The Toronto Blue Jays (13-12) travel to face off against the Kansas City Royals (15-10) on Thursday, April 25th. This game will be played at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City and televised on SNET. The Royals are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Blue Jays are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Royals. First pitch is set for 2:10 ET.

Blue Jays vs Royals

It was a low-scoring game in the most recent game of this Royals vs Blue Jays series. Kansas City went into the matchup as +114 underdogs and squeaked out a 3-2 win. Both teams scored one run in the first inning, and the Blue Jays could only muster one more run in the 5th inning. As for the Royals, they scored the game’s go-ahead run in the 6th, and both offenses went silent after that.

Toronto wasted a good outing from Yariel Rodriguez, as he gave up just three earned runs in four innings of work. Alec Marsh pitched well for the Royals, going just 4 1/3 innings but not giving up a run. He finished the game with one more strikeout than Rodriguez (5 to 4) and issued two fewer walks.

John Schreiber got the win out of the bullpen for the Royals, while James McArthur got the save. George Springer was the only Blue Jays hitter to have more than one hit, as he went 2/4 with a home run.

After taking the series opener vs. the Royals, the Blue Jays dropped the final two games of the series. Currently, the Blue Jays are 4th in the AL East, and they are four games behind the Yankees for the division lead. So far, they have gone 5-5 against other teams in the AL East.

As the Blue Jays are 13-12 overall, they have been good at home, going 6-3. On the road, they are just below .500 at 7-9. Toronto has lost two straight games as the favorite and are 10-5 when favored this year. As for being the underdog, they are 3-7.

When the Blue Jays win, they do so by an average of 3.2 runs, but when they lose, it’s by an average of 4.5 runs. They are 13-12 against the run line overall, and they are 8-8 vs. the run line on the road. Toronto is 9-6 against the run line as the favorite, but they have failed to cover in their last two games vs. the run line as the favorite.

With a combined run average of 8.1, the Blue Jays have seen their games go over the total in 10 of 24 games this season, including 5 of 9 when the over/under line has been set at 8 runs. Their over/under record for the season is 10-14, and their games have averaged 8 runs per game. Their last three games have gone under the total, and the over/under line for today’s game against the Royals is set at 8 runs.

José Berríos Gets The Start For The Blue Jays

José Berríos and the Blue Jays are on the road to take on the Royals. Berríos has been great to start the season, picking up wins in each of his first three starts. He has been able to go at least 6 innings in each of his outings and has a total of 15 strikeouts to just 6 walks.

Blue Jays Offense Breakdown

So far this season, the Blue Jays offense has been below average, averaging 3.8 runs per game (22nd in the league). They have been a little better at home, averaging 4.1 runs per game. As a team, Toronto is batting just .232, which is 17th in the MLB, and they are also near the bottom of the league in slugging percentage and OPS. One thing they have done well is avoid strikeouts, as they have the 4th fewest strikeouts in the league.

Justin Turner and George Springer are both looking to get going at the plate, as Turner has hit just .214 over his last nine games, and Springer is batting .232 for the season. Daulton Varsho has been hot of late, going 10/28 in his last nine games with four homers. For the season, he is batting .257 with a team-high six homers.

Kansas City is 15-10 overall and has won two straight games, taking the final two games of their series vs. the Blue Jays. Looking at the AL Central, the Royals are 2.5 games behind the Guardians for the division lead. So far, they have gone 7-3 against other teams in the AL Central.

The Royals are 11-5 at home compared to 4-5 on the road. As the underdog, Kansas City has gone 9-7 this season, and they have won two straight games as the underdog. Their overall series record is 3-4.

The Royals have been a solid bet on the run line this season, going 15-10 overall. They have been especially good at home, where they are 10-6 against the run line. Their average run margin for the season is +1.5 runs per game, and they have covered the run line in two straight games and in two straight games as the underdog.

The Royals have played to the under in four straight games, and their over/under record for the season is 8-16. The average over/under line for their games is 8 runs, and the combined run average in their games is 7.8 runs. The over/under line for today’s game against the Blue Jays is set at 8 runs.

Cole Ragans Gets The Start For The Royals

Cole Ragans has been solid for the Royals in his first three starts of the season, but he is still looking for his first win. He has a no-decision in each of his first two starts, and in his last outing, he took the loss after giving up 4 earned runs in just 1 2/3 innings. His first start of the year was against the Blue Jays, and he went 6 innings, giving up just 1 hit.

Royals Offense Breakdown

Salvador Perez has been one of the league’s top offensive players so far this season, as he is batting .348 with a team-high 23 RBIs and six homers, which is 5th in the MLB. Perez is also on a three-game hitting streak and has gone 8/18 in his last five games. Bobby Witt Jr. is also swinging a hot bat right now, as he is hitting .317 for the season and has a five-game hitting streak.

Maikel Garcia has also been on a tear of late, going 7/19 in his last five games with a homer and four RBIs. This has helped him move into the 2nd spot on the team’s home run leaderboard, even though he is batting just .206 for the season. As a team, the Royals are averaging 4.7 runs per game and are one of the league’s best home run-hitting clubs.

Blue Jays vs Royals Prediction

Our pick for today’s Blue Jays vs. Royals game is to take the Royals on the money line at -121. We have the Royals winning this one by a score of 5-4. Looking at the starting pitchers, Cole Ragans is projected to finish with four strikeouts, while Jose Berrios is projected to finish with six.

Offensively, we have the Blue Jays finishing with nine hits compared to the Royals, who we have finishing with nine. However, the Blue Jays are projected to finish with the 14th most runs in the league today, while the Royals are fifth.

Another way you could look to play this one is on the over/under, and with the line sitting at 8 runs, we would actually take the over, as we have this one finishing with a combined nine runs.

All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.