Houston Astros vs Kansas City Royals Prediction 8-30-24 MLB Picks

The Kansas City Royals and the Houston Astros meet Friday in MLB action from Minute Maid Park. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this Game. Here’s a Houston Astros vs Kansas City Royals Prediction.

Starting Pitching Matchup

The Kansas City Royals will start Seth Lugo here and Lugo is 14-8 with a 3.19 ERA and 146 strikeouts this season. In his career, Lugo is 1-2 with a 7.04 ERA and 10 strikeouts against the Astros. Houston will start Framber Valdez here and Valdez is 13-6 with a 3.27 ERA and 139 strikeouts this season. In his career, Valdez is 2-2 with a 3.96 ERA and 25 strikeouts against Kansas City.

Kansas City Royals Recap

The Kansas City Royals come into this one looking to bounce back after starting the series with a 6-3 loss in Thursday’s series opener. The Royals sit behind the 8-ball early as they’re trying to build on a crucial series win over the Guardians from this past weekend.

Royals Trying To Surge Ahead In AL Central

Bobby Witt Jr. leads the Royals with 185 hits including 28 home runs, 95 RBIs and team-highs of 11 triples and 39 doubles with 27 stolen bases and a .344 batting average. Salvador Perez also has 25 home runs with 94 RBIs and 26 doubles. Maikel Garcia has 7 home runs, 53 RBIs and 33 stolen bases along with 5 triples and 23 doubles this season. Vinnie Pasquantino has 30 doubles with 19 homers and 97 RBIs of his own on the year.

Why the Kansas City Royals will win

• The Astros have lost seven of their last eight games as favorites against AL Central opponents following a home win.
• The Royals have won six of their last seven games as underdogs against the Astros.
• The Royals have covered the run line each of their last 11 Friday games against American League opponents that held a winning record.
• The Astros have failed to cover the run line in eight of their last nine games against AL Central opponents following a home win.

Houston Astros Recap

The Houston Astros will try to keep the momentum going after their win over the Royals in Thursday’s opener. The win gave the Astros some momentum as they try to bounce back from a series loss to the Philadelphia Phillies to start the week.

Astros Pulling Away In AL West

Jose Altuve has 158 hits and a .297 batting average with 18 home runs, 56 RBIs and 23 doubles while Yordan Alvarez also has 28 homers with 71 RBIs and 29 doubles. Altuve has the Astros’ team lead with 20 stolen bases so far this season. Jeremy Pena also has 136 hits and a .270 batting average as well as 15 stolen bases of his own this season. Alex Bregman’s added 21 homers and 61 RBIs and 26 doubles also.

Why the Houston Astros will win

• The Royals have lost seven of their last eight road games against AL West opponents.
• The home team has won each of the last four games between the Royals and Astros.
• The Royals have failed to cover the run line in each of their last eight road games against AL West opponents.
• The home team has covered the run line in each of the last four games between the Royals and Astros.

Houston Astros vs Kansas City Royals Prediction

I’m on the Astros here. I’ve been a Royals backer for a lot of this season as I like the direction this team is headed. However, Framber Valdez has been on another level in the last couple of months as he’s been a quality start machine, and while I like what Seth Lugo’s brought to the table, he’s showed signs of regression in recent outings and I still think this Astros team has been solid at the plate against right-handed pitching. I think all in all, the Astros get another key win here so give me Houston.