Yovani Gallardo (2-5, 4.19 ERA) and the Texas Rangers (14-19) meet Yordano Ventura (2-2, 5.13 ERA) and the Kansas City Royals (21-12) in the third of a four-game series at Globe Life Park in Arlington. The Royals won the last game 7-6 and the series is currently tied 1-1. The game starts at 8:05 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May. 13 and will air on FSN-KC and FSN-SW.
In his most recent outing, Gallardo pitched 5.1 innings, giving up three runs (one unearned), striking out three and walking two in an 8-2 loss to the Rays. Adrian Beltre (.250, 17 Rs, 4 HRs, 11 RBIs, 1 SB) continued his strong season yesterday, going 2 for 5 with one RBI. In his career against the Rangers, Ventura is 2-0 with a 2.19 ERA. He gets a less-than-stellar Texas offense that’s batting just .230. Eric Hosmer (.326, 21 Rs, 6 HRs, 27 RBIs, 2 SBs) has been hitting the ball well for the Royals, going 2 for 3 yesterday with two runs, one home run, and two RBIs.
Texas is a +118 underdog in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at eight runs. When playing as the underdog, the Rangers have a 13-16 record and overall money line at +66. Over the last 10 games, they have had a very good record when playing as the underdog (7-3). The Rangers are a nightmare for opponents on the bases with 27 steals, one of the highest totals in baseball.
Switching to the opposing bench, the Royals come into this game with a win percentage of .562 when playing as the favorite (9-7) and an overall money line of +786. The Royals rank fourth in the AL in road scoring, averaging five runs per game. The top hitting team in the league are the Royals, who have a .287 batting average. Opposing pitchers have routinely struggled to strike out the Kansas City batters, who average an AL-low 5.7 strikeouts per game. Shifting to the pitching staff, they have the second-lowest ERA in the AL at 3.39. They also allow just 7.4 hits per game, good for second in the AL.
This game will feature Ventura (RHP) on the mound against the Rangers, who have a 9-11 record when they take on a right-handed starter. Taking the hill against the Royals will be the right-hander Gallardo. They sport a 12-8 record against righties.
Predictions: SU Winner – KC, O/U – Over
Notes
When leading after 7 innings, Kansas City is 8-4, while Texas is 6-11.
The Rangers are coming into this game after allowing two walks during their last outing. The Royals have a 13-10 record when opponents give up that many walks or fewer.
When they are outhit, the Royals are 1-7. The Rangers have a 3-14 record when opponents outhit them.
Ranking 19th in home runs, Kansas City has hit 27 this season. Texas ranks 15th with 29 home runs.
Kansas City tops the league in hits with 10.00 per game this season. Texas ranks in the top half at 14th with 7.66.
Ranking 24th, Texas is near the bottom of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.676). Kansas City ranks in the top five at second with an OPS of .778.
The Royals are 12-7 in games where they allow one or more home runs. The Rangers are 6-15 when they allow at least one homer.
