Phillies face Kansas City, aim to build on Eflin's strong outing
Philadelphia Phillies (22-16, first in the NL East) vs. Kansas City Royals (14-26, fifth in the NL Central)
Kansas City, Kansas; Sunday, 2:15 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Both Philadelphia and Kansas City are looking to win the series with a victory.
The Royals are 9-12 in home games. The Kansas City pitching staff has a team ERA of 5.01, Brad Keller paces the staff with a mark of 4.47.
The Phillies are 8-9 on the road. Philadelphia is slugging .414 as a unit. Rhys Hoskins leads the team with a slugging percentage of .606. The Phillies won the last meeting 7-0. Zach Eflin secured his fifth victory and Andrew McCutchen went 1-for-5 with two RBIs for Philadelphia. Keller took his fourth loss for Kansas City.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jorge Soler leads the Royals with 10 home runs and has 25 RBIs. Whit Merrifield is 12-for-41 with two doubles, three triples, two home runs and seven RBIs over the last 10 games for Kansas City.
Hoskins leads the Phillies with 21 extra base hits and is slugging .606. Cesar Hernandez is 13-for-32 with four doubles, a home run and six RBIs over the last 10 games for Philadelphia.
LAST 10 GAMES: Royals: 4-6, .235 batting average, 4.21 ERA, outscored opponents by three runs
Phillies: 6-4, .246 batting average, 2.76 ERA, outscored opponents by 20 runs
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).
Phillies Injuries: Vince Velasquez: 10-day IL (forearm), David Robertson: 10-day IL (elbow), Tommy Hunter: 60-day IL (arm), Victor Arano: 10-day IL (elbow), Roman Quinn: 10-day IL (groin), Scott Kingery: 10-day IL (hamstring).
