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Baltimore Orioles vs. K.C. Royals Gambling Preview & Free MLB Picks

MLB Lines – O’s vs Royals

These two ballclubs sit with virtually identical records – both hovering around .500 – but the O’s are currently at the top of the American League East division in what has been a weird year thus far for the perennial powerhouse… all the usually sound teams seemingly can’t stop losing.

Date/Time: Friday, May 16 2014, 8:10 pm EST
Venue: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City MO
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Pitching Match-up: Chris Tillman (3-2, 3.97 ERA) vs. Jeremy Guthrie (2-2, 4.80 ERA)
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The aforementioned Orioles are the king of the hill in the AL East (20-18) despite not scoring runs and – much to the chagrin of all the Billy Beane disciples out there – not getting on base.

Slugging OF/DH Nelson Cruz has been hot for Baltimore, crushing 11 HRs and 33 RBI, but the rest of the attack has been pedestrian. Centerfielder Adam Jones, in particular, is having a down year after asserting himself as one of the elite CFs over the past couple of seasons.

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Starter Tillman bring a respectable record and ERA into Middle America, looking to buttress those numbers against the similarly mediocre (20-19) Royals.

Lorde maybe had a photo op with franchise legend George Brett’s jersey, but there’s been nothing to suggest in KC that the Royals will be living much of a fantasy in 2014.
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Kansas City does not feature enough power in the lineup to run with the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central (or even the Jose Abreu-led Chicago White Sox, so far). The Royals are a more well-rounded team than they were just a couple of seasons ago, but the underwhelming form of some of the supposed youthful franchise catalysts hasn’t helped.

Eric Hosmer hits for a nice average (.304 to date) but players like 3B Mike Moustakas and OF Lorenzo Cain haven’t lived up to the hype. With a Royals pitching rotation that is good but not spectacular, the offense must push some more runs across. If it is unable to do so a little further on in the campaign, then KC will fade.

The Baltimore offense is terrifying on paper thanks to the coming-out party of 1B Chris Davis last season; the O’s are maybe one front-of-the-rotation starter away from being a divisional favorite.

A good chunk of Baltimore’s pitching staff are nursing injuries right now, so the offense must carry the team more than normal, with less feast-or-famine with the home run (do the O’s think they’re the Toronto Blue Jays or something?)

In Friday’s evening tilt I like Baltimore’s chances for two reasons. Firstly, Tillman has looked strong this year and he’ll be determined to show that his groin injury is behind him. Also, Baltimore can use its offense’s gap power and the dimensions of Kauffman Stadium to really pressure the home side.

MLB Prediction

Even if Cruz doesn’t knock any balls out, you have hitters like Davis, Jones and catcher Matt Wieters capable of driving the baseball into the alleyways. Royals CF Cain is very athletic, which should be tested Friday night.

I look for the Orioles to win this game and continue to feature at or near the top of an AL East that’s been disappointing thus far, a fraction of the way into the marathon of 162 games.

Baltimore 6, Kansas City 2

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By James Hayes

James has been naming every player on the EA Sports video game rosters for half a decade now, he’s finally putting his knowledge to better use writing for us here at CappersPicks.com. Your comments are welcome below…Give Us Your Take!