Kansas City Royals at Houston Astros MLB Lines Preview ALDS Game 4

Posted by Alex Murphy on Monday,October 12, 2015 11:20, EDT in

The Houston Astros, leading 2-1 in their playoff series against Kansas City, have a chance to close out their divisional series when they take on the Royals in Game 4 of their best-of-five playoffs. Below is an MLB lines preview of this game, complete with free baseball betting picks specially prepared for you.

Taking a Quick Look at the Kansas City Royals at Houston Astros MLB Lines Preview ALDS Game 4 & TV Info

Starting Pitchers: Yordano Ventura (13-8, 4.08) vs. Lance McCullers (6-7, 3.22)
Venue: Minute Maid Park, Houston
When: Monday, October 12, 2015
Time: 1:07 PM ET
TV: FS1
MLB Odds: Kansas City (+118), Houston Astros (-118), OVER/UNDER 7.5

Betting on the Astros

Thanks to their exhilarating 4-2 win over the Royals in Game 3 of their American League Division Series on Sunday, the Astros have a chance to claim their first playoff series win in 10 years and a berth in the ALCS, if they can take care of the Royals at home this Monday. Dallas Keuchel was the star of Sunday’s win, as he threw seven gutsy innings and allowed five hits and one run with seven strikeouts.

To win Monday’s clash, Lance McCullers will be the starting pitcher tasked with producing another good start for the Astros. Certainly, it’s a pressuring job for McCullers, who turned 22 on Oct. 2 and will be making his postseason career debut in this Monday clash. Even so, McCullers can take confidence in the fact that he helped his team to a 5-2 win over the Royals on June 29 in Houston, allowing only one run and four hits in seven innings, while striking out six and walking two in that win.

Plus, McCullers posted a solid 1.86 ERA at home this season, a big shot in the arm for him to impress the home supporters. Meanwhile, the Astros offense has performed splendidly in the playoffs so far, scoring an MLB-best 16 runs, paced by Colby Rasmus, who is 5-of-10 this postseason with six walks, five RBIs, and three homers. Continuing with this run should thus be very possible.

Betting on the Royals

Though they are in a tough do-or-die spot this Monday, and the pressure of playing in front of the raucous Houston crowd could be unbearable, the Royals have a true gem in starter Yordano Ventura, a veteran who has the nerves of steel to absorb the pressure and give a good showing.

This will be Ventura’s second postseason start after his first one was limited to two innings due to a 49-minute rain delay in Game 1. In those two innings, Ventura gave up two runs in the first inning and another in the second. The Astros ended up winning that contest 5-2.

After being partly responsible for the Game 1 loss, you can expect Ventura to be motivated for making amends with a better performance on the mound. In the 14 games he pitched on the road this season, Ventura decently went 6-3 with a 4.30 ERA. In addition, he closed the regular season on a hot run, going 7-1 with a 2.38 ERA in his last 11 starts. With such numbers to his name, it goes without saying that Ventura has the potential to play big and help the Royals to even out the series.

Of course, Ventura will need a rejuvenated support from Kansas City’s offense that has been shaky so far in the preseason. In that regard, the onus will be on the likes of Ben Zobrist (who is hitting 5-of-12 this postseason with one RBI) and Kendrys Morales (who is hitting 4-of-11 in this series with two RBIs and two homers) to come up big.

Key MLB Betting Trends

•    Kansas City is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
•    Houston is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
•    Kansas City is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games on the road
•    Houston is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games at home
•    Kansas City is 3-9 SU in its last 12 overall games against Houston
•    Houston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 home games against Kansas City
•    The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Kansas City’s last 6 games
•    The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Houston’s last 6 games
•    The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Houston’s last 6 overall games against Kansas City
•    The total has gone UNDER in Ventura’s last three starts
•    The total has gone UNDER in McCullers’ last three starts

Royals at Astros Game 4 Betting Prediction

Obviously, this will be a tough contest, considering McCullers has been a solid performer at home and he will be have the support of a lethal offense. Conversely, Ventura finished the season on a solid run, which makes him and the Royals dangerous underdogs. All that said, the Astros are brimming with a lot of confidence and are playing better baseball on both ends of the field. Added to their home advantage, we feel that the Astros will seal qualification to the next round with a close win, as the total stays UNDER 7.5.