If the New York Yankees hoped their injury-ravaged roster could turn things around by taking advantage of nine straight home games against teams with losing records, they can't be happy with their performance more than halfway through the homestand. The Yankees hope to bounce back from an uninspiring effort when they host the Kansas City Royals on Friday for the second contest of their four-game series.
New York began its homestand by dropping two of three to the Chicago White Sox before outscoring Boston 13-3 during a two-game sweep earlier this week. The same Yankees' offense that enjoyed a fair amount of success against the Red Sox was nowhere to be found in Thursday's opener versus the Royals, however, as the team managed only four singles and struck out 14 times in a 6-1 setback. Kansas City appears to be digging itself out of the mess created by its 10-game losing streak from March 31-April 11, winning five of seven since and picking up its first two road victories after dropping its first five away from home. Solid pitching has been a theme in the Royals' recent success as the club held the opposition to three runs or fewer in four of the triumphs, including fewer than two in three of those games.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, FS Kansas City, WPIX (New York)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Royals RH Jakob Junis (1-1, 6.14 ERA) vs. Yankees LH CC Sabathia (0-0, 0.00)
Junis recovered from a three-run first inning against Cleveland on Sunday as he allowed only two more runs the rest of the way, eventually settling for a no-decision after working a season-high 6 1/3 frames. The 26-year-old has produced only one quality start in four turns this season after posting five of them over his last seven outings of 2018. Left-handed hitters have thrived to the tune of a .321 batting average so far against Junis, who is 1-2 with a 6.32 ERA in three career starts versus the Yankees.
Sabathia was sharp in his season debut on Saturday but settled for a no-decision after allowing only one single in five scoreless innings. "I was out there the first inning, I was like, shaking," the six-time All-Star, who spent the offseason recovering from heart and knee surgeries, told reporters. "Thinking from where I came from in December and actually being back on the mound, it's cool. I was able to kind of harness those nerves." Sabathia is 21-12 in 41 career starts versus the Royals.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Yankees have played 13 of their 18 games against opponents who lost at least 98 last season and are 6-7 in those contests.
2. Kansas City 2B Adalberto Mondesi went 2-for-3 and drove in a pair of runs in the series opener after going hitless in his first 20 at-bats away from home.
3. New York is averaging 3.8 runs in 12 home games but 6.8 in its six road contests.