Detroit hosts Kansas City after Boyd's strong outing
Kansas City Royals (11-22, fifth in the AL Central) vs. Detroit Tigers (14-15, third in the AL Central)
Detroit; Saturday, 4 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Royals: Homer Bailey (2-3, 5.70 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 30 strikeouts) Tigers: Tyson Ross (2-3, 4.03 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 22 strikeouts)
BOTTOM LINE: The Tigers are 7-7 against opponents from the AL Central. Detroit has hit 21 home runs this season, last in the majors. Niko Goodrum leads them with three while slugging .427.
The Royals are 3-11 on the road. The Kansas City pitching staff as a whole has an ERA of 5.08. Brad Keller leads the team with a 4.07 earned run average. The Tigers won the last meeting 4-3. Matthew Boyd earned his third victory and Ronny Rodriguez went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs for Detroit. Jorge Lopez registered his third loss for Kansas City.
TOP PERFORMERS: Miguel Cabrera leads the Tigers with 33 hits and has 12 RBIs. Christin Stewart is 11-for-35 with five doubles, a triple, two home runs and 11 RBIs over the last 10 games for Detroit.
Whit Merrifield leads the Royals with 39 hits and has 13 RBIs. Hunter Dozier is 15-for-35 with three doubles, two triples, two home runs and seven RBIs over the last 10 games for Kansas City.
LAST 10 GAMES: Tigers: 5-5, .265 batting average, 5.67 ERA, outscored by 10 runs
Royals: 4-6, .241 batting average, 4.30 ERA, outscored opponents by three runs
Tigers Injuries: Jordan Zimmermann: 10-day IL (elbow), Matt Moore: 60-day IL (knee), Blaine Hardy: 10-day IL (forearm), Michael Fulmer: 60-day IL (elbow), Christin Stewart: 10-day IL (quad), Josh Harrison: 10-day IL (shoulder).
Royals Injuries: Trevor Oaks: 60-day IL (hip), Jesse Hahn: 60-day IL (elbow), Brian Flynn: 10-day IL (elbow), Lucas Duda: 10-day IL (lumbar strain), Salvador Perez: 60-day IL (elbow).
