Detroit won the opener of its seven-game road swing and can carry the momentum over to the next game.
The Detroit Tigers opened up their seven-game road trip with a 7-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Friday night, giving the team its fifth-straight win after dropping three straight to the Cleveland Guardians at home.
Now, AJ Hinch and Co. can go for the kill in K.C. in the second game of the current three-game set against their fellow American League Central foes.
Detroit has now stretched out a 1.5-game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies for the best record in Major League Baseball and a two-game lead over the New York Yankees for the A.L. lead. The Tigers still have a nice cushion in the Central as well, holding a six-game edge on the Minnesota Twins .
Stats-wise, the Motor City Kitties are now 10th in the league in batting (.253), ninth in on-base percentage (.325) and seventh in slugging (.411), adding up to an eighth-ranked OPS of .736 on offense. As far as pitching is concerned, Detroit is fifth in ERA (3.26) and WHIP (1.17) while coming sixth when it comes to batting average against (.227).
This Saturday afternoon, the Tigers send reigning AL Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal to the mound in search of victory while the Royals have Michael Wacha toeing the rubber in defense of the home field. Here is a look at how they match up.
Detroit Tigers (38-20) vs. Kansas City Royals (30-28)
Time (ET): 4:10 p.m.
Place: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri
SB Nation Site: Royals Review
Media: FanDuel Sports Detroit
, MLB.TV
, Tigers Radio Network
Game 59: LHP Tarik Skubal (5-2, 2.49 ERA) vs. RHP Michael Wacha (3-4, 3.21 ERA)
SKUBAL
Baseball Savant
WACHA
Baseball Savant