In the last of a three-game series between the Baltimore Orioles (68-73) and the Kansas City Royals (84-57) at Camden Yards, Wei-Yin Chen (8-7, 3.48 ERA) and Johnny Cueto (9-11, 3.24 ERA) get the ball. The Royals won the last game 14-6 and the series is currently tied 1-1. The game starts at 8:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, Sep. 13 and will air on ESPN.
In his most recent outing, Chen pitched 5.0 innings, allowing four runs (one unearned), striking out five and walking one in an 8-6 loss to the Yankees. Manny Machado (.293, 86 Rs, 28 HRs, 71 RBIs, 17 SBs) played well again yesterday, going 2 for 2 with two runs. The Royals were unsuccessful the last time Cueto pitched. He did not do well, pitching 3.0 innings, allowing five runs, striking out four and walking two in a 7-5 loss to the White Sox. Ben Zobrist (.288, 69 Rs, 12 HRs, 51 RBIs, 2 SBs) has been hitting the ball well, going 2 for 5 yesterday with one run.
Baltimore, a +109 underdog, will look to capitalize at home against Kansas City. The teams combine to set the Over/Under (O/U) at eight runs. When playing as the underdog, the Orioles have a 27-39 record and overall money line at -837. The Orioles rank fourth in the majors in home runs with 190. Baltimore’s pitching staff will be looking to pick it up in this one after recent struggles. The Orioles have given up an average of 6.0 runs to opponents in their last 10 games, above their season average of 4.2 runs per game. The Orioles don’t give up many walks to opposing batters at Camden Yards, ranking fourth in the AL with only 2.4 walks allowed per home game.
On the other side, the Royals have a nice record of 50-31 when they are favored and are +1,822 overall with the money line. Over the past 10 matchups, they are 3-7 SU and have played poorly as the favorite with a 3-7 record. Kansas City is a terror on the base paths, ranking fifth in the MLB with 93 stolen bases. Kansas City’s pitching staff has allowed an average of 6.4 runs per game during the last 10 games, higher than their season average of 3.9.
The Royals have gotten the better of the Orioles in head-to-head matchups this season, going 4-2. The Orioles will take on a right-hander (Cueto) in this game and have a 49-54 record against right-handed starting pitchers this season. The left-handed Chen will take the mound against the Royals, who have a 26-24 record against lefty starters this season.
Predictions: SU Winner – KC, O/U – Over
Notes
When leading after 7 innings, Kansas City is 33-19, while Baltimore is 24-24.
The Royals are coming into this meeting after a high-scoring game where they scored an impressive 14 runs. The Orioles have a 0-2 record when opponents score that many runs or more.
When they outhit their opponents, the Orioles are 50-13. The Royals have a 66-8 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking seventh in runs, Baltimore has earned 624 this season. Kansas City ranks fourth with 638 runs.
Ranking 30th, Kansas City is at the bottom of the league in walks, notching 322 this season. Baltimore ranks near the bottom at 25th with 355.
When the Orioles hit at least one home run, they are 61-39, well-matched with the Royals who are 58-25 when hitting one or more homers.
