Play: Houston Astros
Rating: 8/10*

We won with Houston as a free pick on Sunday, and I see no reason not to keep backing the red hot Astros as they go for an 11th straight victory when they visit the Kansas City Royals Monday night.

Mike Fiers (2-2, 4.96 ERA) takes the ball for Houston. Fiers is 0-3 with a 5.06 ERA in four career starts against the Royals, but he's coming off six solid innings at Minnesota, giving up just two runs on five hits while fanning eight batters. The Royals turn to Ian Kennedy who has failed to make it through the fifth inning in each of his last five starts, and he went 0-3 with an 11.30 ERA over four turns in May.

KC's bullpen is not what it used to be, and the relievers were forced to cover seven innings in yesterday's 8-0 loss to Cleveland. We can also note that the Royals are 1-10 in Kennedy's last 11 starts after scoring two runs or fewer in their previous game while the Astros are 7-2 in Fiers' last nine starts when their opponent scores two runs or fewer in their previous game.