10* play on New York Mets.

The New York Mets and the Kansas City Royals will open the season with a two-game set at Kauffman Stadium. This is a replay of last year's World Series finals where the Royals got the better of the Mets, but I like New York's chances of getting a little revenge here in the season-opener.

Here are my keys to the game:

1. Pitching - The Mets hand the ball to their ace Matt Harvey who's coming off a solid season, posting a 2.53 ERA after missing all of 2014 to recover from Tommy John surgery. He's had a turbulent preseason dealing with a blood clot in his bladder, but he won each of his four April starts last year and we should see another strong April from the right-hander this season. The Royals will counter with Edinson Volquez who has compiled a sub-4.00 ERA in two straight seasons. He does not have a good record against the Mets going 2-5 with a 5.70 ERA in nine career starts against them.

2. Slow Starters - The Royals are just 1-11 in their last 12 during game 1 of a series while the Mets are 16-5 in their last 21 series-openers.

3. X-Factor - The Mets players should be well motivated with revenge on their minds after having to watch the Royals raise their second championship banner pre-game.

Selection: This is a play on the New York Mets (10*)