Blue Jays vs Royals Picks and Predictions: Manoah Shuts Down Royals' Struggling Bats

The Toronto Blue Jays’ bats continued their surge in last night’s 8-0 series-opening win against the Kansas City Royals. The Jays have now plated six or more runs 10 times in the last 12 games and are 10-2 straight up in those contests.

They'll look to keep swinging hot sticks when they face off against Royals' starter Brad Keller. Meanwhile, Kansas City hitters will have their hands full with Toronto right-hander Alek Manoah. 

So, what’s the best betting angle to attack in this matchup? Find out in our free MLB betting picks and predictions for Blue Jays vs. Royals on Tuesday, June 7.

Blue Jays vs Royals odds

This odds widget represents the best odds available for each betting market from regulated sportsbooks.

The Blue Jays opened this American League battle as big -220 road favorites but that hasn’t stopped bettors from backing them, moving the line to -250 depending on the sportsbook. The total hit the board at 8.5 but some 9.0 has started to hit the board as of Tueday afternoon.

Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until first pitch and be sure to check out the full MLB odds before placing your bets.

Blue Jays vs Royals predictions

• Prediction: Blue Jays -1.5 (-128)
• Prediction: Under 9 (-120)
• Best bet: Blue Jays -1.5 + Under 9 SGP (+305)

Picks made on 6/07/2022 at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.

Blue Jays vs Royals game info

• Location: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO
• Date: Tuesday, June 7, 2022
• First pitch: 8:10 p.m. ET
• TV: Sportsnet 1, Bally Sports Kansas City

Blue Jays vs Royals betting preview

Starting pitchers

Alek Manoah (6-1, 1.98 ERA): Manoah has looked like one of the best pitchers in the AL through the season’s first two months. The right-hander hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in a start this season and his 1.98 ERA ranks third in the AL.

Brad Keller (1-6, 4.15 ERA): Keller has actually been pretty solid this season for Kansas City. The right-hander has an expected ERA of 3.91 and has pitched at least into the sixth inning in seven of his 10 starts.

Weather

Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our MLB weather info.

Key injuries

Blue Jays: Danny Jansen C (Questionable), Tim Mayza RP (Out). 
Royals: Andrew Benintendi OF (Questionable), Joel Payamps RP (Questionable), Gabe Speier RP (Out), Amir Garrett RP (Out).
Find our latest MLB injury reports.

Betting trend to know

The Under is 8-2 when Alek Manoah starts for Toronto this season. Find more MLB betting trends for Blue Jays vs. Royals

Blue Jays vs Royals picks and predictions

Our side and total predictions are based upon our analysis of the line and total in this game. Our best bet is our favorite pick across all markets.

Run line analysis

The Blue Jays' bats stayed hot in last night’s shutout win against the Royals. Toronto hit three more home runs and went a solid 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position. 

The Blue Jays are now plating 7.08 runs per game over their last 12 games, and also lead the MLB in batting average, OPS, and home runs during that stretch.

Tuesday night, it will be Royals’ right-hander Brad Keller tasked with trying to neutralize the Jays' offense.

As noted, Keller has been one of the few reliable arms for the Royals this season. That said, he doesn’t miss a lot of barrels. Keller ranks in the bottom 7% of both strikeout and whiff rate. As a result, Keller is giving up a .273 expected batting average to opponents. 

That’s not a great thing going up against a team as locked in as the Jays. Plus, while Keller does pitch deep into games, he’ll eventually hand the ball over to a bullpen that ranks 28th in ERA and 30th in WHIP.

And that’s only half the problem for the Royals tonight.

The other half is Alek Manoah. The big right-hander has looked like one of the best pitchers in baseball this season. Manoah effectively mixes his fastball and slider to create a ton of soft contact. Right now, the second-year Blue Jay owns an xERA of 2.52 and is limiting opponents to an xBA of .230. 

Currently, Kansas City is struggling to produce offense against right-handers, ranking 20th in batting average and 24th in OPS.

All signs point to a multi-run win by the Jays, and Toronto is successfully cashed the run line in four straight wins.

Prediction: Blue Jays -1.5 (-128 at FanDuel)

Over/Under analysis

Just like yesterday, the early money for this matchup has driven the total up. And once again, that is putting a lot of faith in a Royals offense to do their part to contribute here.

Yes, the Jays are averaging a touch over seven runs per game over the last two weeks, but they put up eight last night and the game still fell Under. It’s very realistic to envision the same sort of scenario here tonight. 

For starters, Keller is one of the Royals' more reliable starters, which means fewer innings for what has been a dreadful bullpen. 

Secondly, Alek Manoah is not in the habit of giving up runs as he allowed three earned runs in a start for the first time all season last time out. Plus, those runs came in the top of the eighth inning after Manoah had dominated the White Sox for seven scoreless frames. 

Manoah has also pitched at least six innings in nine of his 10 starts, which means the Jays' already well-rested high leverage relievers should be ready to put in some solid work tonight. 

It could be a long night for a Royals' offense that is already averaging just 2.75 runs over its last eight games.

Prediction: Under 9 (-120 at FanDuel)

Best bet

This could blow up in my face in spectacular fashion, but let’s have some fun with this best bet in the form of a same-game parlay.

The Jays have the edge in the starters and their lineup is red hot, while the Royals have a decent starter going and an offense that is floundering. 

So, let’s take the Jays to cash the run line and for the game to stay Under the number all at once, at better than a 3-1 value. Who’s in?

Pick: Blue Jays -1.5 + Under 9 SGP (+305 at FanDuel)

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