Interleague action at its finest is underway, as two elite teams from the American and National Leagues will square off this Wednesday. The Pittsburgh Pirates will look to get back on the winning track in their rubber match against the AL’s best team in the Kansas City Royals.
Who will take the third and deciding game of this series? Read on as we break down this exciting matchup. Don’t miss out on all the other happenings in the Major League this Wednesday by heading over to our preview of the Toronto Blue Jays vs. Oakland Athletics.
Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Kansas City Royals
Where: Kaufmann Stadium, Kansas City, MO
When: Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Line: Pittsburgh Pirates (+124) vs. Kansas City Royals (-124); total: 8.0 – view all MLB lines
[sc:MLBArticles ]Betting on the Pittsburgh Pirates
Just when the Pittsburgh Pirates (54-39) were covering good ground in their attempt to overthrow the St. Louis Cardinals atop the NL Central standings, they lose four of their last five games after the All-Star Break. Prior to the All-Star Game, Pittsburgh had won 11 of its last 13 games.
[sc:MLB240banner ]The interleague matchup works in the Bucs’ favor, though, as they have won 10 of their last 12 matches against American League teams.
Pittsburgh’s superstar Andrew McCutchen has got to break out of his recent funk, though. He’s gone 3-for-15 with just two runs and a lone RBI in four games since the All-Star Break. Going up against Edinson Volquez on Wednesday should be the cure. He has batted 5-for-13 with a double, a triple, a homer and an RBI lifetime against his former teammate.
Starting on the mound for the Pirates will be Charlie Morton. The seven-year veteran was off to a sizzling start this year, going 5-0 with an ERA of 1.62 in his first five starts. However, his last five outings have been rather abysmal, going 1-3 with an 8.03 ERA. He has seen very little of the batters of Kansas City, so the Pirates need their offense to produce just like in their series opener this past Monday where they beat the Royals 10-7.
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Betting on the Kansas City Royals
Edinson Volquez must be itching to face off against his former team. Volquez was terrific as a starter for the Pirates in 2014 and was an integral and productive part of their starting rotation. However, it was he who lost the wild card game against the San Francisco Giants.
Now working for the Kansas City Royals (56-36), Volquez has become the team’s most dependable starter. The 10-year veteran has a 2.16 ERA in his past three starts. He’ll want to avoid getting careless against fellow Dominican and Pittsburgh outfielder Starling Marte, though. Marte is hitting .326 this July and is 2-for-3 in his career against Volquez.
Going up against a top contender at home works in favor of Kansas City. The team is 31-17 this season in Kaufmann Stadium, and has won eight of its past 10 in front of its home crowd. The Royals definitely need to stock up on quality wins this month while they wait for the return of Alex Gordon.
So far, they’ve fared well for the past ten games without Gordon in the lineup by going 7-3. First baseman Eric Hosmer has certainly picked up the slack; he has a four-game hitting streak going 9-for-18 with a triple and three RBIs in that span. Alex Rios also has a four-game hitting streak going, and has hit 7-of-15 with three doubles.
Writer’s Prediction
Kansas City takes the series over Pittsburgh with a 5-2 win.
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