Wednesday MLB Odds and Picks – Royals vs Angels (Keller vs Canning)
- The Los Angeles Angels are -143 home favorites over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday night at Angel Stadium in Anaheim
- Griffin Canning (4-4, 5.82) will pitch for the Angels against Brad Keller (6-4, 5.50)
- A look at Royals-Angels as well as a prediction can be found below
The Los Angeles Angels will try to sweep the three-game series when they host the Kansas City Royals at 9:38 p.m. ET Wednesday at Angel Stadium in Anaheim.
Griffin Canning (4-4, 5.82) is scheduled to start for the Angels against Brad Keller (6-4, 5.50).
The Angels (28-32) made it two in a row over the Royals as well as four wins in their last five games and 10 in their last 15 with an 8-1 victory on Tuesday night. The Royals (29-29) are on a four-game losing streak that follows five straight wins and are underdogs in this matchup.
Royals vs Angels Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Runline | Total at DraftKings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Royals | +118 | +1.5 (-167) | Over 9 (+100) |
| Los Angeles Angels | -143 | -1.5 (+138) | Under 9 (-121) |
Odds as of June 9th.
Keller Rolling for Royals
Keller has won three starts in a row and his last four decisions. He is also 4-0 with a 3.52 ERA in his last five outings after beginning the season by going 2-4 with a 7.31 ERA in six starts.
This Brad Keller pitch last night, a four-seam with some cut, was just absolute filth. pic.twitter.com/G458ZwPO9Y
— Alec Lewis (@alec_lewis) May 8, 2021
In his previous start last Thursday against the Minnesota Twins in Kansas City, Keller surrendered two runs on seven hits in five innings. He struck out five and had no walks.
Keller has three quality starts this season in 11 turns through the rotation and those are also the three games in which he has pitched at least six innings.
Keller beat the Angels on April 14 in Kansas City, giving up one run in 5.2 innings to earn the decision over Canning. Keller is 2-2 with a 2.66 ERA against the Royals in five career games, including four starts, but 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA in two starts at Angel Stadium.
Angels Career Stats vs Keller
| Player | AB | H | HR | RBI | K | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Justin Upton | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 |
| Shohei Ohtani | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| Anthony Rendon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Jared Walsh | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Juan Lagares | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Jose Iglesias | 5 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 | .400 |
| Taylor Ward | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Max Stassi | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| David Fletcher | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Angels left fielder Justin Upton had never batted leadoff in 1,778 career games until May 23. In 13 games from the No. 1 spot of the order, Upton is 16 for 49 (.327) with five doubles, five home runs and 11 RBIs.
I’ll say it every time. Justin Upton got one of the prettiest home run swings of all-time. pic.twitter.com/YZKmHfgcwP
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) June 5, 2021
The Angels have scored at least five runs in four straight games and 33 total.
Canning Can’t Lately
Canning has struggled recently, going 1-2 with an 8.74 ERA in his last three starts. He lasted just 3.1 innings in a loss to the Seattle Mariners in his last outing last Thursday, giving up four runs, six hits and two walks while striking out five.
Griffin Canning’s last pitch of the night was a hanging slider that was belted for a three-run shot. José Suarez is in the game now. #Angels trail 4-2. pic.twitter.com/e1ORaD21qg
— Brent Maguire (@bmags94) June 4, 2021
Canning has pitched at least six innings just twice in nine starts this season. Those also represent both his quality starts.
On April 14, Canning allowed two runs in five innings in losing to the Royals and Keller. He is 1-1 with a 1.50 ERA against the Royals in two career starts.
Canning has a 3-2 record at the Big A this season, but his ERA is 6.52 in five games, four of which have been starts.
Royals Career Stats vs Canning
| Player | AB | H | HR | RBI | K | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whit Merrifield | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .167 |
| Carlos Santana | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .333 |
| Andrew Benintendi | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .667 |
| Salvador Perez | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.000 |
| Kelvin Gutierrez | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Jorge Soler | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .200 |
| Michael A. Taylor | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Hunter Dozier | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .400 |
| Nicky Lopez | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield is on a nine-game hitting streak, going 14 for 37 (.378). He has also played in 367 games, the longest current streak in the major leagues.
.@WhitMerrifield puts an exclamation point on a NINE-run first inning for the @Royals. 😱 pic.twitter.com/gNk7i4XcF7
— MLB (@MLB) June 5, 2021
The Royals have scored just nine runs in their last four games, including four runs or less in each one. They plated at least five runs in each of their previous seven games.
An Ohtanian Blast
Shohei Ohtani hit the longest home run of his major league career in the first inning Tuesday night and the Angels pounded five homers.
Ohtani’s 17th homer of the season was a 470-foot shot deep into the bleachers off Kansas City starter Kris Bubic (1-1). Ohtani then added a third-inning double that had an even higher exit velocity — 112.6 mph, compared to 111.7 for his homer.
17 for 17 pic.twitter.com/EcNCMfD8QK
— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) June 9, 2021
Max Stassi, José Iglesias and Justin Upton also homered for Los Angeles off Bubic. Taylor Ward added a two-run shot in the eighth.
The two wins give the Angels 14 victories in 19 games against the Royals since the start of the 2018 season.
However, look for the Royals to buck that trend in this game. Keller is rolling and looks like a good underdog play against the struggling Canning.
The Pick: Royals (+118)
John Perrotto has been covering and writing about sports for various outlets for over 40 years. His work has appeared in the likes of USA TODAY, ESPN.com, SI.com, Forbes.com, The Associated Press, Baseball Digest, and more. John is based out of Beaver Falls, PA.
