Kansas City Royals (15-15) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (14-15)
May 1, 2025 1:10 pm EDT
The Line: Tampa Bay Rays -148 / Kansas City Royals +124; Over/Under: 8.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Kansas City Royals and the Tampa Bay Rays meet Thursday in MLB action from George M. Steinbrenner Field. This will be the final installment in a three-game series. Here’s a Rays vs Royals prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Rays vs Royals pick.
Kansas City Royals Betting Preview
The Royals lost their first two series this season against the Cleveland Guardians and the Milwaukee Brewers ahead of victories in two of three games versus the Baltimore Orioles. Kansas City would take a victory in another set over the Minnesota Twins, then lost in two of three during the rematch against Cleveland. KC took a sweep thanks to the New York Yankees ahead of losses in three of four versus the Detroit Tigers. The Royals would post a sweep over the Rockies, then won their first two outings versus the Astros 2-0 in both before losing 7-3 in the finale. On Tuesday versus the Rays, KC scored two runs in the first two innings and ended up hanging on for the 3-1 win. Starter Michael Lorenzen lasted 6.0 innings with one earned run on four hits and two walks.
In the Wednesday game two the Royals scored twice in the first inning on the way to a 3-0 shutout win. Vinnie Pasquantino had two RBI and a homer, while Bobby Witt had one RBI, one run and two hits. Starter Noah Cameron was great on 6.1 clean frames, one hit, five walks and three strikeouts.
As starter for Thursday the Royals are going with Seth Lugo. Over his six starts this year Lugo is 2-3 with a 3.08 ERA in 38.0 innings total. Over his career Lugo is 58-43 with a 3.36 ERA in 340 games (103 starts).
Tampa Bay Rays Betting Preview
Over on the Rays’ side, they won their first two series of the year over the Colorado Rockies and Pittsburgh Pirates. Following a sweep by the Texas Rangers and a set loss against the Los Angeles Angels, Tampa Bay won a series against the Braves. The Rays fell in two of three against the Red Sox and in three of four against the Yankees in the next two sets, but then took out the Diamondbacks in two of three games. The Rays posted a sweep over the San Diego Padres this past weekend to keep it going. On Tuesday versus the Royals, the Rays saw Junior Caminero notch three of the team’s eight hits—including a solo home run.
In the Wednesday matchup Tampa Bay’s offense was flummoxed, getting out-hit 11-4. Drew Rasmussen managed 5.0 innings with three earned runs on six hits and one walk in the starting pitcher role.
Shane Baz will start for the Rays on Thursday. This year Baz is 3-0 with a 2.45 ERA in five starts and 29.1 innings. Baz is 10-5 with a 3.20 ERA in 28 career starts at the MLB level. He’s got 153 strikeouts over 149.0 total innings.
Rays vs Royals Prediction
I’ll try KC in this one, but it’s a coin flip. Depends on how the starters look, really. Lugo is coming off a very nice victory over the Astros on April 25, posting 8.0 clean frames, three hits and a walk. In his two starts prior however, Lugo went 0-2 with seven earned over a period of 13.1 innings combined. He’ll need some help from the bats and the pen in order to bag another W in this one. As for Baz, he gave up five earned on four hits and four walks over 3.1 innings in a no-decision versus the Yankees, but came back with a victory over the Padres in his last appearance. That one featured 7.0 clean innings with four hits and a walk.
The Royals were great on the mound behind Cameron. The bullpen posted 2.2 innings with just three hits, no walks and one K. Overall it was a pretty nice day for KC and I like them to keep it going Thursday.
