Oakland @ Kansas City preview
Kauffman Stadium
Last Meeting ( May 17, 2024 ) Oakland 2, Kansas City 6
This weekend, the Kansas City Royals are commemorating the 10th anniversary of the team that propelled the franchise to its first pennant in 29 years.
Many former members of the 2014 Royals watched from a suite in Kauffman Stadium on Friday night as Kansas City posted a 6-2 win over the visiting Oakland Athletics to open a three-game series. They also watched Salvador Perez, their former teammate, build on what is morphing into a career year at the plate.
Perez carries the majors' sixth-highest batting average into play on Saturday evening as the Royals look to secure a series win against Oakland.
A cornerstone for Kansas City during its stirring run to the World Series in 2014, Perez is batting .335 this season, his 13th in the majors. His career-best hitting campaign came in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, when he batted .333 in 37 games.
Perez went 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI in Friday's win over Oakland as he continues to defy how well a 34-year-old is expected to hit at this stage of his career.
"He's not just hanging on," said Royals manager Matt Quatraro of Perez, who turned 34 on May 10. " ... He's a premier player in the league."
Perez's 53 hits are tied for 10th-best in the majors, while his .960 OPS ranks seventh. His eight home runs and 34 RBIs lead Kansas City, which is 27-19.
Last year's Royals didn't win their 27th game until July 16 amid a 56-106 season.
"These guys have done a really good job of making that clear, that last year doesn't make any difference," Quatraro said. " ... (This year) is more fun, for sure. But we always want to keep pushing. We're not satisfied with where we are right now."
Kansas City is at least currently better off than the Athletics, who have lost 11 of their last 13 games.
Oakland has not scored more than four runs in any contest amid its current season-long, six-game skid.
"We just need to continue to grind at-bats out and find some offense," said Athletics manager Mark Kotsay after Friday's loss, which dropped Oakland to 19-28 two weeks after it was 17-17.
The Athletics are batting a majors-worst .216 and have struck out 447 times this season, second-most in the majors.
Oakland managed four hits on Friday night, two of which came after Royals starter Cole Ragans departed after seven scoreless innings.
Saturday's matchup is even more foreboding for the Athletics' ailing offense, as Kansas City will deploy American League ERA leader Seth Lugo (6-1, 1.66).
Lugo has not allowed over four runs in a start this season and has pitched at least six innings in all but one of his nine outings. He racked up a career-high 12 strikeouts and stymied the Los Angeles Angels to one run over eight innings in the Royals' 4-2 road win last Sunday.
Lugo is 1-0 with a 7.71 ERA in two career appearances (one start) against Oakland, which will start fellow 34-year-old right-hander Ross Stripling (1-7, 4.98) on Saturday.
Stripling has lost each of his two most recent outings this season after earning his lone win on May 1, surrendering a total of 14 runs (seven earned) on 14 hits over 6 2/3 innings.
He allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits in five frames in the Athletics' 9-2 loss at the Houston Astros on Monday.
Stripling has faced Kansas City four times in his career - twice as a starter - and is 3-0 with a 4.15 ERA.
--Field Level Media