PREMIUM
Rogers' EARLY Afternoon ASSAULT >> 14-6 MLB Run!
(MLB) Kansas City vs. Tampa Bay,
Total: 7.50 | -117.00 Under
Result: Loss
Total: 7.50 | -117.00 Under
Result: Loss
The set-up: The Kansas City Royals opened their four-game series at Tampa Bay this past Monday on an eight-game road losing streak. However, the Royals won 7-3 on Monday and then again on Tuesday, 7-6 in 12 innings. KC's good fortune turned on Wednesday though, as the Rays enjoyed their best offensive outburst of the season. Tampa Bay's Colby Rasmus capped a three-hit performance with a grand slam in a 12-1 rout, a game in which Tampa Bay's lineup pounded out 16 hits. The teams wrap the series with a Thursday afternoon contest.
The pitching matchup: After allowing 12 runs and 16 hits in Wednesday's loss, Kansas City turns to Jason Vargas (4-1 & 1.19 ERA), who will be matched against Tampa Bay's Jake Odorizzi (2-1 & 2.88 ERA). Vargas is a 34-year-old lefty who leads all MLB pitchers in ERA, having allowed just six ERs and only seven walks in 37 2/3 innings this season to post an 0.98 WHIP while limiting the opposition to a .217 batting average. Vargas owns a 4-5 mark with a 3.11 ERA in 11 career appearances versus Tampa Bay (10 starts / teams are 4-6), although his last win at Tropicana Field came back in August 2013. Odorizzi has permitted just one earned run and struck out six in back-to-back solid outings since coming off the disabled list. The 27-year-old received a no-decision after a five-inning performance at Miami on May 1 before picking up the win five days later after yielding just one run again, on three hits in seven innings of a 6-1 rout over Toronto. Odorizzi entered the majors with Kansas City in 2012 but has struggled in his career against the Royals, posting a 1-3 mark with a 5.40 ERA in four outings..
The pick: Current form of Vargas (all season) and Odorizzi (two starts since coming off the DL) seems to point to an over but as noted (see above), Odorizzi has struggled against the team he began his career with. As for Vargas, injuries limited him to just 12 starts the previous two seasons and while he's been "lights out" so far in 2017, isn't he pitching "over his head?" After all, he does own a career 4.09 ERA in 222 career appearances (202 starts). Make the Over an 8* play.
The pitching matchup: After allowing 12 runs and 16 hits in Wednesday's loss, Kansas City turns to Jason Vargas (4-1 & 1.19 ERA), who will be matched against Tampa Bay's Jake Odorizzi (2-1 & 2.88 ERA). Vargas is a 34-year-old lefty who leads all MLB pitchers in ERA, having allowed just six ERs and only seven walks in 37 2/3 innings this season to post an 0.98 WHIP while limiting the opposition to a .217 batting average. Vargas owns a 4-5 mark with a 3.11 ERA in 11 career appearances versus Tampa Bay (10 starts / teams are 4-6), although his last win at Tropicana Field came back in August 2013. Odorizzi has permitted just one earned run and struck out six in back-to-back solid outings since coming off the disabled list. The 27-year-old received a no-decision after a five-inning performance at Miami on May 1 before picking up the win five days later after yielding just one run again, on three hits in seven innings of a 6-1 rout over Toronto. Odorizzi entered the majors with Kansas City in 2012 but has struggled in his career against the Royals, posting a 1-3 mark with a 5.40 ERA in four outings..
The pick: Current form of Vargas (all season) and Odorizzi (two starts since coming off the DL) seems to point to an over but as noted (see above), Odorizzi has struggled against the team he began his career with. As for Vargas, injuries limited him to just 12 starts the previous two seasons and while he's been "lights out" so far in 2017, isn't he pitching "over his head?" After all, he does own a career 4.09 ERA in 222 career appearances (202 starts). Make the Over an 8* play.
