The Cleveland Guardians (52-29) travel to face off against the Kansas City Royals (46-39) on Sunday, June 30th. This game will be played at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City and televised on BSGL. The Guardians are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Royals are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Guardians. First pitch is set for 1:10 CT.
Guardians vs Royals
Cleveland cruised to a 7-2 win over the Royals in the most recent game of this series. The Guardians had a huge 5th inning, scoring three of their seven runs. As for the Royals, they scored their only two runs in the 1st. Heading into the game, the Guardians were favored at -118.
Tanner Bibee started for the Guardians and picked up the win, going six innings and giving up just two earned runs. He finished the game with three strikeouts and didn’t issue a walk. On the other side, Cole Ragans got the start for the Royals and took the loss, going just 4 2/3 innings and giving up five earned runs.
Jose Ramirez and Jhonkensy Noel each homered for the Guardians, while Josh Naylor scored twice and drove in two runs while going 2/4. Andres Gimenez also had a two-hit game and drove in a run.
Cleveland is 52-29 overall this season, and they lead the AL Central by seven games over the Twins. The Guardians are on the road today, and they are 26-20 on the road this season. At home, the Guardians have gone 26-9.
This year, the Guardians have been favored in 52 games, going 36-16 in those games. As the underdog overall, they are 16-13. Their overall series record is 18-6-2, and they have won three straight series.
When the Cleveland Guardians are on the road, they have been a solid bet against the run line this season, going 26-20. They have a run line record of 46-35 overall, with an average run margin of +1.3 runs per game.
The Cleveland Guardians are on the road today against the Kansas City Royals, with the over/under line set at 8.5 runs. The combined run average in Guardians games this season is 8.7 runs, and their over/under record is 39-36. When the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs, their record is 8-11. Overall, 23.5% of their games have had higher over/under lines than today’s 8.5-run total. Their over streak is currently at two games.
Logan Allen Gets The Start For The Guardians
Cleveland is sending left-hander Logan Allen to the mound today vs. the Royals. He has made 16 starts this season and has a record of 8-3 with a 5.72 ERA. Allen’s WHIP for the season is 1.55, and he has pitched better on the road, coming in with a record of 5-3 and 8.17 ERA. At home, his ERA is 9.03. Allen has made five quality starts this year and is coming off a rough outing vs. the Orioles, where he gave up six earned runs in three innings of work. Before that, he had won two straight starts.
Guardians Offense Breakdown
Heading into today’s game, the Guardians are 4th in the league in scoring at 5 runs per game. They have been even better at home, averaging 5.2 runs per contest. As a team, they are batting .245, which is 10th in the MLB, and have the 8th best on-base percentage in the league. Cleveland has been one of the better home run-hitting teams in the league this season, and their team isolated power of .167 is 5th in the MLB.
José Ramírez has been swinging a hot bat of late, going 12/34 with five homers and 10 RBIs over his last eight games. For the season, he is batting .280 with a team-high 23 homers and 75 RBIs. Ramírez’s 75 RBIs is 2nd in the MLB. First baseman Josh Naylor is 2nd on the team with 20 homers but is batting just .239 for the year.
Kansas City is 46-39 overall and trails the Guardians by eight games for the AL Central lead. So far, they have gone 15-10 in AL Central matchups. The Royals are currently 3rd in the division and are leading the Guardians 2-1 in their current series.
At home, the Royals have gone 29-16 this year, and they are just under .500 at 17-23 on the road. As the favorite, the Royals are 23-12 this year and 16-6 as the favorite at home. Kansas City’s overall series record is 12-13-1, and they are 5-5 in their last 10 games overall.
The Royals have been a solid run line bet overall this season, going 48-37, and they’ve been especially good at home, where they’re 27-18. Their average run margin is +0.6 runs per game, and they’ve been even better at home, outscoring opponents by an average of 1.2 runs per game. They’ve covered the run line in two straight games and have been a good bet as the underdog, going 30-20 on the run line in those games. Their average run margin in wins is +3.7, while it’s -3.1 in losses.
At home, the Kansas City Royals have an over/under record of 36-46, and their games have averaged 8.5 runs per game. When the over/under line is set at 8.5, their record is 8-16. The over has hit in two straight games, and 24.7% of their games have had higher over/under lines than today’s line of 8.5 runs.
Seth Lugo Gets The Start For The Royals
Seth Lugo gets the start for the Royals today and comes in with a record of 10-2 and an ERA of 2.29. So far, he has made 17 starts and 13 of them have been quality starts. Lugo’s ERA at home is 2.76, and he has a record of 3-2 at home compared to 7-0 on the road. The right-hander has a WHIP of 1.04 and is coming off a start in which he didn’t allow a run. In that outing vs. the Marlins, he went six innings and gave up just two hits. Lugo has not lost back-to-back starts since April.
Royals Offense Breakdown
As a team, the Royals are averaging 4.5 runs per game, which is 13th in the league. They have been a much better offensive team at home this season, averaging 5.2 runs per game. Overall, they are 11th in team batting average and have the 10th best slugging percentage in the league. Kansas City has been good at putting the ball in play this season, as they have the 5th fewest strikeouts in the league.
Bobby Witt Jr. has been a big part of the Royals offense this season, as he is batting .307 with 12 homers and 53 RBIs. Salvador Perez is also having a strong season at the plate, with a batting average of .282 and a team-high 13 home runs. Vinnie Pasquantino has three homers in his last six games and comes into the game with a season-long batting average of .240.
Guardians vs Royals Prediction
Our prediction for today’s Guardians vs. Royals matchup is to take the Royals on the money line at -130. We actually have the Royals winning this one by a score of 6-5, so there is some value in taking them to win straight up.
Looking at the starting pitcher’s projections, we have Seth Lugo finishing with four strikeouts, which has him as the second-worst starter in terms of K’s. As for Logan Allen, he is projected to finish with five, which has him right in the middle of the pack.
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:June 30, 2024 Guardians, Royals