The Royals and Tigers are two of the most improved teams in baseball. I slightly favor the Tigers' pitching matchup with promising Reese Olson against Seth Lugo, a mediocre journeyman.

But why I really like the home Tigers here is the situation. Detroit was idle on Thursday, while the Royals had to sit out nearly a four-hour rain delay in nipping the Blue Jays, 2-1, at home on Thursday. The game was finally called after five innings.

Detroit has underrated pitching. Olson has pitched better than his 0-3 record and 3.80 ERA. The Tigers' hitting has picked up recently. Detroit has scored four or more runs in seven of its last eight games.

Lugo has pitched well to open the season going 3-1 with a 2.03 ERA. I see regression coming, though.