MLB Pick: Under 8.5 (-103) at Heritage Sports (visit our Heritage Sports Review)
A full baseball betting card for Tuesday includes a series opener in Kansas City between the Royals and Astros, and the top sportsbooks have Houston favored despite being embarrassed in this rivalry a season ago.
For a thorough breakdown and preview of today’s MLB matchups, make sure to check out Bookmakers Review’s YouTube channel.
If you’re considering placing bets on these matchups, continue reading for a detailed analysis and the latest betting odds.
Houston Astros vs. Kansas City Royals
Tuesday, April 09, 2024 – 07:40 PM ET at Kauffman Stadium
Will it be payback time for the Astros after the Royals took 5 of 6 from them in 2023? Houston opens this series with Cristian Javier (1-0, 0.00 ERA) while Kansas City hopes to draw first blood with southpaw Cole Ragans (0-1, 1.46)
Astros Lead AL with 16 HR
He was a bit wild with 5 walks, but Javier made up for that by allowing just 1 hit in his 5 innings of an 8-0 win over the Blue Jays last Wednesday. He tossed 6 shutout innings against the Yankees before that, but has dropped both of his previous 2 career starts against KC.
Kansas City has wasted a couple of fine outings by Ragans. The Florida native has surrendered just 2 runs in his 12+ innings while striking out 16, but the Royals have slumbered at the plate by scoring just 4 runs combined in losses to the Twins and Orioles. He is 1-2 with a 4.40 ERA in 5 career starts vs. Houston.
The Pick
Both of Ragans’ starts in a KC uniform last year against Houston went ‘over’ the totals, and the Astros come into this series off a big win at Texas on Monday with Yordan Alvarez’s bat smoking hot. My free MLB pick will ignore all of that, however, and bank on the starting pitchers getting their job done.
MLB Pick: Under 8.5 (-103) at Heritage Sports
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
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