Plus Money Play For Royals And Orioles

Royals vs. Orioles, 6:35 ET

Even early in the season you know when one team will be good and one team will be bad. Baseball is not the easiest game to predict because it is possible for any team to win on any given day. Sometimes teams just don't hit, sometimes an error happens, sometimes there are other issues like wind/weather, and ultimately there is no way to tell who will make that game winning play. Still, in some games, the play is obvious and you just have to live with the result. Today is one of those days for me as the Royals take on the Orioles. 

I was able to get a win off the Royals on Opening Day as I predicted that Pablo Lopez would be able to take them down for the Twins. They were able to only muster two runs in the first two games. They did explode yesterday for 11 runs as they shut out the Twins, but they still had to travel to Baltimore after the game and now face one of the teams that should be a playoff squad. For the Royals, we are getting Michael Wacha on the hill. Wacha was a guy that I made a lot of money off of last season. He started 24 games for the Padres and we cashed a ton of them because he was very undervalued on the market. He's had two very strong years in a row. Since 2022, he has made 47 starts and went 25-6 with a 3.32 ERA in 2022 and a 3.22 ERA in 2023. Still, this is his fifth team in five seasons and there wasn't much market for him so something has to be a bit off with him. Wacha has not been good against the Orioles though. He has allowed 36 hits over 112 at-bats. Nine of those hits have left the yard as well. He also has allowed 21 RBIs to the Orioles hitters but only has registered 21 strikeouts. 

Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals

The Orioles started the year with an easy matchup against the Angels. They were able to win two of the three games and scored 25 runs over the three games. They allowed just eight runs to their opponent as well. Their starters took care of business but so did their bullpen. That has been the key to the success of Baltimore for the past couple of years. As a team, the Orioles are hitting .267 - I know it is early, but that's a good way to start the season. Dean Kremer is taking the hill for the Orioles. He isn't the best starter on the team, but he can get the job done. Last season, he was 13-5 with a 4.12 ERA. It was the most wins that the Orioles starter has had, but it was the second-best ERA of his career. If he can put both together, this will be an even more successful team. He hasn't had much experience against the Royals hitters, but he is holding them to just two hits in 12 at-bats. Both hits came from Bobby Witt Jr. and both were singles.  

Michael Wacha will probably surprise people this season, but I don't think this is the game for him. I also don't expect him to end the season on the Royals roster as I'd guess he probably will be traded. That's a story for a different day. I think the Orioles are a significantly better team and with the history they've had against Wacha, they should win this one. I'm going to take the Orioles on the run line as they will cover the -1.5 at +136. 

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