The Cinderella Kansas City Royals from a season ago were playing with house money as they ended a 29-year postseason drought before the clock struck midnight in Game 7 of the World Series.
Kansas City, however, finds itself as the favorite this time around as it kicks off the ALDS against the Houston Astros on Wednesday, and anything short of a consecutive trip to the World Series will be viewed as a failure.
The Astros, however, are this year's version of the 2014 Royals. A team built around youth, power and speed, Houston is hoping to extend its surprising regular season run deep into October.
Here are three things to know heading into Game 1 of the ALDS:
ROLLING WITH VENTURA
Despite acquiring Johnny Cueto at the deadline, the Royals will hand the ball to 24-year-old Yordano Ventura in Game 1. It's been an up-and-down year for the emotional right-hander, but he enters the ALDS in the midst of one of his best stretches of the season. Ventura went 2-0 with a 2.16 ERA and 25 strikeouts over his final four starts, and tossed seven innings of one-run ball against the Astros in his lone start against them in July. He shined in his first postseason experience in 2014, posting a 3.20 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 25 1/3 innings.
VENTURA VS. ASTROS
| Player | AB | H | AVG | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jose Altuve | 7 | 1 | .143 | 1 |
| George Springer | 1 | 1 | 1.000 | 0 |
| Carlos Correa | 2 | 1 | .500 | 0 |
| Colby Rasmus | 5 | 1 | .200 | 1 |
| Evan Gattis | 3 | 1 | .333 | 0 |
| Carlos Gomez | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 |
| Luis Valbuena | 3 | 0 | .000 | 1 |
| Chris Carter | 3 | 0 | .000 | 2 |
| Jason Castro | 8 | 4 | .500 | 1 |
THE OTHER GUY
Collin McHugh is one of Houston's best-kept secrets despite finishing second in the AL with 19 wins. Selected off waivers prior to last season, the right-hander was Houston's best starter not named Dallas Keuchel over the regular season. In 32 outings, McHugh went 19-7 with a 3.89 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, and 171 strikeouts over 203 2/3 innings. The importance of Houston winning Game 1 is immense, as the Royals will roll out Cueto in Game 2 before the series shifts to Houston. McHugh capped off his season winning each of his last three starts, posting a 2.49 ERA in the process.
| Player | AB | H | AVG | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alcides Escobar | 3 | 0 | .000 | 2 |
| Ben Zobrist | 5 | 2 | .400 | 0 |
| Lorenzo Cain | 3 | 1 | .333 | 1 |
| Eric Hosmer | 3 | 0 | .000 | 1 |
| Kendrys Morales | 5 | 0 | .000 | 0 |
| Mike Moustakas | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 |
| Salvador Perez | 3 | 1 | .333 | 1 |
| Alex Gordon | 3 | 1 | .333 | 1 |
| Alex Rios | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 |
ROAD WOES
Houston finished the regular season 33-48 on the road, the second-worst winning percentage of any postseason team in history. While they were able to beat the New York Yankees in the Bronx in the wild-card game, playing at Kauffman is a different animal.
The Royals were 51-30 at home, the third-best record in the AL, and the expansive outfield in Kansas City doesn't play well to Houston's dependence on the longball. The Astros hit the second-most homers in the majors and added a pair in their 3-0 win over New York, but only hit one in their three-game series with the Royals at Kauffman in July. Houston is 74-46 when hitting at least one home run, and 13-30 when not.
