Pittsburgh's pitching staff and batting order hope to create an unwelcoming environment in interleague play on Friday when the Kansas City Royals pay a visit to PNC Park.

It's a pitching duel between Erik Bedard for the Pirates (3-6 on the year) and Luke Hochevar for Kansas City (3-6 so far).



View Kansas City vs Pittsburgh Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Baseball odds makers opened the Pirates as -150 moneyline favorites in this matchup. Over under bettors saw the number open at 7.5.

Power Rankings:
The MLB Power Rankings at Odds Shark show the American League's No. 8-rated Royals taking on the National League's No. 15-rated Pirates in this contest.



How They Match Up:
Rating these teams in several key categories is important for handicappers and Pittsburgh has the National League's No. 16-rated offensive output, at 7.3 hits per game. The Royals average 9 hits per game, good for No. 3 on the American League list.

Comparing defensive stats, Kansas City owns the American League's No. 2-rated road mark, allowing 3.6 runs per game on the highway. Pittsburgh, on the other hand, rates No. 16 in scoring at home.

The Royals were a 4-2 loser in their most recent outing at home against the Twins. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Minnesota at +160 on the moneyline, while the total score (6) was good news for UNDER bettors. Kansas City looks to rebound from a loss to the Twins, who beat them 4-2 on Wednesday behind a start from Nick Blackburn at Kauffman Stadium.

Last time out for Pittsburgh, they were a 5-4 Sportsbook as they battled the Reds on the road. Moneyline bettors who got the Pirates at +153 were rewarded, while the 9 combined runs moved the game OVER for totals bettors. Pittsburgh won a close affair on Thursday in their last outing, defeating Cincinnati 5-4 in extra innings at Great American Ball Park.


Kansas City Royals Trends:
When playing on Friday are 2-8
Before playing Pittsburgh are 4-6
After playing Minnesota are 3-7
After a loss are 6-4

Pittsburgh Pirates Trends:
When playing on Friday are 7-3
Before playing Kansas City are 5-5
After playing Cincinnati are 6-4
After a win are 5-5

A few Royals at Pirates trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Kansas City's last 6 games when playing on the road against Pittsburgh
Kansas City is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Kansas City's last 7 games on the road
Kansas City is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing Pittsburgh
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Pittsburgh's last 6 games
Pittsburgh is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Pittsburgh's last 6 games when playing at home against Kansas City
Pittsburgh is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games


Next up:
Kansas City at Pittsburgh, Saturday, June 9