Pitching Will Be Stiff Today In Royals Vs Mariners

Royals vs. Mariners, 10:10 ET

After a pretty tough Tuesday, Wednesday was a bit easier to manage was we were able to split the day and get a plus money winner. One thing that has gone well for me, okay, two things, have been dogs and most of my multi-unit plays. So when I feel really confident about something, it is hitting, and I've been able to put some good plus money wins on the board as well. Do we have another one here today as the Royals take on the Mariners in Seattle?

The Royals are stumbling and really need to figure things out sooner rather than later. They haven't buried themselves, but they are well behind the first place Tigers in the division. The other issue is that they will need to fight the other teams in the division ahead of them and those in other divisions. They currently sit seven games under .500 which is a tough spot to be in right before the All-Star Break. Kansas City just hasn't been consistent enough this season. Their team stats are very good outside of one glaring issue - runs. It seems like they are hitting just as well as most teams, but they have very few homers and are one of the lowest scoring teams in baseball. Today, they have Seth Lugo going for them, a hurler who has done a great job over the past two seasons for him. Lugo is 5-5 for the season with a 2.74 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. His road ERA is a bit higher, but he has fewer starts on the road. Still, he has allowed one fewer earned run in 12 fewer innings on the road as compared to home. He probably is sad to see the month turn to July as he was great in June, going 28.2 innings and allowing just four earned runs. Mainers hitters haven't seen much of Lugo and are just 4-for-18 against him.

Apr 26, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Kansas City Royals pitcher Seth Lugo (67) throws in the first inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports

The Mariners are doing better than the Royals, but this is going to be a tough season for them to navigate into the postseason as well. They have done better this year offensively than they had last season when they were one of the bottom teams in the league in runs, and top in strikeouts, marks an improvement, but they are pretty much in the same situation. Seattle has done well at home this year, but they stumbled in their most recent homestand. Still, the team sits in second place of the division, and they are four games above .500. They are scoring more runs than the Royals, but their batting average isn't much higher. Today, the Mariners send out Bryan Woo to the hill. He brings a 7-4 record with a 2.93 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP. He's been surprisingly good for Seattle this season. He has been great at home, sporting a 2.08 ERA, allowing just nine earned runs over 39 innings. His end of June was nice, putting together three straight quality starts. His first two starts of June were a bit tougher, allowing nine earned runs combined in those two games. Woo has only had nine at-bats against him from Royals hitters and they are just 1-for-9.

The stats would indicate, to me, that this is going to be an under. The way Lugo is throwing is very encouraging, and Woo has been very good at home. Neither of these teams scores a ton of runs so the under 7.5 is a strong look. I have a lean to the Royals to win this one because I think Lugo can position them to win, but I'll back the under instead. Maybe you can split a unit if you'd like between the two looks.

For more sports betting information and plays, follow David on X/Twitter: @futureprez2024