Houston @ Kansas City preview
Kauffman Stadium
Last Meeting ( Jun 16, 2010 ) Houston 4, Kansas City 2
The Kansas City Royals found out Wednesday that they will be hosting the 2012 All-Star Game.
The way David DeJesus is playing, the Royals outfielder won't have to wait two years to see the Midsummer Classic up close.
The red-hot DeJesus and the Royals will look to take the series from the Houston Astros when the teams meet in the rubber game Thursday at Kauffman Stadium.
The Astros rode a strong pitching performance from Roy Oswalt to a 4-2 win over Kansas City on Wednesday night, but no one could blame DeJesus for the listless offensive performance by the Royals.
DeJesus went 4-for-4 Wednesday, giving him seven hits in the series and 10 hits in his last 13 at-bats. It was his eighth multi-hit game in June and capped a remarkable one-month run for the 30-year-old outfielder.
From May 16 to June 16, DeJesus hit safely in 25 of 27 games. He was 45-for-106 (.425) during that torrid stretch, boosting his batting average 72 points – from .257 to its current .329.
And this isn’t a case of a good hitter simply padding his stats for a lowly team. Kansas City went 14-13 during that stretch – All Star-caliber numbers for a squad that was 11 games below .500 when DeJesus started his tear.
The Royals might need to squeeze another multiple-hit game out of DeJesus given the uncertainty of Thursday's starter.
Luke Hochevar, who was scheduled to get the start, was placed on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday with a strained right elbow. That injury necessitated the promotion of Anthony Lerew, who will be making just his sixth career major league start and is seeking his first victory.
The 27-year-old right-hander will also be working on three days’ rest, having gone seven innings for Triple-A Omaha on Sunday. Lerew was 5-3 with a 2.84 ERA in ERA in 14 appearances – 11 starts – at Omaha.
He was a late-season call-up a year ago and made two starts for the Royals, losing one and getting a no-decision in the other.
Brett Myers (4-4) will oppose Lerew. Despite his record, Myers has been solid all season, pitching to a 3.18 ERA and working at least six innings in each of his 13 starts.
He absorbed a tough loss last time out against the New York Yankees, allowing four runs on five hits in seven innings. Three of those runs came in the first inning.
While Houston’s offense has been spotty as always, Jason Michaels has provided an unexpected spark in the series.
Michaels had a two-run double and three RBIs in Wednesday’s win and homered and drove in two runs in the series-opening 15-7 loss.