Keys to winning the 2014 ALCS

Oct 9, 2014 - 1:37 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - The Baltimore Orioles are looking for their first World Series title since 1983. Cinderella is standing in their way, though, as the Kansas City Royals, back in the playoffs for the first time since their last World Series win 29 years ago, are trying to continue their magical ride.

Kansas City stole the most bases (153) in the league this season, while Baltimore ranked dead last (44). The Orioles, though, hit the most home runs (211) in the league, whereas the Royals (95) ranked dead last.

These teams may have arrived at this point via very different routes, but they still have the same goal in mind.

As an introduction to this ALCS matchup, let's take a look at some of the keys to winning the series for both clubs:

KANSAS CITY ROYALS

1. KEEP HITTING HOME RUNS

No team signified small ball more than Kansas City, which won 89 games this season thanks in large part to its ability to play defense and manufacture runs.

Kansas City may have ranked dead last in home runs during the regular season, but has enjoyed the luxury of going deep here in the postseason and won the first two games in Anaheim on the strength of two extra-inning homers. Amazingly, the Royals have hit just as many homers this postseason (4) as the Orioles, a team that blasted 116 more than them during the regular season.

"Well, you know, it was huge. Won us two games," KC manager Ned Yost said of the power hitting after Sunday's clincher. "Coming into this game, we were hitting .162 as a team, they were hitting .141, but the difference were the two big home runs. That gave us the edge. Tonight the power was huge again."

Baltimore scores runs in bunches. If the Royals want to hang with them and get into a slugfest they are going to need to hit a few more out of the park in the ALCS.

2. SHIELDS NEEDS TO BE "BIG GAME JAMES"

James Shields is the closest thing the Royals have to an ace. After all, he's nicknamed "Big Game James".

But Shields has yet to live up to his moniker in the postseason, going 3-4 with a 4.96 ERA in eight starts. He's also lost both of his ALCS starts while with the Tampa Bay Rays.

With rookie Yordano Ventura and Jason Vargas following him, the Royals are going to need Shields to pitch as he did down the stretch.

3. RIDE THE WAVE OF MOMENTUM

There is something going on here in Kansas City. I can't put my finger on it, but the Royals are getting every break. Everything seems to be falling their way.

The fact that they are winning with the home run should tell you all you need to know.

We see things like this happen in hockey all the time where a team gets hot and steamrolls their way to a title. Rarely does it happen in baseball, at least to the extent where it ends with a World Series title.

But we have seen it.

Maybe it's just the Royals' year.

BALTIMORE ORIOLES

1. KEEP THE ROYALS OFF THE BASES

One of the bigger decisions O's skipper Buck Showalter will have to make will be who is behind the plate. Nick Hundley has assumed the starter's role given how bad Caleb Joseph has been offensively.

But, Kansas City stole seven bases in its wild card win over the Oakland Athletics and has swiped 12 bases this postseason. Or 10 more than the Orioles.

The Royals thrive on the stolen base. The problem for Showalter is that Hundley only threw out 14 percent of runners in 2014. Joseph, on the other hand, led the American League at 40 percent.

Joseph may be hitless in his last 33 at-bats, but he'll be the one behind the plate in Game 1.

2. SCORE EARLY

Baltimore scored 21 runs in the three-game sweep of Detroit, but tallied almost half of those runs against the beleaguered Tigers bullpen.

That won't happen in this series.

Baltimore is going to have to do its damage against Shields, Ventura and Vargas, because if they are trailing late in a game runs will be hard to come by against the Royals' great bullpen trio of Wade Davis, Kelvin Herrera and Greg Holland.

Baltimore wins by hitting home runs. So much so that 47.8 percent of its runs this season came off of homers, the third highest percentage in Major League history. It's been more of the same here in October, as the O's have scored seven of their 21 runs via the homer.

Kansas City's staff, though, gave up the third-fewest home runs in the league at 128. However, it has surrendered six in four postseason games.

If Baltimore is able to leave the yard and do so early, this could be a short series.

3. BUD NORRIS

You ask someone who the best pitcher is on the Orioles and you are bound to get a few different answers. Chris Tillman will certainly come up, even Wei- Yin Chen. But right now the best pitcher on the Orioles is Bud Norris.

Norris tossed 6 1/3 scoreless innings in the Game 3 clincher versus the Tigers and is 5-0 since the start of September.

"Really happy for Bud, because he's a guy that just because someone hasn't had the opportunity to do something before, doesn't mean they can't do it," Showalter said.