Royals plus $1.21 at Mariners
Maybe the Royals aren’t going to be sellers at the trade deadline after all. The world champions from just two years ago, have stepped up to win 15 of their last 21 games.
Kansas City is proving itself on the road, too, going 15-10 in its last 25 away games, including 8-3 during its past 11 road games.
The Royals have won the opening game in five of the last six series. I like them to accomplish that again today in a pitching matchup of veteran Ian Kennedy against Andrew Moore, set to make only his second big league start.
Kennedy’s road numbers don’t look good, but he’s held opposing batters to a .191 average away from Kauffman Stadium. Kansas City is 4-0 in his last four road outings. The Royals have won those games by an average of four runs.
Moore made his big league debut against the Tigers on June 22, giving up three runs on six hits in seven innings. That was a decent showing. The Royals have a lot of professional hitters, though, and they now have a body of work on Moore.
The Mariners are likely to still be missing Nelson Cruz, who is second on the team in homers and RBIs. He’s nursing a sore knee. Seattle isn’t playing great losing five of its last seven games.
