This Sunday the (39-61) Kansas City Royals and the (68-33) New York Yankees will play their final game of this four-game series. The first pitch will be thrown out at 1:35 PM EST inside Yankee Stadium. This is the second series between these two teams this season, as the Yankees swept the Royals in a three-game series earlier in the season. They have now taken the first two games of this one, as well.
The Kansas City Royals are coming into this one after losing their previous series to the Los Angeles Angels. They dominated the Angels in game one of that series, but then their bats went cold and they didn't score in the final two games. They will need their bats to wake up if they want to contend with the Yankees in this one.
The New York Yankees are entering this one after a grueling short two-game series with New York Mets. The Yankees were swept in this one, as they struggle at the plate and were out-pitched on the mound. They will need to be better on both sides of the field if they want to take down the Royals in this one.
This game was written/published before last night's results.
The Kansas City Royals have lost the first two games of this series and they are (3-7) in their last 10 games played. They are also in dead last place in the AL Central, as they are still 13.5 games out of first place. At the plate, the Royals have had problems all season. They are scoring 3.93 runs per game and hitting .246 as a team. This is the 26th least amount of runs scored per game, but the 13th highest overall team batting average. They have shown that they can consistently reach base safely, but they have struggled to drive in men when they are in scoring position. Kansas City tends to strand base runners at the end of the inning, as they just aren't scoring enough runs in these games to stay competitive. Kansas City has also shown that they have very little home run power littered throughout their batting lineup. They are averaging .82 home runs per game, which is the 27th lowest average in the league. It takes multiple base h its for the Royals to score, as they will need to string together multiple hits to score. I also expect them to stay very aggressive once they have reached base safely, as they have already recorded 62 stolen bases this season. This is the eighth most in the league, as the Royals will do whatever it takes to put men in scoring position. They need to give themselves as many opportunities to score as they can.
In the field, the Royals have also been up and down this season. They have been solid at times, but they tend to kick the ball around the infield, giving their opponents second and third chances to score. They are currently allowing 5.15 runs per game and they have the 18th lowest overall team fielding percentage, as they aren't as clean in the field as they should be. This is also the 26th most runs allowed per game, as they have continued to get shelled on the mound and in the field this season. The Royals have already recorded the 15th most fielding errors this season, as well. They have to limit their mistakes if they want to give themselves a chance in this one against the Yankees.
According to MLB.com, Zack Greinke will be getting the start in this one. He has supposed to get the start on Saturday, but he was pushed back to the final game of this series. He has been up and down this season, as he has struggled on the road. Overall, he is (3-6) with a 4.35 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. But on the road, he is (0-5) with a 7.38 ERA. He did look great in his last start at home, though. He pitched for 5.0 innings and didn't allow an earned run, as he shut down the Angels.