis offensive attack? Probably not. The Cards take care of business and rout the Royals at Busch Stadium.

Final Royals-Cardinals Pick: Cardinals -1.5 (+122)