Kansas City Royals vs. Colorado Rockies Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 5/15/2022

Time: 3:10 p.m. ET

Venue: Coors Field, Denver, CO

Where to watch: Bally Sports Kansas City, AT&T SportsNet-Rocky Mountain

DraftKings: Check back later

BetMGM: Check back later

Caesars: Check back later

Royals: 11-19

Rockies: 16-16

Offense continues to be hard to come by for the Kansas City Royals. It's become hit-or-miss with them. Either they'll be putting up anywhere between 6-10 runs per game and look like offensive juggernauts, or they'll be held to anything less than three and the sky is falling.

So of course they went out and put up 14 runs in their 14-10 win over the Colorado Rockies on Friday in the first game of the three-game series. Everyone produced in a big way. Five batters had at least two hits, and Hunter Dozier led the way with a perfect 5-for-5 night from the No. 5 spot. Andrew Benintendi went 3-for-6 with a two-run homer to continue his ridiculous start to the season.

The biggest win of the night was from Ryan O'Hearn, who hit a pinch-hit two-run homer in the top of the eighth to not only provide some insurance, but put an end to a 3-of-24 stretch. O'Hearn flipped the bat up so high it might have pissed off the Rockies dugout, but it was a risk he was willing to take.

“I just kind of blacked out,” O’Hearn said. “I wasn’t trying to be swaggy with the bat flip or anything. Whatever it looks like, that’s what it looks like.”

It looked like a 445-foot jack that the Royals needed to have, and to start this series against a solid, but banged-up, Rockies team is a great start. The Royals are going to need more nights like this, and more consistency down the heart of the lineup, in order to keep this rolling.

“To see hard-hit balls that had some carry, it’s really the first time all season,” manager Mike Matheny said. “Eighteen hits, is that right? That’s just a beautiful thing.”

Five losses in a row, six out of their last seven. Remember when it was fun to actually enjoy the Colorado Rockies from a potential NL West contending point of view? That's no longer a thing, especially with Kris Bryant out of the lineup due to a back injury, and the allure with Colorado has quickly faded.

During this five-game losing streak entering Saturday, the Rockies have been outscored 42-18. And yes, 10 of those runs came in Friday's loss to the Royals. So clearly, it's been all bad so far for the Rockies, who had serious aspirations of being a good team, but have since fallen flat.

Sam Hilliard hit a homer fresh off a rare shave, because have you seen that beard? My god what a treat. I guess when you're batting .145 you need something different. And indeed he did with his first homer of the season.

“I just wanted to start clean and have a different feel going into the game today,” Hilliard said. So I just shaved my face and wore the pants [cuffs] down, and it felt a little different out there.”

“That was a good swing for Sam,” Black said. “Anytime you get your first home run, I think players exhale. He had a couple good at-bats, too. There was a good walk in the middle part of the game, good swing at the end of the game [that Royals center fielder Michael A.] Taylor ran down.”

Unfortunately for the Rockies, the pitching staff has gone cold and didn't help out a rare offensive explosion from Colorado. C.J. Cron, quite literally the last resort in the Rockies' lineup, went 3-for-5, and Brendan Rodgers also had three hits but hit a two-run homer.

It's the battle of the left-handers with the Royals sending Daniel Lynch to the mound to face Austin Gomber. Both have ERAs creeping over 4.00 and have two wins on the season. Both have been solid middle-of-the-rotation pieces, but with the Royals, it's hard for them to find that consistency as much as it is for the Rockies. A day game on a Sunday, I like Colorado's chances. Rockies win 6-4

Check back later for betting trends.

Royals:
Whit Merrifield (R) 2B
Andrew Benintendi (L) LF
Salvador Perez (R) C
Ryan O'Hearn (L) 1B
Hunter Dozier (R) RF
Bobby Witt Jr. (R) 3B
MJ Melendez (L) DH
Michael A. Taylor (R) CF
Nicky Lopez (L) SS
SP - Daniel Lynch

Rockies:
Yonathan Daza (R) CF
Charlie Blackmon (L) DH
C.J. Cron (R) 1B
Ryan McMahon (L) 3B
Randal Grichuk (R) RF
Brendan Rodgers (R) 2B
Elias Diaz (R) C
Jose Iglesias (R) SS
Sam Hilliard (L) LF
SP - Austin Gomber

Batting average: Andrew Benintendi -- .324

Hits: Andrew Benintendi -- 36

Home runs: Salvador Perez -- 5

RBI:  Andrew Benintendi -- 15

Wins: Three tied -- 2

Saves: Scott Barlow -- 3

ERA: Brad Keller -- 2.70

Batting average: Jose Iglesias -- .316

Hits: C.J. Cron -- 38

Home runs: C.J. Cron -- 9

RBI: C.J. Cron -- 24

Wins: Two tied -- 3

Saves: Daniel Bard -- 9

ERA: Chad Kuhl -- 2.88