The wheeling and dealing Kansas City Royals are already easily the best team in the American League for bettors at 61-38 and +22.21 units.
They'll put two of their newest assets on display for the first time on Friday against another team looking to buy at the trading deadline, the 50-51 Toronto Blue Jays.
ODDS ANALYSIS
The Jays are interesting, if nothing else this year. They still feel like they're in the AL East race largely thanks to the fact that they have significantly more games left to play at home than on the road. They're 28-20 at home, but that isn't helping their miserable -7.06 units mark thus far in 2015.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Johnny Cueto's welcome to the American League will come against one of the toughest lineups in baseball.
The Blue Jays have scored over 70 more runs than anyone else in the game this year, and they only made themselves stronger by trading for Troy Tulowitzki earlier in the week.
Cueto posted a 2.62 ERA and 120 strikeouts over 130.2 innings with the Reds before the trade, and you can bet that he's expected to go deep into every game he starts from now on for KC.
Drew Hutchison will take the bump for the Jays, and the fact that he is at home has to give bettors a ton of confidence. The righty is 7-1 with a 2.21 ERA thus far on his home bump, and he continues to be significantly better at Rogers Centre than anywhere else.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"I'm very happy and very proud to be here. I'm happy it's all over. There were times I wondered where I would end up. I've got some friends here, and I'm familiar with the club. I've noticed this is a good club. There's a lot of versatility." – Royals starter Johnny Cueto on his new home in KC
SITUATIONAL BETTING
One has to wonder if the Blue Jays are going to have another closer by the time Friday rolls around. They’re still searching for that answer even though Roberto Osuna has done a good job at the back end of games replacing Brett Cecil. Adding LaTroy Hawkins was an underrated acquisition, and he pitched his first scoreless frame on Tuesday for his new club after being picked up as an added piece in the Tulowitzki deal.
PROP TALK
Two new faces to keep a really close eye on here are Tulo for Toronto and Ben Zobrist for KC. These two teams know that they have a lot of pop in their lineup already, but history will tell you that these players who get traded don't have instant impacts in their first days in their new locations.
Keep that in mind before blindly betting on either man on Friday, especially with a tough pitching matchup on the bump for both.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
This has the potential to be a really good game on Friday. Hutchison just doesn't get picked on at home, while Cueto is expected to immediately come in and start hurling seven or eight innings every time out.
We suspect that's exactly how this is going to play out, too. Runs will come at a premium on both sides, and the under is the right way to go. We prefer the Jays with Hutchison at plus odds in all likelihood, but the under is our preference.
Toronto 3, Kansas City 2
The baseball betting odds for this Friday game will first be available at BookMaker Sportsbook. BookMaker is going to have multiple betting options available for this televised baseball matchup. Live wagering during commercials offers an adjusted moneyline, individual inning run totals and next hitter results. Log in and start gambling during the game now!
Need to fund your account before the big game but don't have your computer? No problem! BookMaker Sportsbook now offers a mobile betting cashier so you can deposit money directly from your smartphone or tablet. Don't miss out on getting paid because you couldn't bet. Click here and deposit at BookMaker now! The duel between the Kansas City Royals and the Toronto Blue Jays will take place Friday, July 31, 2015 at 7:07 p.m. ET at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Catch the action live on the MLB Network.
