Tigers at Royals
The Kansas City Royals needed to find something to help reverse their fortunes, and they appear to have found it in the Detroit Tigers. Kansas City, which lost nine of 11 prior to the All-Star break, attempts to complete a three-game sweep when it hosts Detroit on Sunday.
The Royals fell behind early on Saturday but scored two runs in both the fifth and sixth innings to post a 4-1 victory. Bubba Starling recorded his first hit in his second major-league game, an RBI single in the fifth that got Kansas City on the board, and Nicky Lopez followed with one of his own before Cheslor Cuthbert delivered a two-run base hit in the following frame for his second straight two-RBI performance. The Tigers were limited to just four hits on Saturday as they suffered their fifth consecutive overall loss and fell to 1-4 versus the Royals on the road this season. Harold Castro has gone 4-for-7 over the first two games of the series after delivering an RBI triple for Detroit, which has lost 20 of its last 23 contests.
TV: 2:15 p.m. ET, FS Detroit, FS Kansas City
PITCHING MATCHUP: Tigers RH Jordan Zimmermann (0-6, 6.29 ERA) vs. Royals RH Homer Bailey (7-6, 4.80)
Zimmermann remains in search of his first win of 2019 as he makes just his 11th start of the season. The 33-year-old native of Wisconsin struggled in a loss to Boston on July 6 when he was battered for seven runs and a career-high 13 hits in only 3 1/3 innings. Zimmermann has been superb against Kansas City during his career, going 4-1 with a 2.14 ERA in eight starts and one relief appearance.
Bailey is riding a six-start unbeaten streak during which he is 3-0 with a 2.83 ERA. The 33-year-old Texan settled for a no-decision against Cleveland on July 4 when he allowed two runs and six hits over five innings. Bailey has given up two runs and nine hits over 12 frames in two victories over Detroit this season to improve to 2-1 with a 2.36 ERA in four career turns versus the club.
WALK-OFFS
1. Royals All-Star INF/OF Whit Merrifield, who has yet to go without a hit in back-to-back contests this year, enters the series finale with a season high-tying 11-game streak after going 2-for-3 on Saturday.
2. Castro has tripled in each of the first two games of the series after recording just one in his first 32 contests this season.
3. Kansas City OF Alex Gordon has recorded a .355 batting average and five two-hit performances in nine games this month.