The Toronto Blue Jays and the Kansas City Royals were always the top two choices to win the World Series.
There's no doubt who the superior team is in the eyes of the oddsmakers just by looking at the fact that Toronto is favored on the road in Game 1 of the ALCS.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Marco Estrada was quietly outstanding on Sunday against the Rangers. He didn't walk a batter and pounded the strike zone all game long. The end result was just one run allowed over 6.1 innings with just five base runners conceded in his outing.
Estrada isn't the guy who is going to go the distance and strike out 12 along the way. Instead, he's a man who is just going to keep throwing strikes and dare the Kansas City hitters to put the ball in play against his defense, one of the best in the majors.
Can this end in disaster? Certainly it can. However, live bettors need to pick their spots. High contact hitters are going to be more likely to get on than these big time power bats who strike out a ton.
Edinson Volquez is basically the polar opposite of Estrada. He's going to walk some guys, he's not always going to be pounding the strike zone, and in the end, he's going to either be absolutely unhittable or completely mortal.
Generally speaking, you get the feeling one time through the order what type of night it's going to be for Volquez. The stat line for Volquez will read three runs allowed in 5.2 innings of work, but we know that he pitched much better than that in spite of the fact that he lost that game. If he has a similar start in this one, you can bet that Ned Yost will be watching him a lot more intently.
ADVANCED STATS
The raw power of the Blue Jays was finally on display against the Rangers. It took a while, but when Jose Bautista was given enough fastballs to hit, he finally belted arguably the second most important dinger a Blue Jay has ever hit. Yes, Bautista only had six hits in five games in the ALDS, but he slugged .636, one of the three men who slugged at least .600 and one of the five to slug at least .550.
If all of that keeps up on Friday, any time a runner reaches base, it could end in disaster for live bettors going against Toronto.
TALKING BULLPENS
The closers in this series should be fantastic. Roberto Osuna's accomplishment in Game 5 speaks for itself for the Blue Jays. The kid is 20 years old, and he is pitching like he's Mariano Rivera with a 98 MPH fastball in his arsenal.
The man we want to focus in on though, is Wade Davis. Last year in the postseason, Davis was truly special, allowing just one earned run over 14.1 innings with 20 strikeouts and just 10 total runners allowed to reach base. He was the best reliever Kansas City had to bring to the table, and he was even more effective than Greg Holland.
With Holland out with a UCL injury, Davis is now the man to close out games for the Royals. All he did against Houston was strike out five men in four innings, allowing one hit and a walk along the way. He had two save chances, and he wasn’t truly threatened in either one. Easy saves are the best ones for live bettors, and you can bet on not having a heart attack if KC is up in the ninth.
The baseball betting odds for this game were first available at BookMaker Sportsbook. The Toronto Blue Jays were favored at -120 along with a total of 8.5. BookMaker is going to have multiple betting options available for this baseball matchup. Live wagering during commercials offers and adjusted moneyline, individual inning run totals and next hitter results. Log in, and start gambling during the game now!
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! Game 1 of the ALCS between the Kansas City Royals and the Toronto Blue Jays will start at 8:05 p.m. ET on Friday, October 16, 2015 at Kauffman Stadium. The matchup will be televised nationally on FOX.
