Bryan Armetta offers up a preview, prediction and pick for Friday’s game between the Kansas City Royals and the Detroit Tigers.
August is almost over, which means the MLB playoffs are mere weeks away. On a jam-packed weekend, few matchups carry more weight than Royals vs. Tigers. Detroit, 76-53, is striving to earn the American League’s top record, and home field advantage this postseason. Kansas City, 66-62, is just two games behind the Mariners for the third and final AL wildcard spot. Which of these two division rivals has the edge tonight? Below, I’ve laid out my preview, prediction, and best bet for Friday’s showdown between the Royals and Tigers.
The Tigers are favorites (-149) over the Royals, with the over/under set at 8.5 runs. Let’s break down which side has the edge on DraftKings Sportsbook entering tonight’s contest.
Royals vs. Tigers prediction, preview
What’s kept this Royals rotation afloat without aces Cole Ragans (rotator cuff) and Kris Bubic (rotator cuff)? Several unexpected contributors, including tonight’s starter, Ryan Bergert. The rookie has been a pleasant surprise for Kansas City, acquired last month from the Padres. Over 52.1 innings of work this season, the right-hander has recorded a 2.75 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 51 strikeouts. During his first thee outings with his new club, Bergert has surrendered just five earned runs (2.70 ERA).
Tonight, the 25-year-old will attempt to silence a Tigers offense averaging the eighth-most runs per game in baseball (4.82). However, that’s primarily the result of a red-hot first half at the plate. Since August 1st, Detroit has scored a total of 90 runs, the league’s 15th-best mark. That’s certainly not bad, but it’s not as if this lineup is dominating. In that time, some of the team’s best hitters have struggled, including Riley Greene (.630 OPS) and Gleyber Torres (.556 OPS). This season, the Tigers have a .245 batting average against right-handed pitching, tenth-worst in all of baseball.
For Detroit, Casey Mize will get the nod tonight. The righty has enjoyed a breakout 2025 campaign, earning his first career All-Star Game selection. Through 111.2 innings, he’s put up a 3.63 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 103 strikeouts. He’ll get to face one of baseball’s weakest lineups on Friday. Kansas City is averaging an American League-worst 3.82 runs per game. However, the Royals have scored 55 total runs over their last ten contests, seventh-best in baseball during that stretch. In two outings this season vs. KC, Mize has surrendered four earned runs (3.48 ERA).
Royals vs. Tigers pick, best bet
Best Bet: Royals over 2.5 runs in first seven innings (-120)
There’s no denying that Kansas City has looked off at the plate this season. Still, this lineup has gotten into a groove recently. It helps that the Royals will face a pitcher they have plenty of familiarity with on Friday. Mize, while a solid starter, has been much worse post-All-Star break (5.48 ERA). At just three runs, KC’s offense doesn’t have to dominate tonight in order to reach this over.
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source dknetwork.draftkings.com ’
