The set-up: The Cleveland Indians have already clinched the AL Central but they are still contending for the best AL record and home-field advantage. The team's Thursday contest at Detroit (Tigers are still in the hunt for a wild card spot) was rained out. and that puts both the Indians and Tigers in a predicament, as it's possible the two could wind up playing Monday with postseason ramifications at stake. The Indians will hopefully close out the regular season with three games this weekend in Kansas City, a team which, after back-to-back World Series appearances, will be watching this year's playoffs on TV.

The pitching matchup: Ryan Merritt (0-0, 1.50 ERA) gets the ball for the Indians with Yordano Ventura (11-11, 4.40 ERA) taking the mound for the Royals. Merritt is one of Cleveland's September call-ups and has made 24 starts in Triple-A, going 11-8 with a 3.70 ERA. The 16th-round selection in the 2011 draft has been up with the Indians three times this season, pitching just six innings spread over three relief appearances with one run allowed. He was Thursday's scheduled starter but now makes his first major league start, tonight. Ventura has had a disappointing season but after opening 6-9 with a 4.88 ERA, he's 5-2 with a 3.56 ERA since August 1.

The pick: It's hard to evaluate Merritt but we know that Ventura is 4-2 with a 3.13 ERA in nine career starts against the Indians (team is 5-4). As noted above, Ventura has regained some of his previous good form since August 1 and Cleveland limps in to this series has having lost four its last five games, while scoring only four total runs in the losses. Kansas city is a 10* play.