In this article, we will formulate a Tigers vs Royals Prediction for this MLB game on Saturday, August 30th at the Kauffman Stadium in the second game of this series, with the Tigers having the 1-0 lead. Let’s take a look at the prediction for this MLB matchup.
Kansas City Royals Preview
The Kansas City Royals have a 69-66 record this season and are sitting on the second place of the AL Central. The Royals have a 36-31 record and are 59-75 in over/under. They are coming off a 3-5 home defeat by the Tigers, and saw their two-game winning streak end. Over is 6-3 in their last 9 games and are playing the Twins and the Angels next.
The Royals have a .247 batting average this season, .308 OBP and .395 Slugging percentage. Kansas’ pitching staff has a 3.67 ERA and 1.25 WHIP. Bobby Witt Jr. leads the Royals with 156 hits, and he is the team’s best hitter with a .297 batting average. Vinnie Pasquantino leads the team in RBI, with 94, and a team-high 28 home runs.
Stephen Kolek (R) is the projected starter for the Royals, and he has a 4-5 record, 4.18 ERA and 1.31 WHIP.
Detroit Tigers Preview
The Detroit Tigers have a 79-57 record this season and are sitting on the first place of the AL Central. The Tigers have a 35-32 road record and are 70-58 in over/under. They are coming off a 5-3 road victory over the Royals, which ended their four-game losing streak. Over is 7-3-1 in their last 11 games and are playing the White Sox and the Mets next.
The Tigers have a .250 batting average this season, .319 OBP and .423 slugging percentage. Detroit’s pitching staff has a 3.83 ERA and 1.23 WHIP. Riley Greene leads the Tigers with 136 hits, adding team-highs both in RBI, with 101, and in home runs, with 32. He is also the team’s best hitter with a .269 batting average.
Jack Flaherty (R) is the projected starter for the Tigers, and he has a 7-13 record, 4.87 ERA and 1.30 WHIP.
Why the Kansas City Royals will win
- The underdogs have won each of the Tigers’ last five games.
- The Tigers have lost each of their last four games as favorites.
- The Tigers have failed to cover the run line in 11 of their last 12 games as road favorites.
- The Royals have covered the run line in each of their last five home games following a loss.
- The Royals have won the first inning in six of their last seven night games at Kauffman Stadium.
- The Royals have led after 3 innings in six of their last seven home night games.
Why the Detroit Tigers will win
- The Royals have lost each of their last 11 night games against AL Central opponents that held a winning record.
- The Tigers have won each of their last eight night games against the Royals following a win.
- The Royals have failed to cover the run line each of their last 11 night games against AL Central opponents that held a winning record.
- The Tigers have covered the run line in each of their last eight night games against the Royals following a win.
- The Royals have trailed after 5 innings in eight of their last nine games as home underdogs.
Total Runs Facts
- Eight of the Royals’ last nine home games against AL Central opponents have gone UNDER the total runs line.
- Three of the Tigers’ last four games as favorites have gone OVER the total runs line.
- The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Royals’ last 11 night games at Kauffman Stadium.
- The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in eight of the Tigers’ last nine games as favorites against AL Central opponents.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Royals rank 2nd in the league for strikeouts against this season (918).
- The Royals rank 29th in the league for walks this season (354).
- The Tigers rank 30th in the league for steals this season (58).
- The Tigers rank 3rd in the league for triples this season (31).
Tigers vs Royals Prediction
The Tigers are 8-3 in their last 11 head-to-head meetings against the Royals, and are 3-1 their last 4 visits in Kansas City. Under is 4-2 in their last 6 meetings.
In this Tigers vs Royals Prediction, the Tigers are coming as -120 road favorites. I don’t trust Flaherty on the road for the Tigers, as he has a 6.08 road ERA this season, and he was torched in his last start, which was against the Royals, with 8 earned runs in 5 innings pitched. Kolek will make his debut with the Royals uniform, and he has not played in a month. He was struggling before that, having a 5.33 ERA in his last 5 starts. I expect a lot of runs in this game, so take the over 9 in this one.