Royals at Rangers
The Kansas City Royals look to extend their season-high winning streak to four games when they visit the Texas Rangers on Friday for the second contest of their four-game series. Kansas City rolled to an 8-2 victory in Thursday's opener and has outscored its opponents 18-5 during its season-best stretch.
Salvador Perez matched his season high by driving in four runs in the series-opening win and is enjoying a solid month with seven homers and 23 RBIs. The five-time All-Star didn't make his season debut until April 24 after tearing the medial collateral ligament in his left knee in late March while carrying a suitcase up the stairs at his home. Texas was limited to five hits in the opener after it slugged seven homers and scored 23 runs while taking two of three from the New York Yankees. The Rangers continue to struggle at home with a substandard 9-18 record.
TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, FS Kansas City, FS Southwest (Texas)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Royals LH Eric Skoglund (1-4, 6.15 ERA) vs. Rangers LH Mike Minor (3-3, 5.59)
Skoglund has dropped both of his last two starts and is winless in four outings. The 25-year-old was torched for six runs and eight hits in five innings of a loss to New York in his last turn. Skoglund has struggled on the road in six major-league appearances (five starts), going 0-2 with a 9.82 ERA and 2.05 WHIP while allowing opponents to bat .548.
Minor is 0-2 with an 8.22 ERA over his last three starts and has served up five homers in 15 1/3 innings during that stretch. The 30-year-old won three straight decisions before falling into the current rut and gave up just three blasts over his first six turns. Minor is 0-1 with a 3.00 ERA in two career starts against Kansas City, a team for which he made 65 relief appearances last season while posting a career-best 2.55 ERA.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Rangers optioned LHP Brandon Mann to Triple-A Round Rock and recalled RHP Austin Bibens-Dirkx, who started Thursday and suffered the loss.
2. Kansas City LF Alex Gordon (hip/neck) was a late scratch Thursday, one day after making a spectacular diving catch against St. Louis.
3. Texas OF Ryan Rua was hitless in four at-bats in the opener and is 0-for-20 in his last nine contests.