Astros vs. Royals Prediction, Odds, Picks - September 22

The Houston Astros will send a hot-hitting Jose Altuve to the plate against the Kansas City Royals and Bobby Witt Jr., who has been on a tear in recent games, when the squads take the field on Friday at 8:10 PM ET. The Astros are favored in this one, at -232, while the underdog Royals have +189 odds to win. Houston (-1.5) is favored on the run line. The contest's over/under has been listed at 8.5 runs.

The scheduled starters are Framber Valdez (12-10) for the Houston Astros, and Cole Ragans (6-4) for the Kansas City Royals.

Here's everything you need from a betting perspective on the Astros-Royals game, from the point spread, moneyline, Over/Under and expert picks.

Astros vs. Royals Game Information & Odds

• When: Friday, September 22, 2023 at 8:10 PM ET
• Where: Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas
• How to Watch on TV: SportsNet SW

Astros vs. Royals Prediction

• Score Prediction: Astros 5, Royals 4
• Total Prediction: Over 8.5 runs
• Win Probabilities: Astros 59%, Royals 41%

Astros vs. Royals Betting Insights

• The Astros have been favorites in 112 games this season and won 58 (51.8%) of those contests.
• Houston has a record of 13-4 in games when oddsmakers favor them by at least -232 on the moneyline.
• The oddsmakers' moneyline implies a 69.9% chance of a victory for the Astros.
• The Royals have been victorious in 43, or 33.1%, of the 130 contests they have been chosen as underdogs in this season.
• This year, Kansas City has won six of 27 games when listed as at least +189 or worse on the moneyline.
• The moneyline set for this matchup implies the Royals have a 34.6% chance of walking away with the win.

Astros Recent Betting Performance

• The Astros went 3-6 over the nine games they were favored on the moneyline in their last 10 matchups.
• In their last 10 matchups (all 10 of them had set totals), the Astros and their opponents combined to go over the run total four times.
• The Astros' ATS record is 4-6-0 over their past 10 games.

Astros Recent Stats

Astros Player Insights

• Kyle Tucker's 28 long balls and 108 RBI both lead the Astros, on top of his team-high .282 average.
• Among all MLB hitters, Tucker is 18th in batting average, 16th in on-base percentage, and 16th in slugging.
• Alex Bregman is hitting .266 with 27 doubles, three triples, 24 home runs and 87 walks.
• Bregman ranks 48th in homers and 14th in RBI in the bigs.
• Yordan Alvarez has collected a team-best 28 home runs.
• Altuve is hitting .312 with 20 doubles, two triples, 17 home runs and 42 walks.

Learn more about this Astros vs. Royals matchup on Fox Sports.

Royals Recent Betting Performance

• The Royals have played as underdogs in 10 of their past 10 games and won six of those contests.
• The Royals and their opponents have combined to hit the over three times in their last 10 games with a total.
• The Royals have won six of their last 10 games against the spread.

Royals Recent Stats

Royals Player Insights

• Witt Jr. paces the Royals in home runs (29), runs batted in (91) and has posted a team-high batting average of .278.
• Among all hitters in the majors, Witt Jr. ranks 22nd in homers and 29th in RBI.
• Witt Jr. carries a three-game hitting streak into this matchup. In his last five games he is batting .286 with a double, a walk and two RBI.
• MJ Melendez is hitting .234 with 28 doubles, five triples, 15 home runs and 59 walks.
• Melendez ranks 139th in homers and 146th in RBI among all hitters in MLB.
• Maikel Garcia is batting .275 with 20 doubles, four triples, four home runs and 35 walks.
• Edward Olivares has 21 doubles, four triples, 10 home runs and 21 walks while hitting .264.