Kansas City Royals at Los Angeles Angels

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
KC	0	1	2	0	2	0	2	0	0	7	10	0
LAA	0	0	4	0	1	1	0	0	0	6	10	1

Seth Lugo takes the ball for Kansas City looking to stop the bleeding, and he draws Grayson Rodriguez, who's still trying to prove the trade that brought him to Anaheim was worth the gamble. First pitch is set for 6:38 PM PT at Angel Stadium.

Show fees

FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Royals(49-73)

LLLLW

7

-1.5+163-100o13.5+614

Angels(48-74)

WWWLL

6

+1.5-167-100u13.5-669

Best BetRoyals -110

Pregame

Kansas City sits at even money here despite dropping 4 straight, and that price undersells the pitching matchup — Lugo's been throwing more strikes lately while Rodriguez is still fighting his command. Back the Royals to win outright off the arm advantage, not the name on the back of the jersey.

Salvador Perez left Wednesday's loss to the Dodgers after his throwing elbow started barking, got an injection afterward and said doctors told him it should feel better within about 24 hours — not enough to push him to the IL, but enough to put his availability tonight in question. Kansas City is already navigating a banged-up infield with Vinnie Pasquantino and Maikel Garcia both out on rehab assignments. On the other side, Rodriguez came over from Baltimore this year still working back from elbow surgery and a bout of dead arm, and while Angels manager Kurt Suzuki liked what he saw from him in a recent start, his last time out he walked 4 in just 4 innings and needed 83 pitches to get through it. That kind of shaky command is part of why the price on this one sits close to even despite the gap in season record.

Seth Lugo

(5-7)·4.71 ERA

Aug 8 vs Cubs

W

6.0IP

3ER

5K

1BB

90P

08/14 Lineup

Grayson Rodriguez

(4-5)·6.41 ERA

Aug 9 @ Marlins

L

4.0IP

3ER

8K

4BB

83P

08/14 Lineup

Los Angeles has actually found some life lately, riding a win over Texas in which rookie George Klassen picked up his first big league win and Mike Trout piled up 3 hits and 2 RBI. It's a small window, but it's the kind of jolt a team stuck well under .500 needs down the stretch. Kansas City, meanwhile, is running out of ways to spin a stretch that's included 3 straight losses to the Dodgers.

Kansas City Royals

(49-73)

Aug 13L@ Dodgers2-4

Aug 12L@ Dodgers4-5

Aug 11L@ Dodgers5-6

Aug 9Lvs Cubs2-10

Aug 8Wvs Cubs6-3

Los Angeles Angels

(48-74)

Aug 14Wvs Rangers7-0

Aug 13Wvs Rangers5-2

Aug 12Wvs Rangers3-2

Aug 11Lvs Rangers1-4

Aug 9L@ Marlins3-12

Neither club is playing for October. The Royals are stress-testing pitching depth after signing Tony Gonsolin fresh off elbow surgery elsewhere, watching how arms like Lugo hold up in the second half. The Angels are running a similar experiment with Rodriguez — he's a change-of-scenery bet, and every start either builds the case he's part of next year's rotation or reinforces the doubts. Games like this one, buried in August between two teams both well under .500, are where those evaluations actually happen.

Kansas City Royals

(14)

• Day-To-DaySalvador Perez (DH) — Perez was removed from Wednesday's game against the Dodgers due to a possible injury, Jaylon T. Thompson of The Kansas City Star reports.08/13
• 10-Day-ILVinnie Pasquantino (1B) — Pasquantino (wrist) went 1-for-5 at the plate Wednesday in his first rehab game with Triple-A Omaha.08/13
• 10-Day-ILMaikel Garcia (3B) — Garcia (hand) is expected to begin a minor-league rehab assignment with Double-A Northwest Arkansas on Wednesday.08/12
• 15-Day-ILTony Gonsolin (SP) — Gonsolin (elbow) signed a one-year contract with the Royals on Thursday.08/13
• 15-Day-ILBeck Way (RP) — Way (back) is scheduled to start throwing Wednesday, per MLB.com.08/05
• 60-Day-ILLuinder Avila (SP) — Manager Matt Quatraro said that Avila is scheduled to undergo Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Joel Goldberg of Bally Sports Kansas City reports.08/06
• 60-Day-ILNick Mears (RP) — Mears (shoulder) is scheduled to begin a mound progression next week, MLB.com reports.08/05
• 60-Day-ILCarlos Estevez (RP) — Estevez (shoulder) is scheduled to start a mound progression Friday, MLB.com reports.08/05
• 60-Day-ILStephen Kolek (SP) — Manager Matt Quatraro announced that Kolek is scheduled to undergo Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Joel Goldberg of Bally Sports Kansas City reports.08/04
• 60-Day-ILConnor Seabold (RP) — The Royals placed Seabold on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with a right lat strain.08/03
• 60-Day-ILCole Ragans (SP) — Ragans underwent UCL repair surgery on his left elbow Wednesday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.07/02
• 60-Day-ILJonathan India (2B) — no06/04
• 60-Day-ILJames McArthur (RP) — McArthur (elbow) underwent surgery Friday to help combat continued soreness and inflammation, MLB.com reports.05/25
• 60-Day-ILAlec Marsh (SP) — The Royals placed Marsh (shoulder) on the 60-day injured list Thursday.05/08

Los Angeles Angels

(9)

• Day-To-DayOswald Peraza (2B) — Peraza (hand) is set to take some swings prior to Thursday night's contest against the Rangers, Jack Janes of TheSportingTribune.com reports.08/14
• 10-Day-ILSebastian Rivero (C) — Rivero (hand) was returned from his rehab assignment Monday after suffering a setback, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.08/11
• 15-Day-ILSam Bachman (RP) — Bachman (forearm) played catch out to 60 feet Monday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.08/11
• 15-Day-ILShaun Anderson (RP) — The Angels placed Anderson on the 15-day injured list Monday due to right shoulder inflammation.08/10
• 60-Day-ILYusei Kikuchi (SP) — Kikuchi (shoulder) struck out seven and allowed four runs on six hits and one walk across 3.1 innings in a rehab start Sunday with Triple-A Salt Lake.08/10
• 60-Day-ILYoan Moncada (3B) — Moncada (knee) has been rehabbing at his home and hasn't started baseball activities, MLB.com reports.07/22
• 60-Day-ILJack Kochanowicz (SP) — Kochanowicz's Tommy John surgery on his right elbow was deemed "successful," per MLB.com.06/27
• 60-Day-ILRobert Stephenson (RP) — The Angels announced that Stephenson underwent ligament and flexor repair surgery on his right elbow Wednesday and is likely to miss the remainder of the season, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.05/08
• 60-Day-ILAnthony Rendon (3B) — The Angels placed Rendon (hip) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08

Cloudy skies and 70 degrees at Angel Stadium won't do either bullpen any favors, and with both starters carrying real questions, this has the look of a game that could get away from someone in a hurry.