The Kansas City Royals will be chasing a ninth consecutive victory Tuesday night when they visit the Toronto Blue Jays to begin a three-game series.
The Royals completed a 7-0 homestand Sunday with an 11-7 victory over the Detroit Tigers.
It is their longest winning streak since they took eight in a row May 17-25, 2024. They have outscored their opponents 50-27 over the eight games.
The Royals were 11 games out of first in the American League Central and 7 1/2 games out of a crowded race for the third AL wild-card spot after Sunday.
“You’re going to be judged on the whole body of work, right? And the record at the beginning was not great, but there’s 30 games left,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “It is ‘try to win the next game,’ and that’s what we did (Sunday). So, they should be proud of that. Obviously, it was a great homestand, and I am happy for them that they are getting some results.”
“We’re just trying to do our job every day,” said Salvador Perez, who stole second base uncontested in the second inning on Sunday, marking the seventh steal of his career and first since July 21, 2021. “This game is too crazy. I’ve seen a lot of things in this game. You need to prepare day by day, one day at a time, and see what happens after the last game.”
The Royals are scheduled to start right-hander Seth Lugo (5-7, 4.71 ERA) in the series opener that begins a six-game road trip. He is 3-1 with a 2.52 ERA in seven career games (three starts) against the Blue Jays.
Toronto right-hander Max Scherzer (1-6, 7.40) is slated to oppose Lugo. Scherzer is 14-6 with a 3.57 ERA in 25 career starts against the Royals.
The Blue Jays will open a six-game homestand after completing a 3-3 road trip with an 8-3 loss to the New York Yankees on Sunday in the rubber match of a three-game series. The loss left them 1 1/2 games out of the third AL wild-card spot. The Yankees took the season series 7-6.
Toronto opened the trip by taking two of three from the Tampa Bay Rays. The Blue Jays have won 18 of their past 30 games.
A familiar problem haunted Toronto against New York. The club went 6-for-41 with runners in scoring position in the series, including a 1-for-14 showing in the series opener, a 3-1 loss.
“They’re grinding, they’re leaving it all out there,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “A tough stretch against good teams. A .500 road trip against good division teams that are at the top, you want to say that’s good. But we need to be a little bit better in certain situations.”
Toronto entered Monday 24th in the majors with a .239 batting average with runners in scoring position. The team ranks last in the majors with a .682 OPS.
“You’ve got to zone into a spot where you can drive the ball a bit more consistently,” Schneider said. “It’s not like they’re throwing 80% breaking balls or fastballs in certain counts. I think you’ve just got to be a little more patient.”
The Blue Jays will visit the Royals for a three-game series Sept. 4-6.
–Field Level Media
