Kansas City Royals at Baltimore Orioles

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
KC	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	1	0	3	9	0
BAL	0	2	0	1	0	0	0	2	—	5	9	0

Brandon Young (7-2, 3.42 ERA) got the ball for Baltimore looking to build off a stretch that's made him the most reliable arm in a battered rotation, while Luinder Avila (4-3, 5.08 ERA) took the mound for Kansas City off a solid turn against the Phillies. Neither was working with much margin for error given how both bullpens have looked lately.

Show fees

FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Royals(38-56)

LLWWW

3

+1.5-127+144o9.5-113

Orioles(43-51)

WLLLW

5

-1.5+127-147u9.5+108

Best BetOrioles -155

Postgame

The home-side moneyline pick cashed as Baltimore's offense strung together enough runs to win outright, 5-3.

Pregame

Baltimore was priced as a healthy favorite here, and the market had it right — the Orioles are the more complete lineup even with their bullpen banged up, and Kansas City's offense has been feast-or-famine all year. Backing the home side at that price made sense given how thin Avila's margin for error was.

Young's last outing against the Reds wasn't clean — four earned runs on eight hits over 5.0 innings — and Baltimore's relief corps has taken serious hits, with Ryan Helsley and Keegan Akin both seeking second opinions on elbow issues. The Royals, meanwhile, got a lift before first pitch when Vinnie Pasquantino was activated off the injured list after missing more than three weeks with a fractured hamate bone, though he wasn't in the starting lineup and was limited to pinch-hit duty.

Luinder Avila

(5-3)·4.86 ERA

Jul 5 vs Phillies

W

5.0IP

1ER

4K

1BB

69P

07/10 Lineup

Brandon Young

(8-2)·3.25 ERA

Jul 4 @ Reds

W

5.0IP

4ER

5K

3BB

102P

07/10 Lineup

Kansas City rolled into Camden Yards with some real swagger after outscoring Philadelphia 20-3 over two games, then surviving a wild 16-12 track meet in New York where Baltimore native and Royals' own comeback bats erased a 9-4 deficit. That momentum cooled fast against the Mets' actual competent pitching the next two days, and the Royals arrived at 38-56 having dropped their last two.

Kansas City Royals

(38-56)

Jul 9L@ Mets3-7

Jul 8L@ Mets2-6

Jul 7W@ Mets16-12

Jul 6Wvs Phillies15-1

Jul 5Wvs Phillies5-2

Baltimore Orioles

(43-51)

Jul 9Wvs Cubs3-2

Jul 8Lvs Cubs7-9

Jul 7Lvs Cubs2-5

Jul 5L@ Reds2-3

Jul 4W@ Reds8-5

Baltimore's own form has been choppy — losers of 3 of their last 5 including back-to-back defeats to the Cubs — but they steadied Thursday with a 3-2 win before this series opener. The M&T Bank lineup found enough offense against Avila to build a two-run second and add on late, while Young worked around trouble long enough to hand things to a shorthanded pen that has now lost pieces like Felix Bautista, Colin Selby and Yaramil Hiraldo for extended stretches.

Kansas City Royals

(12)

• Day-To-DayVinnie Pasquantino (1B) — The Royals activated Pasquantino (hand) from the 10-day injured list Friday.07/10
• 10-Day-ILKyle Isbel (CF) — Isbel will not begin a rehab assignment Tuesday as hoped after feeling soreness in his left foot while running this past weekend, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.07/06
• 10-Day-ILMaikel Garcia (3B) — Garcia (hand) is rehabbing in Kansas City but has yet to resume swinging a bat, and he'll be re-evaluated during the All-Star break, MLB.com reports.07/05
• bereavementStephen Kolek (SP) — The Royals placed Kolek (personal) on the Family Medical Emergency List on Saturday.07/05
• 15-Day-ILConnor Seabold (RP) — The Royals placed Seabold on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with a right lat strain.07/01
• 15-Day-ILNick Mears (RP) — Mears (shoulder) threw a bullpen Saturday, MLB.com reports.06/29
• 60-Day-ILKris Bubic (SP) — Bubic (elbow/shoulder) received a cortisone injection Thursday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.07/02
• 60-Day-ILCole Ragans (SP) — Ragans underwent UCL repair surgery on his left elbow Wednesday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.07/02
• 60-Day-ILCarlos Estevez (RP) — Estevez (shoulder) received an injection Wednesday and will be shut down for the rest of the week before being re-evaluated, MLB.com reports.07/02
• 60-Day-ILJonathan India (2B) — no06/04
• 60-Day-ILJames McArthur (RP) — McArthur (elbow) underwent surgery Friday to help combat continued soreness and inflammation, MLB.com reports.05/25
• 60-Day-ILAlec Marsh (SP) — The Royals placed Marsh (shoulder) on the 60-day injured list Thursday.05/08

Baltimore Orioles

(9)

• 15-Day-ILKeegan Akin (RP) — Akin will receive a second opinion on his injured left elbow from Dr. Keith Meister next week, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.07/07
• 15-Day-ILRyan Helsley (RP) — Helsley will solicit a second opinion on his injured right elbow, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.07/07
• 15-Day-ILChris Bassitt (SP) — Bassitt (back) underwent a minor procedure to have bone spurs removed from his back, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.06/27
• 60-Day-ILYaramil Hiraldo (RP) — Hiraldo (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment Tuesday at High-A Frederick, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.06/29
• 60-Day-ILFelix Bautista (RP) — Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias said Saturday that Bautista (shoulder) has been "throwing really, really well" in his bullpen sessions, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.06/29
• 60-Day-ILColin Selby (RP) — Selby plans to receive a second opinion on his right shoulder before continuing his rehab program, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.06/29
• 60-Day-ILRyan Mountcastle (1B) — Mountcastle (foot) did some running Saturday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.06/13
• 60-Day-ILJordan Westburg (3B) — Westburg (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Wednesday, Andrew Golden of TheBanner.com reports.05/15
• 60-Day-ILZach Eflin (SP) — Eflin underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.05/08

The finished product was a grinder: both clubs finished with 9 hits and zero errors, but Baltimore's offense found the right seams in the second, fourth and eighth innings to push across 5 runs. Kansas City clawed back with a two-run fourth and a solo shot in the eighth, but it wasn't enough to erase the deficit.

Neither team is playing for much beyond pride at the moment — the Royals' rotation is in tatters with Cole Ragans done for the year after UCL surgery and Kris Bubic dealing with his own elbow/shoulder issues — but for one night, Baltimore's depth held up just enough.