The Kansas City Royals and Toronto Blue Jays clash Friday in game 1 of an MLB series at Rogers Centre. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.

Kansas City Royals Betting Preview

The Royals look to play spoiler after losing 9 of their last 12 games. The Royals have the second-worst record in the AL at 44-97. The Royals pitching staff is 28th in ERA (5.21), 23rd in WHIP (1.41) and 29th in quality starts (31). The Royals’ offense is 27th in runs per game (4.07), 20h in batting average (.243) and 26th in homers (141). Bobby Witt Jr. leads the Royals with 153 hits and 85 RBI, while Salvador Perez and MJ Melendez have combined for 232 hits and 111 RBI. The Royals didn’t list a starting pitcher at the time this article was published.

Kansas City Royals Team Facts

• The Royals have lost each of their last 11 Friday road games against American League opponents.
• The Royals have covered the run line in each of their last five night games against American League opponents following a home loss.
• The Royals have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last eight road games against opponents that held a winning record.
• The Royals have trailed after 7 innings in each of their last five road games against opponents that held a winning record.
• The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Royals’ last four games as road underdogs against AL East opponents.

Toronto Blue Jays Betting Preview

The Blue Jays look for a win after winning 5 of their last 7 games. The Blue Jays are currently holding onto that last AL wild card spot. The Blue Jays pitching staff is 2nd in ERA (3.72), 7th in WHIP (1.24) and 8th in quality starts (61). The Blue Jays offense is 15th in runs per game (4.61), 5th in batting average (.262) and 16th in homers (163). Bo Bichette leads the Blue Jays with 152 hits and 62 RBI, while Whit Merrifield and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. have combined for 283 hits and 144 RBI. Yusei Kikuchi gets the ball, and he is 9-5 with a 3.63 ERA and 152 strikeouts this season. Kikuchi is 1-2 with a 7.30 ERA and 18 strikeouts in his career against the Royals.

Toronto Blue Jays Team Facts

• The Blue Jays have won eight of their last nine home games against the Royals following a loss.
• The Blue Jays have covered the run line in eight of their last nine home games against the Royals following a loss.
• The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Blue Jays’ last four games.
• The Blue Jays have trailed after 5 innings in three of their last four games as home favorites against American League opponents.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Toronto Blue Jays ranks 1st in the league for strikeouts this season (1310).
• The Toronto Blue Jays ranks 2nd in the league for ERA this season (3.72).
• The Kansas City Royals ranks 2nd in the league for triples this season (37).
• The Kansas City Royals ranks 29th in the league for on-base percentage this season (.300).

Randy’s Pick

The Royals didn’t list a starting pitcher at the time this article was published, but I don’t care. The Royals aren’t winning games, and they’re not making bettors money, so it doesn’t matter who takes the mound. We’ve seen them before. They lose. The Blue Jays need to keep winning to lock up a wild card spot, and this is an ideal series at home. Yusei Kikuchi has been sharp with his 3.63 ERA and 1.26 WHIP, and he has a 3.50 ERA and .223 allowed batting average at home. Give me the Jays and the RL for max betting value.