It’s the final game of an interleague set between a pair of teams with different situations on the diamond in the Midwest. The Los Angeles Dodgers are on the road as they finish off a three-game series with the Kansas City Royals Sunday afternoon. In the opening game of the series Friday night, it was the Dodgers slugging their way to an 8-3 victory to keep their winning ways going. Can Los Angeles keep their momentum going with a triumph on getaway day or can the Royals play spoiler at home? This article was published prior to the conclusion of the middle game of the series Saturday night at Kauffman Stadium.
Los Angeles ran their win streak to 11 games as they won for the 14th time in 15 contests with a win in the opening game of this set. The Dodgers entered Saturday holding a 16-game lead over the Padres in the NL West race. They were six games ahead of the Mets for the top record in the National League, which would grant home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Los Angeles got three hits from Trayce Thompson (two runs, three RBI) and a pair from Trea Turner (run, two RBI) added a pair in the contest. Thompson blasted his fifth homer of the season to help put the game away late. Tony Gonsolin (14-1) earned the win on the mound as he threw 6.2 innings, allowing one run on two hits with three walks and three strikeouts before departing.
Tyler Anderson is on the mound as he makes his 22nd appearance and 20th start of the season for the Dodgers in this contest. He is 13-1 with a 2.72 ERA, a 0.997 WHIP, 24 walks and 97 strikeouts over 122.1 innings of work this season. Anderson earned the win in his last outing, which came Sunday at home against the Padres. He threw seven innings, allowing no runs on two hits with one walk and three strikeouts in a game the Dodgers eventually won 4-0. In his last three starts, Anderson is 3-0 with a 2.37 ERA, a 0.89 WHIP, five walks and 10 strikeouts over 19 innings of work. Anderson makes his third career start against the Royals in this contest. He is 0-1 with a 2.77 ERA, a 1.00 WHIP, two walks and 11 strikeouts over 13 innings of work against them. Anderson, in his 139th career major league appearance and 133rd start, pitches at Kauffman Stadium for the first time here.