The Kansas City Royals (50-53) will host the Cleveland Guardians (51-51), Friday at 8:10 p.m. ET, in a battle of AL Central rivals.
The Royals (-118 moneyline odds to win) and the Guardians (-101) will meet in a projected close matchup. The starting pitchers are Michael Wacha (4-9) for the Kansas City Royals, and Gavin Williams (6-4) for the Cleveland Guardians.
The Royals won their last game against the Cubs on Wednesday by an 8-4 score. Vinnie Pasquantino went 3 for 4 with a double, two home runs and four RBIs to lead them offensively. Seth Lugo picked up the win on the strength of six innings, giving up two earned runs on four hits while striking out six.
The Guardians beat the Orioles 3-2 Wednesday. Steven Kwan went 1 for 3 with an RBI, and Hunter Gaddis got the win, pitching one inning without giving up a hit or an earned run while striking out one.
Get ready for the Royals vs. Guardians with everything you need to know about Friday’s baseball action, including viewing options.
Kansas City Royals vs. Cleveland Guardians odds, line and spread
MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Thursday at 9:18 p.m. ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub.
Favorite: Royals (-118, bet $118 to win $100)Underdog: Guardians (-101, bet $101 to win $100)Over/under: 8.5Royals vs. Guardians: Game time and live stream infoGame day: Friday, July 25, 2025Game time: 8:10 p.m. ETLocation: Kansas City, MissouriStadium: Kauffman StadiumTV channel: Apple TV+Live stream: Watch LIVE with Fubo! (Regional restrictions may apply)
Watch Royals vs. Guardians on Fubo!
Royals stats and trendsRoyals betting recordsThe Royals have been favorites in 39 games this season and won 20 (51.3%) of those contests.Kansas City has a record of 16-14, a 53.3% win rate, when favored by -118 or more by sportsbooks this season.The moneyline for this contest implies a 54.1% chance of a victory for the Royals.Kansas City and its opponents have hit the over in 41 of its 103 games with a total this season.The Royals are 53-50-0 against the spread in their 103 chances this season.Michael Wacha (Royals probable starter)Wacha (4-9) gets the starting nod for the Royals in his 21st start of the season. He has a 3.62 ERA in 112 2/3 innings pitched, with 85 strikeouts.The right-hander’s most recent appearance was on Saturday against the Miami Marlins, when he went six innings, surrendering one earned run while allowing three hits.In 20 games this season, the 34-year-old has amassed an ERA of 3.62, with 6.8 strikeouts per nine innings. Opponents are batting .246 against him.Wacha enters this matchup with nine quality starts under his belt this season.Wacha will try to build upon a three-game streak of pitching five or more innings (he’s averaging 5.6 frames per appearance).He has held his opponents without an earned run in three of his 20 appearances this season.He will face off against a Guardians squad that is batting .224 as a unit (29th in MLB). It is also slugging a collective .372 (28th in MLB) with 108 total home runs (18th in MLB).In four innings over one appearance against the Guardians this season, Wacha has a 2.25 ERA and a 2.000 WHIP while his opponents are hitting .308.The 34-year-old’s 3.62 ERA ranks 33rd, 1.241 WHIP ranks 34th, and 6.8 K/9 ranks 51st among qualifying pitchers this season.Royals batting statsThe Royals rank 28th in Major League Baseball with just 85 home runs as a team.The offense for Kansas City has a slugging percentage of .380 this season, 24th in MLB.The Royals’ .245 batting average ranks 17th in the league this season.Kansas City has scored 363 runs (just 3.5 per game) this season, which ranks 29th in MLB.The Royals are among the worst in the league at getting on base, ranking 26th with an OBP of .299.Kansas City is one of the most-disciplined teams at the plate this season, ranking second with an average of 6.8 strikeouts per game.Guardians stats and trendsGuardians betting recordsThe Guardians have come away with 25 wins in the 59 contests they have been listed as the underdogs in this season.Cleveland has a mark of 18-29 in contests where oddsmakers favor it by -101 or worse on the moneyline.The Guardians have an implied victory probability of 50.2% according to the moneyline set for this matchup.Cleveland and its opponents have gone over in 43 of its 100 games with a total set by sportsbooks this season.The Guardians have an against the spread record of 51-49-0 in 100 games with a line this season.Gavin Williams (Guardians probable starter)Williams makes the start for the Guardians, his 21st of the season. He is 6-4 with a 3.54 ERA and 106 strikeouts through 104 1/3 innings pitched.In his most recent appearance on Sunday against the Athletics, the right-hander went seven innings, giving up one earned run while surrendering four hits.The 25-year-old has amassed an ERA of 3.54, with 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings in 20 games this season. Opponents have a .223 batting average against him.Williams has collected seven quality starts this year.Williams will try to prolong a seven-game streak of pitching five or more innings (he’s averaging 5.2 frames per appearance).In four of his appearances this season he did not give up an earned run.He will match up with a Royals offense that ranks 17th in the league with 845 total hits (on a .245 batting average). The team also slugs a collective .380 (24th in the league) with 85 total home runs (28th in MLB play).Williams has a 3.60 ERA and a 1.000 WHIP against the Royals this season in five innings pitched, allowing a .222 batting average over one appearance.Among qualifying pitchers in MLB action this season, the 25-year-old’s 3.54 ERA ranks 30th, 1.380 WHIP ranks 55th, and 9.1 K/9 ranks 22nd.Guardians batting statsThe Guardians rank 18th in MLB play with 108 home runs. They average 1.1 per game.So far this season, Cleveland has the third-lowest slugging percentage in baseball (.372).The Guardians have the second-worst batting average in the league (.224).Cleveland scores the fifth-fewest runs in baseball (393 total, 3.9 per game).The Guardians’ .298 on-base percentage is the fourth-worst in MLB.