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Astros, Royals clash in Kansas City Wed.
By: Staff Writer - StatFox
Published: 6/7/2017  at  6:41:00 AM
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HOUSTON ASTROS (42-17)

at KANSAS CITY ROYALS (25-32)

First pitch: Wednesday, 8:15 p.m. ET
Line: Houston -155, Kansas City +145, Total: 8.5

The Royals will be hoping to inch closer to the .500 mark with a win over the Astros on Wednesday.

Before losing 9-7 in Kansas City on Tuesday, the Astros had won 11 straight games. This team is getting it done all over the field, as Houston is first in the league in runs scored and second in the league in team ERA. The Royals, meanwhile, are in the bottom half of the league in both of those categories. They desperately need to get going soon, as it is getting a bit late in the season at this point. There is still a ton of baseball to be played, but this group knows the importance of waiting too long to get hot. The Royals played their best baseball of the 2016 season towards the end of the year, but they ultimately dug themselves too big of a hole to get into the playoffs. The matchup on the mound for Wednesday will feature a pair of southpaws, as LHP Dallas Keuchel (9-0, 1.67 ERA, 69 K) is starting for Houston and LHP Jason Vargas (7-3, 2.08 ERA, 54 K) is starting for Kansas City. Both guys have been outstanding on the year, so the 8.5-run total is a bit suspicious for this game. It could, however, be because of the potency of this Astros offense. One trend that favors the Royals in this game is the fact that they are 14-4 against the money line in home games versus AL pitchers with an ERA of 2.90 or better over the past three seasons.

The Astros are the best team in baseball right now and they’ll be looking to earn a big victory in Kansas City on Wednesday. The Royals snapped the Astros’ winning streak on Tuesday, but Houston can still win this series by taking the next two games. The team certainly has the right guy on the mound, as Keuchel is the frontrunner for the AL Cy Young Award this season. Keuchel has allowed one or fewer runs in seven of his 11 starts this season. He will now try to do just that against the Royals, and he should be able to. He allowed just one earned run in seven innings on the mound against Kansas City in his first start of the year. Offensively, all of the Astros are capable of stepping up and helping the team win. DH Carlos Beltran (.249 BA, 8 HR, 24 RBI) and 2B Jose Altuve (.326 BA, 8 HR, 29 RBI) are two that stand out in this one though. The two of them are a combined 11-for-24 with two homers and seven RBI against Vargas in their careers. They’ll hope to stay hot against the lefty in this one.

If the Royals are going to win their second straight against the Astros then Vargas is going to need to come out dealing in this one. Vargas has been remarkable for Kansas City thus far, allowing no earned runs in five of his 11 starts this season. He has not, however, faced an offense quite like Houston’s, and he must be ready to avoid major mistakes here. If he hangs anything too high then the Astros are going to make him pay for it. Offensively, it’ll be up to guys like OF Lorenzo Cain (.261 BA, 3 HR, 14 RBI) and 1B Eric Hosmer (.315 BA, 5 HR, 21 RBI) to get things done against Keuchel. They are a combined 10-for-30 against the ace, so there is definitely a track record of success. The team could also get a boost from 3B Cheslor Cuthbert (.186 BA, 1 HR, 7 RBI), who is 5-for-9 with two doubles, two homers, and six RBI against Keuchel in his career. He does not start everyday, but it’s hard to imagine the Royals leaving that type of production on the bench.


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