Kansas City Royals at Colorado Rockies

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
KC	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	6	2
COL	1	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	—	3	5	0

Michael Wacha (5-7, 3.60 ERA) gets the ball for Kansas City looking to build on a strong outing against Detroit, while Tomoyuki Sugano (10-4, 4.69) takes the mound for Colorado coming off a win over Milwaukee despite exiting after 5.1 innings. First pitch is 6:40 PM MT at Coors Field.

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Total

Royals(46-64)

LWLWW

1

-1.5+134-104o11-115

Rockies(42-67)

LLLLW

3

+1.5-162+102u11-105

Best BetRoyals -113

Pregame

The Royals are the pick here even missing Witt and Pasquantino, because Wacha's been the more reliable arm lately and Colorado's bullpen is gassed after getting torched repeatedly over the last two weeks. The Rockies' home record keeps this from being a blowout lean, but Kansas City's floor is higher than the name recognition suggests.

The Royals arrive banged up in the middle of their order, with Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino both sidelined and Maikel Garcia's rehab setback keeping him out too. Wacha has been the steady piece of a shaky rotation, working 7 innings with just 2 earned runs allowed in his last start, and Kansas City has managed to win 3 of its last 5 despite all the absences.

Michael Wacha

(5-8)·3.46 ERA

Jul 25 @ Tigers

ND

7.0IP

2ER

3K

2BB

96P

07/31 Lineup

Tomoyuki Sugano

(12-5)·4.43 ERA

Jul 24 @ Brewers

W

5.1IP

2ER

5K

1BB

93P

07/31 Lineup

Colorado's been sliding the other direction, dropping 4 straight before this series and getting run out of the building by Milwaukee 11-2 along the way. Sugano's last start was a mixed bag — he got the win, but a shortened outing put extra strain on a Rockies bullpen that's already picking up the slack for injured arms like Jose Quintana and Chase Dollander.

This is the part of the calendar where two last-place clubs are mostly playing out the string, but Coors Field never stops being Coors Field. Thin air and a huge outfield have a way of turning modest lineups into scoreboard operators, and neither of these rotations is built to slam that door shut.

Kansas City Royals

(46-64)

Jul 30L@ Twins3-4

Jul 29W@ Twins4-0

Jul 28L@ Twins2-3

Jul 26W@ Tigers5-4

Jul 25W@ Tigers3-2

Colorado Rockies

(42-67)

Jul 29L@ Padres1-3

Jul 29L@ Padres7-8

Jul 26L@ Brewers2-11

Jul 25L@ Brewers5-8

Jul 24W@ Brewers5-2

Kansas City's lineup has had to lean on complementary pieces with Witt and Pasquantino out, but the pitching staff — Wacha in particular — has quietly kept them competitive. Colorado's issue isn't really injuries at the top of the order so much as a bullpen that keeps getting exposed in blowouts, which matters a lot at altitude where a shaky relief crew can turn a close game into a laugher fast.

Kansas City Royals

(14)

• 10-Day-ILMaikel Garcia (3B) — Garcia felt renewed pain in his left hand while playing in a rehab game at Double-A Northwest Arkansas on Tuesday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.07/29
• 10-Day-ILVinnie Pasquantino (1B) — Pasquantino (hand) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Twins.07/29
• 10-Day-ILBobby Witt Jr. (SS) — Witt (back) has begun ramping up his baseball activity, and how he responds over the next few days will determine whether he's activated from the injured list when first eligible Friday, per MLB.com.07/29
• 10-Day-ILKyle Isbel (CF) — Isbel (foot) went 1-for-2 with an RBI triple and a run scored with Triple-A Omaha on Tuesday.07/22
• 15-Day-ILBeck Way (RP) — The Royals placed Way on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with back spasms.07/28
• 15-Day-ILConnor Seabold (RP) — The Royals placed Seabold on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with a right lat strain.07/01
• 60-Day-ILNick Mears (RP) — Mears (shoulder/lat) began throwing from 60 feet Monday, MLB.com reports.07/29
• 60-Day-ILKris Bubic (SP) — Bubic (elbow/shoulder) began a throwing progression Friday with 30 throws from 45-to-60 feet, MLB.com reports.07/25
• 60-Day-ILStephen Kolek (SP) — The Royals reinstated Kolek (personal) from the family medical leave list and placed on the 15-day injured list Sunday due to a right flexor strain.07/22
• 60-Day-ILCarlos Estevez (RP) — Estevez (shoulder) started a throwing program Friday, per MLB.com.07/18
• 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

Colorado Rockies

(12)

• Day-To-DayKyle Karros (3B) — Karros (biceps) remains out of the lineup for Wednesday's contest in San Diego.07/29
• 10-Day-ILBrenton Doyle (CF) — Doyle (groin/oblique) has been cleared to resume a rehab assignment, Patrick Lyons of JustBaseball.com reports.07/22
• 15-Day-ILJeff Criswell (RP) — The Rockies recalled Criswell from Triple-A Albuquerque on Saturday.07/18
• 15-Day-ILBlas Castano (RP) — Castano (pectoral) is expected to begin a throwing program next week, MLB.com reports.07/03
• 15-Day-ILJaden Hill (RP) — Hill (shoulder) resumed playing catch Wednesday, MLB.com reports.07/02
• 60-Day-ILJose Quintana (SP) — Quintana (elbow) is scheduled to play catch Monday, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.07/05
• 60-Day-ILChase Dollander (SP) — Dollander underwent an internal brace procedure on his right elbow Monday, Kevin Henry of The Denver Gazette reports.06/23
• 60-Day-ILWelinton Herrera (RP) — Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer announced Monday that Herrera (elbow) has been diagnosed with a torn UCL and will miss the remainder of the season, Jack Janes of MLB.com reports.06/02
• 60-Day-ILMcCade Brown (SP) — Brown (shoulder) had been scheduled to throw a live bullpen session this weekend, MLB.com reports.06/01
• 60-Day-ILRJ Petit (RP) — The Rockies transferred Petit (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Thursday, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.05/08
• 60-Day-ILPierson Ohl (RP) — The Rockies placed Ohl (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.05/08
• 60-Day-ILKris Bryant (DH) — Bryant said Tuesday that the ongoing pain in his back continues to prevent him from participating in baseball activities, though he's still consulting with doctors and trainers for potential rehab options, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.05/08

Neither club is playing for much beyond pride and roster evaluation at this point, but that's exactly the kind of setup where a team with a healthier pitching plan can steal a series. Kansas City's got that edge on paper Friday, even with the middle of its order thinned out.