KC Royals: Evaluating Division Rival Cleveland Indians

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Cleveland Indians designated hitter David Murphy (7) and right fielder Brandon Moss – Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Well if it is anything like the last few series, probably curse words and some bench clearings would be the best way for the Royals to combat these starters, but I have a feeling the Royals will gotten most of that off their chests. There are two contributing factors to winning against a team like this: plate discipline and speed.

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Even though the Indians have great starting pitching, their total team WHIP is 1.397 which is 27th in all of MLB through April 25th. We know this isn’t stable yet, but the KC Royals are currently second in all of MLB in OPS with .804.

This is a stark contrast from 2014 in which the Royals were 17th in all of MLB with and OPS of .690. The Kansas City Royals hitter’s plate discipline will be key during this series, and they should be able to hold off on those out of the zone pitches. Patience is also an important factor as these will likely be low scoring games won in the 7th and 8th innings, so they need to get walks off those relievers.

With Yan Gomes out until mid-to-late May, the KC Royals should be able to steal on the Indians. Detroit stole a total of five bases off of the Indians this past Saturday with four bases against former Royals catcher Brett Hayes and one base of of Roberto Perez.

This could be a low scoring series if both teams pitchers continue the way they have started 2015, but the KC Royals have the clear edge if they can keep their batting eyes sharp.

The Royals are fifth in all of MLB in stolen bases currently, so they should get some looks. The OPS and stolen bases are the classic sabermetric model that the Royals should subscribe to receive endorsement from many prediction outlets. It is working so far this year contributing to them being third in all of MLB with 5.06 runs/game.

Against Detroit on Saturday April 25, the Indians displayed a heavy left-handed batting lineup. It is good luck (for platoon reasoning) that the Royals two starting left-handed pitchers don’t have impending suspensions coming in this series.

This could be a low scoring series if both teams pitchers continue the way they have started 2015, but the KC Royals have the clear edge if they can keep their batting eyes sharp.

Next: Suspensions of Four Royals Unfair

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