- What: MLB Wild Card Playoff Game
- When: Tuesday, October 1st
- Who: Kansas City Royals vs. Baltimore Orioles
- Time: 1:08 p.m. PST
- Where: Oriole Park at Camden Yards (Baltimore, MD)
The Baltimore Orioles host the Kansas City Royals at Camden Yards in the first game of their American League Wild Card series. The Orioles will turn to former Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes while Cole Ragans gets the call from the Royals to take the mound.
When I envision playoff baseball, this is exactly the type of pitcher’s duel that comes to mind. Ragans versus Burnes has the potential to be a fantastic pitching matchup.
Kansas City Royals
Cole Ragans will be facing an Orioles offense in the top 10 in the MLB and OPS against left-handed pitchers. The last time Ragans faced the Orioles, he was lit up. He allowed seven runs in 1.2 innings. That being said, that matchup was all the way back in April.
As well as Ragans has pitched this season, the Royals are 16-16 in his starts this season. Another aspect going against Ragans is he has no postseason experience and will be on the road for this one.
Today. pic.twitter.com/WU56iPDeLi
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) October 1, 2024
The Royals lineup has been performing well offensively, ranking 13th in the league in scoring with an average of 4.5 runs per game. Their home games have been even better, with an average of 4.8 runs per game.
The team’s batting average is .248, the seventh-best in the league, and they rank second for the fewest strikeouts per game. However, their team on-base percentage is only 16th in the league, and they are near the bottom of the league in walks.
Bobby Witt Jr. has been one of the top hitters this season, with 109 RBIs (5th best in the league), a batting average of .332, and 32 home runs. Salvador Perez has also hit the ball well this season, with a batting average of .271 and 27 home runs.
Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles have played well when Burnes is on the mound this season. Burnes has pitched well of late, only allowing two or fewer earned runs in each of his previous five starts.
The Orioles lineup has been very good this season. They rank second in the league for home runs and average nearly five runs per game, which would be fourth in the league.
The show's about to begin.#BeTheNoise x https://t.co/VBdHXmge1n pic.twitter.com/zrDXthdNSx
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) October 1, 2024
Gunnar Henderson and Anthony Santander lead the Orioles in home runs, with 37 and 44 homers, respectively. Santander’s 102 RBIs rank 10th in the league.
Henderson holds a .281 batting average for the season, while Santander’s average is .235. Additionally, Ryan O’Hearn and Emmanuel Rivera have also played well recently.
Royals-Orioles Best Bet
This doesn’t feel like a good matchup for either offense. Both pitchers have pretty similar stats. Ultimately, I think this game comes down to the bullpen and baserunning.
If the pitchers cancel each other out and it indeed does come down to the bullpen and baserunning, I have to lean toward picking the Royals. The Royals are the underdogs priced at +125 on the moneyline.
The Royals on the moneyline are the best bet today.
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Tony Reyes is a sports betting analyst and reporter for Dice City Sports. You can follow him on X @TonyParlay.
