Rangers at Royals
The Kansas City Royals sit in last place in the American League Central and are not showing any sign that a turnaround might be in the works. The Royals will try to snap a six-game slide and win for just the second time in their last 14 contests when they host the Texas Rangers on Monday in the opener of a three-game series.
Kansas City had the misfortune of running into the defending champion Houston Astros over the weekend and were outscored 24-9 in the three-game series. The Royals pitching staff gave up at least seven runs in each of the last four games and leads the majors in runs allowed (398) while owning the worst team ERA (5.37). The Rangers are only slightly better on the mound and are fighting through their own rough stretch with losses in seven of the last nine games, but won the last two against Colorado at home. Texas will try to keep Kansas City in the loss column with ageless veteran Bartolo Colon while the Royals send fellow right-hander Ian Kennedy to the mound in search of a rare win.
TV: 8:15 p.m. ET, FS Southwest (Texas), FS Kansas City
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rangers RH Bartolo Colon (3-4, 4.94 ERA) vs. Royals RH Ian Kennedy (1-6, 5.13)
Colon was hammered last time out at the Los Angeles Dodgers, serving up eight runs on nine hits and a walk over 3 1/3 innings to suffer the loss. The 45-year-old was reached for at least six earned runs in three of his last five outings and has served up 19 home runs in 74 2/3 innings. Colon posted a quality start against the Royals on May 26, yielding three runs on five hits and a pair of walks across seven frames without factoring in the decision.
Kennedy posted his best start of the season on Tuesday against Cincinnati but could not get enough run support to earn the win and was left out of the decision despite scattering three hits across eight scoreless innings. The California native is winless in his last 12 starts but yielded just one run in his last two turns. Kennedy went up against Colon on May 26 and was also left out of the decision while allowing two runs on five hits and three walks over five frames.
WALK-OFFS
1. Royals 2B Whit Merrifield is day-to-day with a knee contusion after fouling a ball off his left knee on Sunday.
2. Texas SS Elvis Andrus (broken right elbow) is expected to come off the disabled list on Monday.
3. Kansas City SS Alcides Escobar is just 2-for-41 over his last 11 games.