Cleveland Indians vs. Kansas City Royals Thursday Betting Preview

Despite winning three straight games overall, Cleveland is still just 66-64 on the year. The Indians looked to be a playoff contender for the first few months of the season, but they aren’t going to be in the postseason in 2021.

Kansas City has now lost three straight games, and this has been a streaky team all season long. The Royals are 32-33 at home so far this season, but they are just 59-73 overall. 

The Indians are -111 over the Royals in the series finale on Thursday night, and the over/under is set at 9.0 runs. 

McKenzie Must Get Better

The Indians saw their season derail when their two top starting pitchers suffered injuries that have kept them out for weeks. This forced the Indians to turn to some young starting pitchers, and that group has struggled to keep the team afloat.

Triston McKenzie is one of those pitchers, and he has gone just 3-5 with a 4.83 earned run average this season. The Indians appear to like the stuff that McKenzie has, but he just hasn’t been able to put it all together. 

Jose Ramirez continues to carry the Indians at the plate this season, and he leads the way with 31 home runs and 84 RBIs. This team still needs to find more offense moving forward, but they have some hot bats this weekend. 

Royals Struggling to Get Outs

Kansas City comes into this game with a team ERA of 4.68, and they have struggled to get outs over the past week. The Royals usually have an offense that can make up for the lack of pitching, but that hasn’t been the case in this series.

Mike Minor has had plenty of success for Kansas City in his career, but he has struggled in 2021. Minor has gone just 8-11 with a 5.30 ERA, and that could allow the Indians to have another big day at the plate. 

Salvador Perez leads the Royals with 38 home runs and 94 RBIs, and he will have the full attention of the Indians in this matchup. 

Great Shot at the Sweep

Both the Indians and Royals will send struggling starting pitchers to the mound, and this should be a game that has plenty of offense. This season, Kansas City has been the better offensive team, but the Indians have had the edge this week.

The Indians come into Thursday night with plenty of momentum, and getting off to a great start in this game could lead to a series sweep. Even though the Royals don’t have a ton to play for at this time, they aren’t just going to allow their rivals to sweep them.

This should be a competitive game, but expect to see plenty of offense.