Merrifield looks to keep rolling as Kansas City faces Minnesota
Posted Sep 14, 2018 07:41:38 AM.
Last Updated Sep 14, 2018 08:20:49 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Minnesota Twins (67-79, second in AL Central) vs. Kansas City Royals (50-96, fifth in AL Central)
Kansas City, Missouri; Friday, 8:15 p.m. Eastern
PROBABLE PITCHERS: Twins: Jose Berrios (11-11, 3.84 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 176 strikeouts) Royals: Jorge Lopez (2-4, 3.72 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 37 strikeouts)
BOTTOM LINE: Kansas City has Whit Merrifield to thank for a chunk of the team’s offensive production over the last week. He’s batting .267 with eight hits and a home run in that span. The Royals are 2-3 in Lopez’s starts this season. Kansas City has a collective .243 batting average this year, led by Merrifield’s .302 mark. The Twins are 32-31 against the rest of their division. Minnesota pitchers are averaging 8.6 strikeouts per nine innings, Trevor May paces the staff with a mark of 12.8. The Royals won 6-4 in Thursday’s meeting, Heath Fillmyer earned his third win of the year.
TOP PERFORMERS: Eddie Rosario has 85 runs and 76 RBIs for the Twins this season. Willians Astudillo has three home runs and six RBIs while slugging .607 over his past 10 games for Minnesota. Alex Gordon is second on the Royals with a .238 batting average, while Salvador Perez is third with a .235 average. Adalberto Mondesi has 13 hits and is batting .317 over his past 10 games for Kansas City.
LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 4-6, .232 batting average, 4.60 ERA, outscored by 11 runs. Royals: 5-5, .216 batting average, 3.67 ERA, outscored by three runs.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by HERO Sports, and data from Sportradar.
