Guardians vs Royals Series Preview: Key Matchup For Both Teams
Cleveland Visits Kansas City for Four-Game Series
The Cleveland Guardians take the road on Thursday, opening a four-game series at Kansas City. The Guardians are 51-27 on the season, which is the second-best record in baseball.
Kansas City is 44-38, good for third place in the AL Central, although KC holds down a wild card spot. This is a good chance for the Royals to make up some ground on Cleveland, although they could also fall farther back.
- The Guardians vs Royals series preview is showing Ben Lively and Michael Wacha as the scheduled starters for Thursday’s game. The Guardians are -113 with the total at 8.5-over (-115). Cleveland is +145 on the run line at -1.5 runs.
Cleveland is tied at No. 2 in MLB scoring 5.1 runs per game. The Guardians are No. 14 in team batting average, but are No. 8 in home runs. Cleveland is in the top 10 in on-base percentage and slugging percentage.
The Guardians are No. 5 in team ERA and the bullpen has been great. Cleveland’s relievers have a 2.37 ERA and the team has 30 saves in 39 opportunities.
The Guardians are solid on both sides of the field, so it’s no surprise their World Series odds are sixth-lowest in MLB.
The Royals are scoring 4.5 runs per game and they’re better at home, where they score 5.2 runs. Kansas City is No. 16 in team batting average and No. 17 in home runs, so this MLB team stats is doing well to be scoring as many runs as it does.
The Royals are in a bit of a slump, scoring just 11 runs over their last 11 games and going 2-5.
- Kansas City is No. 10 in team ERA, although the bullpen hasn’t been anything special. The Royals relievers have an ERA of 4.35 and team has 20 saves in 32 opportunities.
 Cleveland vs Royals 
Day/Time:
Location: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri
Streaming: Fox Sports 1
Thursday’s Game
Lively has pitched well for Cleveland this season, going 7-3 with an ERA of 3.03 as a starter.
- The Guardians are 8-4 when he starts, but 3-4 when he starts on the road. He had a decent outing against Toronto last time out, earning the win.
Wacha has been pretty average for Kansas City. He’s 4-6 with a 4.07 ERA and the Royals are 5-8 when he starts, but 3-2 when he starts at home.
He’s been pretty solid over his last six starts, allowing two earned runs or less, but Kansas City has lost his last three outings.
From a value standpoint, the Royals +103 make some sense to use as one of your MLB picks today. The Guardians saw their seven-game winning streak snapped Wednesday night then had to travel to Kansas City.
Final game of the Guardians-Royals series after getting washed out yesterday. Tanner
Bibee (CLE) vs Brady Singer (KC) pic.twitter.com/YwieTMACLY— Baseball International Group of Scouts (@BIGScouting) June 6, 2024
Friday’s Game
The Guardians vs Royals series preview is showing Triston McKenzie and Alec Marsh as the two starters for Friday’s game. McKenzie hasn’t really pitched all that well, but the Guardians are winning when he takes the mound.
- He has a 3-4 record with a 4.66 ERA, but Cleveland is 8-0 when he doesn’t get a decision. The Guardians are 11-4 when he starts and 3-2 when he starts on the road.
Over his last seven starts, McKenzie is sporting a 6.06 ERA, but the Guardians have gone 6-1 in those games.
Marsh is 5-5 with a 4.40 ERA, but the Royals are 9-5 when he starts and 6-1 when he starts at home. His home ERA is 3.58, so he’s pitching better there and Kansas City scores more at home.
Both teams are doing well when today’s starters take the mound, which makes the game a bit tough from a handicapping perspective. There could be a little bit of value on the over in this one.
Saturday’s Game
Tanner Bibee and Cole Ragans get the starts on Saturday and Bibee has been solid for Cleveland. He’s 6-2 with a 3.50 ERA on the season and the Guardians are 13-3 when he starts.
He’s been better on the road, where Cleveland is 7-1 when he starts and his ERA is 2.66. The Guardians are 4-0 when he starts as an underdog.
- Ragans is 5-5 with a 3.12 ERA, although Kansas City is just 8-9 when he starts. He’s fared a little bit better at home, where Kansas City has gone 7-3 with him on the mound.
Ragans has pitched at least six innings in each of his last five starts, allowing just eight runs in those games.
Both teams can score, but both pitchers have been solid and better in today’s location. The MLB pitching matchups and odds show a pretty even game. The best wager here could be to take the under.
Sunday’s Game
The Guardians vs Royals series preview is showing Logan Allen and Seth Lugo as the starters on Sunday. Lugo will be a decent-sized favorite due to his hot start to the season.
- Allen has benefitted from Cleveland’s offense, as he hasn’t pitched well, but the Guardians are winning. He is 8-3 on the year despite a 5.76 ERA and Cleveland is 10-6 when he starts.
His away numbers are slightly better. He’s coming off an ugly start against Baltimore, but has bounced back a little bit after being hit hard his previous trip to the mound.
- Lugo is having a banner season, going 10-2 with a 2.37 ERA. The Royals are are just 11-6 when he starts, but 3-5 when he starts at home. His best efforts this season have been on the road, although his home numbers don’t look bad.
If the Royals are too big of favorites, the Guardians could be a fair value play. You would need Cleveland +140 or higher to make it a worthwhile wager and you might get those odds depending on the outcomes of the first three games.
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