Royals starter Duffy hopes to improve at home vs. Twins (Jul 19, 2018)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Danny Duffy has been pitching outstanding recently for the Kansas City Royals.
He threw seven scoreless innings, struck out eight and gave up four hits in a 5-0 victory at the Chicago White Sox last Saturday in his final start before the All-Star break. Duffy has not allowed a run in 13 innings, the second longest active streak in the American League.
Duffy will start Friday night against the Minnesota Twins in the first game back after the four-day break. Kyle Gibson will start for Minnesota.
The bad news for Duffy is the game is at Kauffman Stadium. In his last five road starts, he has yielded just one run over 32 innings, a 0.29 ERA.
Since May 24, Duffy has a 1.21 road ERA, which is the best in the majors, giving up six earned runs in 44 2/3 innings. He has struck out 46 in that span.
He began the season 1-4 with a 6.82 ERA in away games, but he has won his last four road decisions.
Duffy, however, has struggled at home. He is winless in his last eight home starts dating to Aug. 22 last year. He is 0-4 with a 6.75 ERA in seven Kauffman Stadium starts this year, allowing 28 earned runs in 37 1/3 innings.
Duffy is 5-8 with a 4.59 ERA in 20 starts this season. He is 4-2 with a 2.73 ERA in his past 10 starts, but all the wins have come on the road.
He has pitched well against the Twins, going 5-1 with a 2.27 ERA in 19 career outings, 15 of them starts. That is the lowest ERA by an opposing pitcher against the Twins since 2011.
Gibson, a 30-year-old right-hander, was a 2009 first round pick of the Twins out of the University of Missouri. He is 4-6 with a 3.42 ERA in 19 starts this year.
Gibson is 2-2 with a 2.68 ERA at Kauffman Stadium, limiting the Royals to a .222 batting average and a .294 on-base percentage. He has given up 17 runs on 43 hits in 194 at-bats over 53 2/3 innings against the Royals in KC.
Overall, Gibson is 6-4 with a 3.22 ERA against the Royals, giving up 39 runs, 36 earned, on 98 hits over 100 2/3 innings, while walking 30 and striking out 70. The Royals have a .258 batting average with a .677 OPS versus Gibson.
The Royals possess the worst record in the majors at 27-68. They have lost one more game at the All-Star break than the 2015 World Series champion Royals lost during the entire regular season.
The Royals are 2-10 in July. They are 7-31 since July 1 and have dropped 12 of their past 14. They have lost 35 of 46 home games.
The Royals are entertaining offers for veterans, including Mike Moustakas, Lucas Duda, Whit Merrifield and Duffy, seeking prospects in return.
The Twins are 44-50 after winning eight of 10 going into the All-Star break. Minnesota made the postseason last year as the second wildcard but will need a strong second half surge to harbor any playoff aspirations this season.
They trail AL Central leading Cleveland Indians by 7 1/2 games. They trail the Seattle Mariners by 12 1/2 games for the second wild-card berth.
