Yankees at Royals
The New York Yankees have played one full game in the last five days and they showed some rust in a series-opening loss at Kansas City. The Yankees will try to find their form when the three-game set with the Royals continues Saturday night.
After two rainouts in Washington - sandwiched by a pair of days off - New York left eight runners on base and played some sloppy baseball in a 5-2 loss Friday to Kansas City, which made the most of its six hits. Whit Merrifield had three of those hits and stole three bases to spark the Royals, who scored a total of 13 runs in losing their previous five contests. Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius was 0-for-4 in Friday's loss and has one hit - a single - in 42 at-bats over a 10-game span to see his average fall to .248 from .333. Gregorius is hitless in six career at-bats against Danny Duffy, who gets the nod Saturday for the Royals opposite New York ace Luis Severino.
TV: 7:15 p.m. ET, MLB Network, YES (New York), FS Kansas City
PITCHING MATCHUP: Yankees RH Luis Severino (6-1, 2.14 ERA) vs. Royals LH Danny Duffy (1-5, 6.51)
Severino is 4-0 with a 1.54 ERA over his last six starts after limiting Oakland to a run in six innings of a victory on Sunday. He has 50 strikeouts against seven walks in that span while giving up 25 hits in 41 innings. The 24-year-old Dominican tossed eight scoreless innings in his only prior meeting with the Royals last year at home.
Duffy earned his first win of the year two turns ago but was unable to sustain any momentum, giving up nine runs over 3 1/3 innings of a loss at Cleveland on Sunday. It marked the sixth time in nine starts that he has failed to complete six innings. The 29-year-old is 3-2 with a 4.89 ERA in nine career appearances (seven starts) against the Yankees.
WALK-OFFS
1. Yankees OF/DH Giancarlo Stanton is 7-for-10 with a home run, a double and a walk over his last three games.
2. Royals IF Cheslor Cuthbert (back) missed the last three games and remains day-to-day.
3. Merrifield has hit safely in 11 straight games and boasts eight stolen bases in that stretch.