Detroit @ Kansas City preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 11, 2015 ) Detroit 1, Kansas City 6

The Kansas City Royals’ dominance at home this season isn’t only making a mockery of the American League Central, but also helping the club reach heights it hasn’t seen in years. The Royals eye their first series sweep of the Detroit Tigers since Aug. 28-30, 2012, on Wednesday when the division rivals conclude their three-game set.

Kansas City rolled to a seventh straight victory at Kauffman Stadium with Tuesday’s 6-1 triumph over four-time defending AL Central champion Detroit, establishing the team’s longest home winning streak since the 2003 Royals opened 11-0 in familiar surroundings. The win also extended Kansas City’s lead in the division over second-place Minnesota to 12 games – twice the margin of the next-closest division leader – while pushing the club’s record to 24 games over .500 (68-44) for the first time since Sept. 27, 1989. The Tigers mercifully ended a season-worst 17-inning scoreless drought on a seventh-inning sacrifice fly in Tuesday’s loss, but that tally is the only they have managed in this series. Detroit has totaled eight hits during this stay in Kansas City, half of which have come off the bat of rookie first baseman Jefry Marte.
TV: 8:10 p.m. ET, FSN Detroit, FSN Kansas City

PITCHING MATCHUP: Tigers LH Daniel Norris (2-2, 4.24 ERA) vs. Royals RH Edinson Volquez (11-6, 3.11)
Norris was unable to follow up his spectacular Detroit debut at Baltimore on Aug. 2, taking the loss Friday against Boston after surrendering five runs and nine hits in 3 1/3 frames. The 22-year-old rookie, who was the headliner of the three players the Tigers received in the David Price trade on July 30, endured a 39-pitch first inning against the Red Sox and left after throwing 52 of his 83 pitches for strikes. Norris is 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA in four away starts heading into his first meeting with the Royals.
Volquez remained sharp at home in Friday’s 3-2 win over the Chicago White Sox, yielding a run on four hits over seven innings to improve to 7-2 with a 2.60 ERA in 12 turns at Kauffman Stadium in 2015. The 32-year-old Dominican has permitted exactly one earned run in each of his last four home outings and allowed two earned runs or fewer in six of his last seven trips to the mound overall. Volquez lost his only start against Detroit this season on May 2 – giving up two runs in six frames – to fall to 1-3 with a 4.98 ERA all-time versus the Tigers.

WALK-OFFS
1. Kansas City 1B Eric Hosmer is batting .402 with 19 RBIs in 25 games since the All-Star break, going 8-for-18 in five contests against the Tigers.
2. Tigers 1B Miguel Cabrera ran the bases, participated in batting practice and took grounders before the game on Tuesday. The two-time AL MVP, out since July 3 with a strained left calf, appears on track to return this weekend in Houston.
3. After going 1-for-14 in last week’s series loss at Detroit, Royals CF Lorenzo Cain is 6-for-8 with a homer, two doubles and three RBIs through two games of this set.

PREDICTION: Royals 5, Tigers 2