Kansas City Royals vs. San Francisco Giants: In-Depth World Series Breakdown

Aug 9, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; A Kansas City Royals fan holds a San Francisco Giants right fielder

(8) sign above Sung Woo Lee, the fan visiting from Korea during the seventh inning against the San Francisco Giants at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals won 5-0. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Prediction

I think the decisive factor is going to be the favorable pitching match-ups the Royals enjoy in the first two games of the series. James Shields strengths with the cutter and change-up are a perfect match for the Giants’ weakness hitting those pitches in game 1. The Royals also have a terrific history hitting familiar foe Jake Peavy in game 2.

While I expect Madison Bumgarner to be tough, and the Giants do hit fastballs well in game 2—which bodes well for their ability to handle flamethrower Yordano Ventura, I see Kansas City with a significant edge in the first two games. Add in the home crowd whipped into a frenzy, Kansas City’s unprecedented playoff roll—along with Sung Woo in the house, I think KC will ride that early momentum to a World Series win.

I don’t see a sweep, however.

Given the way the defensive strength of each team tends to nullify each team’s hitting tendencies, I see a tight, low-scoring series with multiple games that go down to the wire. The Giants are simply too experienced to get swept. In fact, if the breaks go their way, they can easily win.

I’m picking Kansas City in 7.