Yankees vs Royals Prediction, Picks & Odds for Today's MLB Game

Chris Hatfield - Contributor at Covers.com
Chris Hatfield • Betting Analyst 12+ years betting experience
Updated: May 26, 2026 , 11:50 AM ET • 4 min read

Hatfield's prediction: It's Schlittler's world & we're just living in it.

MLB

Match starts: 6 hrs
NYY
70 %
KC
30 %
EXPERT PICK - RUN LINE
NY Yankees -1.5 (-120) NY Yankees -1.5 (-120)
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Cam Schlittler New York Yankees MLB
Photo By - Reuters Connect. New York Yankees starting pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) throws during the first inning.

The New York Yankees will look to extend a lengthy streak tonight when they face the Kansas City Royals in the second of a three-game set.

The Bronx Bombers have simply owned the Royals. Yesterday's comeback win gave New York its 12th straight win over Kansas City, and I like them to make it 13 straight tonight in impressive fashion.

Read all about it in my Yankees vs. Royals predictions and MLB picks for Tuesday, May 26.

Who will win Yankees vs Royals today: Yankees -1.5 (-120)

As has become the case in Cam Schlittler starts, I’m not overthinking this. The New York Yankees are my runline play, and I’d take them to -144.

Schlittler owns a 2.60 expected ERA, top 9% of MLB, and he forces hitters into mistakes with a 95th percentile chase rate.

The path against him is discipline plus loud contact, but the Kansas City Royals don’t profile that way. They are average in barrel rate at 8.5% and chase rate at 30.2%.

Against a starter with few obvious holes, average is not enough. The Yankees roll. 

Covers COVERS INTEL: Cam Schlittler has managed a 1.50 ERA despite having a breaking ball run value in the bottom 32 percentile of the sport which tells you just how impressive the rest of his arsenal has been.

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Yankees vs Royals Over/Under pick: Over 8.5 (-115)

For the second straight game in this series, I’m nearly identical to the market with a projection of 8.8 runs, but I still lean Over 8.5 and would play it to -122.

Bailey Falter serving as an opener creates a spot where the Yankees can attack early. The only top-10 barrel rate team Falter has faced this season was the Atlanta Braves who hit him hard with two earned runs in three innings.

The Royals’ rested bullpen arms do not scare me either, with hard-hit issues across the group. Yankees do the heavy lifting, Royals find two.

Chris Hatfield's 2026 Transparency Record
  • ML/RL bets: 22-19, +2.56 units
  • Over/Under bets: 26-15, +13.34 units

Yankees vs Royals odds

  • Moneyline: New York -210 | Kansas City +170
  • Run line: New York -1.5 | Kansas City +1.5
  • Over/Under: Over 8.5 | Under 8.5

Yankees vs Royals trend

The New York Yankees have covered the Run Line in 28 of their last 50 away games (+10.85 Units / 20% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Yankees vs. Royals.

How to watch Yankees vs Royals and game info

Location Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO
Date Tuesday, May 26, 2026
First pitch 7:40 p.m. ET
TV YES, Royals.TV
Yankees starting pitcher Cam Schlittler
(6-2, 1.50 ERA)
Royals starting pitcher Bailey Falter
(0-1, 9.82 ERA)

Yankees vs Royals latest injuries

Yankees vs Royals weather

Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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Chris Hatfield - Covers.com
Betting Analyst

Chris has always had a passion for three things: solving problems, sports, and writing. It’s no wonder then that he found himself attracted to the sports betting industry. You can find Chris betting every day. Whether it’s shot prop markets in Champions League Soccer qualifiers or NBA Summer League, he has no offseason. As an EV+ bettor, he especially values the insight gained through a data-driven approach.

His work has been featured on various websites such as SBNation, Rivals, Bleacher Report, and 247Sports. He has appeared on radio outlets such as ESPN 680 and The Sharp 600 podcast. You can listen to his own podcast, “What High School Did You Go To?” on Apple Podcast and Soundcloud.

Chris has carved out a niche as a college basketball originator with massive profitability success in that sport and stresses one piece of advice to sports bettors: exploit edges as broadly as possible and take advantage of them while they last. His preferred sportsbook is bet365 because of the range of markets you can find.

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