The Kansas City Royals will look to remain unbeaten in the postseason when they host the San Francisco Giants in Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday night at Kauffman Stadium. The Giants, of course, enter Game 1 with plenty of confidence after winning the World Series twice in the past four seasons.
Will Kansas City's speed, defense and dominant bullpen overwhelm San Francisco as they have the Royals' other opponents this October? Or will the Giants grind down KC with the type of solid pitching and opportunistic hitting that has been the hallmark of their success in recent years?
James Shields will toe the rubber for Kansas City after a campaign in which he finished with a 3.21 ERA and the second-best strikeout-to-walk ratio of his career. Despite that success, Shields hasn't quite lived up to his reputation as the team's staff ace in the playoffs. The 32-year-old has posted a 5.63 ERA in three starts this October, striking out 15 batters and walking five in 16 innings while allowing three home runs.
2014 World Series
The Giants will hand the ball to Madison Bumgarner, who has quietly grown into one of the best pitchers in MLB. The left-hander threw eight innings in San Francisco's pennant-clinching victory in Game 5 of the NLCS and has gone at least seven frames in all four of his playoff outings. He finished the regular season with a 2.98 ERA and is just the guy the Giants want on the mound for occasions like Tuesday night.
The game will begin at 8:07 p.m. ET and can be watched on FOX or streamed live through MLB.tv.
How to Watch
Where: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City
When: 8:07 p.m. ET
TV: FOX
Radio: ESPN Radio (affiliate locator)
Online streaming: MLB.tv World Series stream