The Kansas City Royals (33-19) travel to face off against the Tampa Bay Rays (25-27) on Saturday, May 25th. This game will be played at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg and televised on MLBN. The Royals are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Rays are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Royals. First pitch is set for 4:10 ET.
Royals vs Rays
Thanks to a seven-run 5th inning for the Royals’ offense, they cruised to an easy 8-1 win over the Rays in the most recent game of this series. Heading into the game, the Royals were favored at -120 on the money line.
The starting pitching matchup for this game featured Seth Lugo for the Royals, and he went seven innings while giving up just one run and picked up a win. Shawn Armstrong only went two innings for the Rays and gave up no runs.
Kansas City got a huge performance from Michael Massey, as he went 2/3 with a home run and three RBIs. Both Bobby Witt Jr. and Garrett Hampson each drove in two for the Royals’ offense.
The Royals are 33-19 overall this season, putting them 2nd in the AL Central, 1.5 games behind the Guardians for the division lead. They have won seven straight games, including taking the first game of this series vs. the Rays. So far, they have gone 11-5 in divisional matchups.
At home, the Royals have gone 21-8 this season and are just above .500 at 12-11 on the road. As the favorite, the Royals are 17-6 this year, and they have been good as the underdog, putting up a mark of 16-13. Kansas City’s overall series record is 9-7, and they have won two straight series.
The Royals have been a solid bet against the run line this season, going 34-18 overall. They have been particularly strong at home, going 20-9 against the run line. On the road, they are 14-9 against the run line. When favored, they have gone 14-9 against the run line, while as an underdog, they have gone 20-9.
When the Kansas City Royals and Tampa Bay Rays take the field tonight, the over/under line will be set at 8 runs. The Royals have seen their games average 8.3 runs per contest this season, and their over/under record is 21-29. When the line is set at 8 runs, their over/under record is 6-4-1. Overall, 61.5% of their games have had higher lines than 8 runs, and they are currently on a five-game over streak.
Brady Singer Gets The Start For The Royals
So far this season, Brady Singer has made 10 starts and has a record of 4-2. His ERA for the season is an impressive 2.70, along with a WHIP of 1.11. Singer has turned in four quality starts this year and is coming off an outing in which he allowed just one earned run in six innings of work. In that outing, he finished with nine strikeouts. The right-hander has a strikeout per nine innings figure of 9.69. Singer’s ERA at home is 2.2, compared to 4.2 on the road.
Royals Offense Breakdown
Salvador Perez and Bobby Witt Jr. have been two of the Royals’ top hitters this season, with Perez batting .330 and Witt Jr. not far behind at .305. Perez’s nine home runs are 9th in the league, while Witt Jr. has gone deep eight times. Witt Jr. has been especially hot of late, going 11/32 in his last eight games with three homers and 13 RBIs.
As a team, the Royals are 7th in scoring at 4.9 runs per game. They have been even better at home, averaging 5.5 runs per contest. Overall, they have the league’s 2nd home batting average and are 6th in team batting average. Currently, the Royals have five players on a hitting streak of at least three games.
Tampa Bay is looking to snap their five-game losing streak today, as they dropped the first game of the series vs. the Royals. Currently, they are 25-27 overall, putting them 4th in the AL East. The Rays trail the Yankees by 10.5 games in the division and are 9-11 against other AL East teams.
This season, the Rays have been favored in 33 of their games, and they are 15-18 in those matchups. As for their record as the underdog, they are 10-9. At home, the Rays have dropped five straight, and they are 14-16 overall at home. On the road, they are an even 11-11.
When the Rays are favored at home, they have been a poor bet against the run line, going 10-20. They have been a better bet on the road, going 12-10. Their average run margin is -0.9 runs per game, and they have been outscored by an average of 0.9 runs per game at home and on the road. They have been a better bet against the run line as an underdog, going 12-7 compared to 10-23 as the favorite. Their average run margin in winning games is +2.4 runs per game, compared to -4.0 in losing games. They are currently on a five-game run line losing streak at home.
Today’s over/under line is set at 8 runs, which is right around the season average for the Rays. Tampa Bay has played to the over in 27 of their 51 games this season. The over is 9-5 in games with an over/under line of 8 runs, and the over has hit in two straight games for the Rays.
Aaron Civale Gets The Start For The Rays
Aaron Civale will be looking to bounce back from a rough outing vs. the Blue Jays, as he gets the start for the Rays today. In that May 19th start, he took the loss, giving up four earned runs in 5 1/3 innings of work. Looking at his overall numbers, Civale has a record of 2-4 and an ERA of 5.92. Opponents have hit .266 off the right-hander this season, and his WHIP is 1.37. So far, he has made three quality starts and is averaging 9.06 strikeouts per nine innings. For the year, Civale has allowed 10 home runs.
Rays Offense Breakdown
Isaac Paredes has been the Rays’ best hitter so far this season, as he is batting .307 and has a team-high nine home runs. Paredes has also been swinging a hot bat of late, going 5/17 in his last five games with a home run and four RBIs. Randy Arozarena has also been a good power threat for the Rays, but he is batting just .159 for the season.
As a team, the Rays are averaging just 4 runs per game and are near the bottom of the league in home runs and slugging percentage. Overall, they are batting .237, which is 13th in the league. So far, they have been a good team at avoiding strikeouts, but their team OPS of .664 is just 24th in the league.
Royals vs Rays Prediction
Our prediction for this Royals vs. Rays matchup is to take the Royals on the money line, with the payout currently sitting at +100. We have the Royals winning this one by a final score of 5-4.
If you’re looking for some potential player props, we have Brady Singer finishing with five strikeouts compared to Aaron Civale with five as well. Offensively, the Royals are projected to finish with nine hits compared to the Rays with eight.
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.
Last updated:May 25, 2024 Rays, Royals