The Kansas City Royals (14-31) are on the road to face the Chicago White Sox (16-29) at Guaranteed Rate Field on Friday to open a three-game series.
The Royals are kicking off the final series of their nine-game road trip. They won two out of three in their last series against the Padres, taking the finale 4-3 on Wednesday at Petco Park. Maikel Garcia was 3 for 4 with a double and one RBI.
MJ Melendez added two doubles, one run, and one RBI. The White Sox are kicking off the final series of their nine-game homestand. They won two of three against the Guardians in their last series, dropping the finale 3-1 on Thursday at Guaranteed Rate Field. Andrew Benintendi went 1 for 3 with a double and one run.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
The Royals have won three of four in the season series between the AL Central rivals, including a 4-3 victory in their most recent meeting on May 11 at Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium. Scott Barlow threw one scoreless inning out of the bullpen to get the win.
ON THE MOUND
Zack Greinke (1-4, 5.01 ERA) is slated to get the start for Kansas City. The righty allowed two runs over five innings in his last start, a 4-3 home defeat against the Brewers on Saturday. He yielded three hits while striking out five in the no-decision.
Greinke has made one previous start against the White Sox this season, a 12-5 home victory on May 8. He surrendered four runs on six hits over 5.2 innings, striking out two and walking one.For Chicago, righty Michael Kopech (1-4, 5.74 ERA) gets the ball.
It’s his first appearance of the season against the Royals. Kopech made three appearances against the Royals in 2022, all as the starter, striking out six and walking seven over 12 innings (0-1, 6.00).
In his last start on May 12, Kopech took the loss at home against the Astros. He threw 4.2 innings and gave up two runs on one hit, striking out five and walking six in the 5-1 defeat.
AT THE PLATE
The Kansas City offense is averaging 4.0 runs per game for the season, with a slash line of .234/.297/.389. Salvador Perez leads the team in OPS at .845. The catcher is slashing .282/.325/.519 with nine home runs, 25 RBIs, and 22 runs over 40 games.
Against right-handed pitchers like Kopech this season, the Royals have a .663 OPS, fifth lowest in MLB. Perez also is the team’s strongest hitter against right-handers with a .853 OPS in 121 at-bats.
Chicago is slashing .244/.304/.401 for the season and averaging 4.2 runs per game. Luis Robert Jr. leads the team with an .885 OPS. The center fielder has 12 home runs, 28 RBIs, and 31 runs scored with a slash line of .267/.326/.559.
The Sox have a .696 OPS against right-handers in 2023. With a .850 OPS over 99 at-bats, Yasmani Grandal has been their best hitter against right-handers.
HOME AND AWAY
Kansas City is 8-14 away from Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium in 2023, scoring 3.8 runs per game while allowing 4.9 runs. Chicago has gone 9-13 at their home ballpark this season, averaging 4.4 runs per game while surrendering 6.0.
The teams have split their last 10 meetings at Guaranteed Rate Field, though Chicago has the scoring advantage with an average final margin of 4.3-3.4.
STANDINGS UPDATE
The Royals are fifth in the AL Central, 10 games behind the division-leading Twins. The White Sox are fourth in the AL Central, eight games behind the Twins.
SportsTips’ MLB Pick:
Chicago White Sox (-130)
Want up to a $1K risk free bet for this pick?
Claim with 
today!
If you need more news, information and predictions, head over to our MLB hub page for all your baseball needs!
*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
