Kansas City Royals vs. Seattle Mariners Prediction: Should You Back Jordan Lyles, Royals?

Kansas City Royals vs. Seattle Mariners Prediction: Should You Back Jordan Lyles, Royals?

Jordan Lyles is in the middle of one of the worst seasons in recent history. He didn’t record his first win until his sixteenth start of the season back in June. Once Lyles got the monkey off his back, earning his first victory of the season, the wins started coming. Lyles has now won two of his last three starts. Not only has Lyles turned the page, but the Kansas City Royals are playing good baseball right now, especially at home. Tonight, they’ll look to defeat the red-hot Seattle Mariners for the second night in a row.

Royals vs. Mariners Date, Time, and Where to Watch

• Date: August 15, 2023
• Time: 8:10 pm ET
• Where to Watch: MLB.TV

Kansas City Royals vs. Seattle Mariners Prediction

The Royals have one of the worst records in baseball, all thanks to how poorly they perform on the road. At home, it’s a different story. Nearly 60% of their wins this season have come at home. They’ll get a chance to increase that number even more as they look to hand Seattle only their fourth loss of the month.

Emerson Hancock will be taking the mound for Seattle tonight. He is the Mariners' No. 4 prospect in their organization and made his debut last week. The 24-year-old righty looked sharp, racking up five innings and only allowing two hits and one run. It was an impressive debut for Hancock, but we saw what this surging Royals offense was able to pull off last night. Who’s to say they don’t rough up the rookie as he looks to make his first road start?

I was impressed by the Royals’ offensive production yesterday. Brady Singer is returning to form as he finally lowered his ERA below 4.91. This is the time of the MLB season when teams like the Royals and Nationals find themselves finally winning some games. Even the worst teams in baseball win 60-70 games every year; that’s just how baseball is. The Royals still have some catching up to do if they want to hit 60 wins, but they’re playing like they’re trying for it (which is all that matters).

This is debatably the best stretch of the season for Kansas City. Their offense has looked solid all year when they play at home, but especially of late. They put up seven runs with ease last night to win the first game of this series against Logan Gilbert, one of the better young righties in the American League. If they could get to Gilbert last night, they’ll be able to attack Hancock in his second career MLB start.

It seems like oddsmakers are respecting the Royals after their big win last night. A few weeks ago, Kansas City would be closer to (+200) than the current (+120) moneyline. With the way they’ve been hitting the baseball, I’m smart enough to know that the Mariners look like the easy bet in this matchup. Ride with the sharps and bet the Royals on the moneyline as a short dog at home.

Kansas City Royals vs. Seattle Mariners Pick

Kansas City Royals ML +120 is currently the best odds. Click here to see which sportsbook has the best odds for this pick

MLB Odds

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