The Cleveland Guardians face off against the Kansas City Royals in the 2022 MLB Opening Day matchup at Kauffman Stadium, with first pitch at 4:10 p.m.

Cleveland (-124) enters as slight favorites over Kansas City (+114), with a runline of Royals +1.5 and an over/under of 8 runs.

Pitching Matchup:

• Guardians: Shane Bieber (7-4, 3.17 ERA in 2021)
• Royals: Zack Greinke (11-6, 4.16 ERA in 2021)

Key Stats:

• Cleveland ranked 18th in scoring (4.43 runs/game) and 15th in defense (4.49 runs allowed/game) in 2021
• Kansas City ranked 24th in scoring (4.23 runs/game) and 21st in defense (4.86 runs allowed/game)
• Guardians are 14-4 in last 18 games vs Royals and 10-2 in last 12 road games vs KC

Key Players: Cleveland:

• Jose Ramirez: .266/.355/.538, 36 HR, 103 RBI, 111 R, 27 SB in 2021

Kansas City:

• Salvador Perez: 48 HR, 121 RBI in 2021
• Bobby Witt Jr.: Top prospect making MLB debut (.290/.361/.576, 33 HR, 97 RBI in minors)

Analysis: Bieber returns healthy after missing most of 2021 with a shoulder injury and looks to prove why he's a top AL Cy Young candidate (+700 odds). While Cleveland's offense remains a question mark, their dominant pitching and recent success against KC make them slight favorites in this Opening Day matchup.

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