12th Oct - Royals vs Astros

The Kansas City Royals and their hopes of returning to the World Series hang on a knife’s edge as they prepare for Monday evening’s game four match-up with the Houston Astros.

If they are going to keep the series alive and take it to a deciding game five, they are going to need to win at Minute Maid Park for the first time this season. That’s not an easy task.

Yordano Ventura pitches in game four on three days’ rest after an abbreviated outing in the opening game. He didn’t return after pitching two innings in a rain delayed game. He should be fresh and ready to go after giving up four hits and three runs in that outing. He needs to be near perfect tonight.

22-year old Lance McCullers isn’t regarded as an ace in this rotation, but he gets the game four start and he has a pretty good record in Minute Maid Park. In 10 games this season, he’s 4-1 with a 1.86 ERA, that’s compared against a 2-6 record and 4.60 ERA away from home. He’s a young player who loves pitching in Texas.

For all the deserved credit given to Dallas Keuchel for his impressive performance in game three, Kansas City will know that they squandered too many opportunities to score going o for 7 with runners in scoring position. This talented hitting line-up needs to get on top again.

Three Reasons for Betting Tips

1. McCullers’ first postseason start

There’s a pretty good array of good rookie starts to draw upon in the 2015 MLB postseason, but we can’t ignore the home-away disparity in McCullers’ case. We think he might get hit for some runs in this match-up.

2. Ventura pitches better

He’s been the Royals’ best pitcher through much of this campaign and now is the time, with his team’s season on the line, for a strong outing.

3. Better than even odds

It’s hard to ignore the opportunity to have a look at Kansas City, the team with the AL’s best record, playing against a rookie pitcher and with their season on the line, when they are above even odds.