History will be made this world series. The Kansas City Royals and New York Mets both have championship droughts dating back to the 1980s (1985 - Royals, 1986- Mets). Each team is built differently, Mets with starting pitching, Royals with a lockdown bullpen. So who has the edge position-wise?
(stats included include time spent with said team, i.e traded players)
C)
KC - Salvador Perez
RS: 531ABs/52R/138H/25 2B/21HR/70RBI .260/.280/.426
PS: 36AB/7R/7H/1 2B/4HR/6RBI .194/.293/.556
NYM - Travis D'Arnaud
RS: 239AB/31R/64H/14 2B/1 3B/12HR/41RBI .268/.340/.485
PS: 34AB/5R/7H/3HR/6RBI .206/.222/.471
Both catchers provide some pop, and both have had their struggles hitting-wise in the postseason. But here, you have to go with the proven vet, and one of the top catchers in the league.
Edge: KC
1B)
KC - Eric Hosmer
RS: 599AB/98R/178H/33 2B/5 3B/18HR/93RBI .297/.363/.459
PS: 45AB/7R/10H/1 2B/1HR/11RBI .222/.234/.311
NYM - Lucas Duda
RS: 471AB/67R/115H/33 2B/27HR/73RBI .244/.352/.486
PS: 28AB/2R/6H/2 2B/1HR/6RBI .214/.290/.393
Hosmer & Duda are both power threats at 1B, but Hosmer has the more consistent regular season.
Edge: KC
2B)
KC - Ben Zobrist
RS: 232AB/37R/66H/16 2B/1 3B/7HR/23RBI .284/.364/.453
PS: 43AB/10R/14H/4 2B/2HR/6RBI .326/.375/.558
NYM - Daniel Murphy
RS: 499AB/56R/140H/38 2B/2 3B/14HR/73RBI .281/.322/.449
PS: 38AB/11R/16H/2 2B/7HR/11RBI .421/.436/1.026
As good as Zobrist has been, Murphy has been other-worldly this post-season. We'll see if he can keep up the pace in the world series, but no question who has the edge here.
Edge: NYM
SS)
KC - Alcides Escobar
RS: 612AB/76R/157H/20 2B/5 3B/3HR/47RBI .257/.293/.320
PS: 44AB/9R/17H/3 2B/2 3B/0HR/5RBI .386/.408/.545
NYM - Wilmer Flores
RS: 483AB/55R/127H/22 2B/16HR/59RBI .263/.295/.408
PS: 24AB/2R/7H/2 2B/1 3B/0HR/0RBI .292/.370/.458
Flores is the slugging SS, while Escobar has more speed. They each bring something to the table.
Edge: Draw
3B)
KC - Mike Moustakas
RS: 549AB/73R/156H/34 2B/1 3B/22HR/82RBI .284/.348/.470
PS: 42AB/4R/7H/1 2B/1HR/5RBI .167/.217/.262
NYM- David Wright
RS: 152AB/24R/44H/7 2B/5HR/17RBI .289/.379/.434
PS: 30AB/6R/5H/2 2B/0HR/3RBI .167/.359/.233
Each has struggled during the post-season, but Moustakas was the more reliable presence in the regular season, as Wright was sidelined for a good portion of the season with a back injury.
Edge: KC
LF)
KC - Alex Gordon
RS: 354AB/40R/96H/18 2B/13HR/48RBI .271/.377/.432
PS: 36AB/7R/9H/3 2B/1HR/3RBI .250/.325/.417
NYM - Michael Conforto
RS: 174AB/30R/47H/14 2B/9HR/26RBI .270/.335/.506
PS: 15AB/1R/1H/1HR/2RBI .067/.167/.267
Conforto had a pretty impressive rookie season, but has struggled in limited post-season action. Meanwhile, Gordon has just done what's normal of him.
Edge: KC
CF)
KC - Lorenzo Cain
RS: 551AB/101R/169H/34 2B/6 3B/16HR/72RBI .307/.361/.427
PS: 40AB/8R/11H/1 2B/1HR/7RBI .275/.375/.375
NYM - Yoenis Cespedes
RS: 230AB/39R/66H/14 2B/4 3B/17HR/44RBI .287/.337/.604
PS: 34AB/6R/9H/1 2B/2HR/7RBI .265/.286/.471
Cain has kept his progression and is now arguably one of, if not the top all-around player for Kansas City. Meanwhile, Cespedes (traded to the Mets on the deadline) has sparked the Mets offense and has helped to lead them to where they are now.
Edge: Draw
RF)
KC - Alex Rios
RS: 385AB/40R/98H/22 2B/2 3B/4HR/32RBI .255/.287/.353
PS: 33AB/4R/11H/2 2B/1HR/5RBI .333/.389/.485
NYM - Curtis Granderson
RS: 580AB/98R/150H/33 2B/2 3B/26HR/70RBI .259/.264/.457
PS: 33AB/4R/10H/2 2B/0HR/7RBI .303/.385/.364
Rios has had a nice post-season, but Granderson has gotten his power back for the Mets.
Edge: NYM
SPs)
KC - Yordano Ventura/Edinson Volquez/Johnny Cueto/Chris Young
NYM - Jacob DeGrom/Noah Syndergaard/Matt Harvey/Steven Matz
Each team has their flame-throwing SPs, but this is no contest. The Mets rotation flat out dominated the Cubs in the NLCS.
Edge: NYM
RPs)
KC - Wade Davis/Luke Hocheaver/Kelvin Herrera/Franklin Morales/Danny Duffy/Ryan Madson
NYM - Jeurys Familia/Hansel Robles/Jon Niese/Erik Goeddel/Addison Reed/Bartolo Colon/Tyler Clippard
As good as the Mets SP, that's as dominating as the Royals BP is. From Madson, to Herrera and finally Davis, they have a shutdown bridge to close out games.
Edge: KC
So with all the breakdowns, time to get to my pick. Each team is pretty evenly matched, though when it comes to the lineup, I think the Royals have the edge. What this series will come down to is pitching. Can the Mets starters keep up their dominance, and can their offense jump to a lead? Close games should favor the Royals with their sterling BP. I think this series is going to go to the brink, but I pick the Royals In 7
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