This afternoon marks arguably the most important day in the American League Central all season. After three straight wins over the Cleveland Guardians, the Kansas City Royals now find themselves tied for the division lead.
The surge comes after a brutal series loss to the Phillies at home this past weekend for the Royals. The young lineup led by its American League MVP candidate Bobby Witt Jr. and previous World Series champion Salvador Perez, has now become everything the Guardians have feared.
Today at 1:10 PM, the most important game for either of these teams will take place at Progressive Field, with Michael Wacha (11-6) on the mound against Tanner Bibee (10-6). Here’s four picks to give you some action for what should be a very exciting afternoon game.
Royals ML (+129)
The Royals are red hot and have a solid arm on the mound today in Michael Wacha. Against Tanner Bibee with a 4.20 ERA at home, the Royals offense will look to stay hot and take their fourth straight win, and lead of the AL Central.
Michael Wacha Over 17.5 Pitching Outs
Wacha has been such a consistently good arm for the Royals this season. Since July 30th, Wacha has gone at least six innings pitched in every start, going seven innings in multiple outings.
Guardians hitters combined have a .208 batting average against Wacha and if he can keep the amount of hits given up to five or less, he should be in great position to go at least six innings in this afternoon’s start.
Michael Wacha Over 1.5 Walks (+135)
The last outing Wacha had against the Guardians, he totaled two walks. While the line is plus odds today, there’s solid reasoning to sprinkle something on this prop. This being a game where the division lead is on the line, Wacha can come out of the gate struggling to locate just given the big stage.
The Guardians have a BB/G rate of 2.95 as well, and at their own field in a big game are going to need to put up great at bats and have a solid approach at the plate. Two walks shouldn’t bury Wacha by any means, it’s a great prop to play for its value even if you’re tailing the Royals.
Vinnie Pasquantino Over 1.5 Total Bases (+120)
Vinnie P is in a bit of a home run slump recently. His last long ball came on August 16th, but he has three doubles in the last seven days. This makes the total base prop a better play here today against a right handed Tanner Bibee. A double clears this line and again in such an important game, every at bat counts and Pasquantino needs to contribute with the bat.