The Detroit Tigers (52-85) take their least productive offense in the league on the road to face the Kansas City Royals (56-82) at Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium on Friday for the first of a three-game series. The Tigers are in the midst of a six-game road trip. They won only one out of three in their last series against the Angels, taking the finale 5-4 on Wednesday at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Eric Haase was 5 for 5 with a solo home run and two doubles. Kerry Carpenter added a home run and a double. He scored two runs. The Royals are in the midst of a six-game homestand. They lost two of three against the Guardians in their last series, taking the finale 2-1 on Wednesday at Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium. Salvador Perez went 2 for 4 with one RBI.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
The Royals have won eight of 13 in the season series between the AL Central rivals, including a 3-2 victory in their most recent meeting on Sunday at Comerica Park. Dylan Coleman got the win with 1.1 scoreless innings out of the bullpen, and Scott Barlow earned his 21st save with a scoreless ninth.
ON THE MOUND
Joey Wentz (0-1, 8.10 ERA) is set for the start for Detroit. The lefty threw four scoreless innings in his last start, a 4-0 road win over the Twins on May 31. He gave up one hit while striking out four in the no-decision. Lefty Daniel Lynch (4-9, 4.82 ERA) takes the mound for Kansas City. He has made two appearances against the Tigers this season, both starts, giving up seven runs (6 ER) over nine innings (0-0, 6.00) with seven strikeouts and four walks. In his last start on September 2, Lynch took a no-decision on the road against the Tigers. He threw five innings and gave up four runs on five hits, striking out four and walking three in the 5-4 loss.
AT THE PLATE
The Detroit offense is averaging 3.3 runs per game for the season, lowest in MLB, with a slash line of .229/.285/.338. Javier Baez leads the team in OPS at .641. The shortstop is slashing .230/.274/.368 with 12 home runs, 52 RBIs, and 50 runs over 121 games. Against lefties like Lynch this season, the Tigers have a .699 OPS. Baez also is the team’s most potent producer against left-handers with a .821 OPS in 113 at-bats. Kansas City is slashing .244/.308/.380 for the season and averaging 3.9 runs per game. Bobby Witt Jr. leads the team with a .729 OPS. The shortstop has 20 home runs, 70 RBIs, and 69 runs scored with a slash line of .246/.291/.438. The Royals have a .725 OPS against left-handers in 2022. With a .730 OPS over 117 at-bats, Witt Jr. also has been their best hitter against left-handers.
HOME AND AWAY
Detroit is 23-45 on the road in 2022, scoring 3.1 runs per game while allowing 4.5 runs. Kansas City has gone 33-39 in front of their home fans this season, averaging 4.0 runs per game while surrendering 4.9. In the last 10 games between the teams at Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City is 7-3 with an average scoreline of 4.6-3.2.
STANDINGS UPDATE
The Tigers are fifth in the AL Central, 19 games behind the division-leading Guardians. The Royals are fourth in the AL Central, 15 games behind the Guardians.
SportsTips’ MLB Pick:
Kansas City Royals (-140)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
