Texas Rangers vs Kansas City Royals Prediction, Preview and Odds - 08/21/2025

Game Time: 2:10 pm ET, Thursday, August 21, 2025

Venue:  Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO

Where to Watch:  MLBN

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Rangers -102, Royals -119; Over/Under:  9 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Rangers -105, Royals -115; Over/Under:  9 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Rangers -105, Royals -115; Over/Under:  9 runs

Texas Rangers:  62-65 (3rd place, AL West)

Kansas City Royals:  65-61 (2nd place, AL Central)

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Texas Rangers:  2-8 last 10

Kansas City Royals:  8-2 last 10

The Rangers are entering this series off a win and lost their 3-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 62-65 record overall and have a road record of 25-39. This is the series finale of a 4-game series with the Royals on Thursday with the 3rd game still to be played on Wednesday. The Rangers lost the series opener on Monday and the 2nd game on Tuesday. Their offense ranks 27th in the MLB with a .678 OPS. Kumar Rocker is their starting pitcher on Wednesday while Patrick Corbin is making his start in this game on Thursday. He is 6-9 with a 4.45 ERA this season. His team lost their last 2 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 7 ER, 1 HR, and 2 BB with 2 SO on 8 hits through 2.1 IP against the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Royals are entering this series off a win and completed the sweep in their 3-game series against the Chicago White Sox 3-0 in their last series. They enter this game with a 65-61 record overall and have a home record of 35-29. This is the 4th game of a 4-game series with the Rangers on Thursday with the 3rd game of this series still to be played on Wednesday. The Royals won the 1st game of this series on Monday and the 2nd game on Tuesday. Their offense ranks 23rd in the MLB with a .697 OPS. Rookie pitcher Noah Cameron is their starting pitcher on Wednesday while Michael Lorenzen is making his start in this game on Thursday. He is 5-8 with a 4.43 ERA this season. His team won their last 3 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 0 earned runs, 0 homers, and 2 walks with 3 strikeouts on 3 hits through 4 innings pitched against the Chicago White Sox.

The current betting odds have the Royals listed as a slight favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Rangers haven't looked great in their games this season with their 62-65 record overall which has them right in the middle of the AL West. They have been a terrible road team this year too with their 25-39 road record. Meanwhile, the Royals have looked good in their games this season with their 65-61 record overall which has them right in the middle of the AL Central. They have looked better in their own ballpark too with their 35-29 home record this season. The Royals have also looked great lately as they are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have been rolling while the Rangers are only 2-8 in their last 10 and have been in the middle of a slump. Lorenzen is also starting for the Royals in this one and he hasn't looked bad this season. He is 5-8 with a 4.43 ERA and hasn't been great for a lot of the year, but he has looked a lot better lately since he hasn't been giving up as many runs. He is coming off another good start in which he gave up no runs and the team has been having success too, winning 3 of their last 4 games with him starting. The Rangers are going with Corbin in this one and he hasn't looked great this season. He is 6-9 with a 4.45 ERA and he has been giving up a ton of runs lately. He is coming off a terrible start in which he gave up 7 earned runs and the team has lost 2 games in a row now with him starting too. The Rangers have already been a terrible road team this season and with this pitching matchup, the Royals can take advantage of their recent troubles. The best way to place a bet here is on the Royals to win this game. 

Rangers Royals Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Thursday, August 21, 2025 (2:10 pm ET start time) is Royals 8 Rangers 4.

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Texas Rangers: 49-36 (+7.2 units) on the moneyline against AL Central opponents. 168-141 (+9.6 units) on the moneyline vs. an AL team with an on base percentage .330 or worse. 101-77 (+8 units) on the moneyline vs. AL teams scoring 4.4 or less runs/game on the season. 71-48 OVER on the road when the money line is +125 to -125.

Kansas City Royals: 37-45 (-4.9 units) on the moneyline against AL West opponents. 209-247 (-11 units) on the moneyline in all games. 112-115 (-4.2 units) on the moneyline in home games. 20-10 OVER at home in August games.

Texas Rangers:  J. Burger (1B) Ten Day - Wrist. J. Gray (SP) Fifteen Day IL - Shoulder. S. Haggerty (CF) Ten Day IL - Oblique. A. Garcia (RF) Ten Day IL - Ankle. J. Webb (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Back. C. Martin (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Calf. T. Mahle (SP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder. C. Bradford (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. J. Sborz (RP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder.

Kansas City Royals:  S. Perez (C) Day To Day - Illness. H. Harvey (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Abductor. S. Cruz (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Shoulder. K. Bubic (SP) Sixty Day IL - Rotator Cuff. J. Caglianone (RF) Ten Day IL - Hamstring. M. Massey (2B) Ten Day IL - Ankle. C. Ragans (SP) Sixty Day IL - Rotator Cuff. J. McArthur (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. A. Marsh (SP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder.

“I always think there's times in your career where you have a year like Josh has had. He's been optioned down, and he’s getting a little break. You have to find a way to be a little bit more consistent and stay out of those peaks and valleys that he gets in. This will be a learning experience for Josh and what adjustments you make at the plate to keep that from happening. That's going to be critical for him. He's going to have a great career. He's a tremendous talent. He can do a lot of great things, defensively, offensively. He's done a lot of good things already.” - Bruce Bochy on Josh Jung this season. 

“I want him up there every inning. You look at the lineup, and you’re trying to figure out, ‘How many times can we get him to the plate? How many guys can we keep on base for him when he does come to the plate?’ That’s an immense amount of pressure on a young player, too, that understands that’s how everybody feels about him. But he has the physical ability, he has the makeup and the mental capacity to handle it.” - Matt Quatraro after his team’s win against the Rangers in their game on Tuesday.

Josh Smith (L) 3B

Wyatt Langford (R) LF

Corey Seager (L) SS

Joc Pederson (L) DH

Evan Carter (L) CF

Marcus Semien (R) 2B

Rowdy Tellez (L) 1B

Alejandro Osuna (L) RF

Jonah Heim (S) C

Mike Yastrzemski (L) RF

Bobby Witt Jr. (R) SS

Vinnie Pasquantino (L) 1B

Maikel Garcia (R) 3B

Adam Frazier (L) DH

Jonathan India (R) 2B

John Rave (L) LF

Kyle Isbel (L) CF

Luke Maile (R) C

Batting Average:  Rowdy Tellez (.288)

Hits:  Marcus Semien (105)

Home Runs:  Corey Seager (19)

RBI:  Adolis García (64)

Stolen Bases:  Wyatt Langford (16)

Wins:  Nathan Eovaldi (11)

Saves:  Luke Jackson (9)

ERA:  Cole Winn (1.45)

Batting Average:  Adam Frazier (.309)

Hits:  Bobby Witt (141)

Home Runs:  Vinnie Pasquantino (24)

RBI:  Vinnie Pasquantino (83)

Stolen Bases:  Bobby Witt (32)

Wins:  Kris Bubic (8)

Saves:  Carlos Estévez (32)

ERA:  Hunter Harvey (0.00)

Managers:

Texas Rangers: Bruce Bochy (3rd season)

Kansas City Royals: Matt Quatraro (3rd season)