Though the Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals both find themselves well below .500, each team sends the ERA leader of its starting rotation to the mound for Thursday’s meeting at Camden Yards.

After beginning the season in the bullpen, Carlos Hernandez has led the Royals to victories in six of his eight starts. He has posted 3.32 ERA as a starter with four home runs allowed in 43 ²/₃ innings, and batters are hitting .214 against him in that role.

John Means pitched a no-hitter for the Orioles earlier this season and is 5-6 with a 3.47 ERA. But since coming off the injured list in July, he has fallen on tough times with a 5.21 ERA and more than two home runs per nine innings allowed in nine starts.

The Royals bullpen entered Wednesday with MLB’s fifth-best bullpen ERA since the All-Star break (3.31). The Orioles are one of two teams with a bullpen ERA north of six in that span, and their 5.74 team ERA for the season is the worst in the league with no other team’s being above 5.14.

With the Orioles scoring the second-fewest runs per game in the AL — they scored four runs or fewer in 21 of their previous 27 games entering Wednesday — and having an MLB-worst 20-45 home record through 65 games, the Royals will add to the Orioles’ misery.

The play: Royals, +105.