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The Royals’ penultimate series of the 2017 season sees them playing host to the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers’ season is well past the point of having gone to pot. While the Royals’ campaign has hardly gone according to plan, the Tigers are challenging for the worst record in baseball after a July firesale left them bereft of any of their moveable talent.
Game times and pitching matchups are as follows:
- Tuesday, September 26, 2017, 7:15 PM CDT - Aníbal Sánchez versus Jason Vargas (L)
- Wednesday, September 27, 2017, 7:15 PM CDT - Jordan Zimmermann versus Jason Hammel
- Thursday, September 28, 2017, 7:15 PM CDT - Daniel Norris (L) versus Danny Duffy (L)
Tigers at Royals pitching matchups
| Pitcher | G | IP | K | K% | BB | BB% | ERA | FIP | xFIP | SIERA | fWAR | rWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitcher | G | IP | K | K% | BB | BB% | ERA | FIP | xFIP | SIERA | fWAR | rWAR |
| Aníbal Sánchez | 26 | 94.1 | 92 | 21.3 | 26 | 6.0 | 6.68 | 5.74 | 4.54 | 4.19 | 0.0 | -1.0 |
| Jason Vargas (L) | 30 | 169.2 | 127 | 17.8 | 53 | 7.4 | 4.03 | 4.59 | 4.94 | 4.83 | 1.7 | 4.0 |
| Jordan Zimmermann | 28 | 154.0 | 100 | 14.5 | 43 | 6.2 | 6.19 | 5.27 | 5.43 | 5.22 | 0.9 | 0.1 |
| Jason Hammel | 31 | 174.1 | 139 | 17.9 | 46 | 5.9 | 5.32 | 4.44 | 4.98 | 4.67 | 1.9 | 1.3 |
| Daniel Norris (L) | 21 | 96.2 | 85 | 19.1 | 44 | 9.9 | 5.59 | 4.46 | 5.08 | 4.93 | 1.1 | 0.3 |
| Danny Duffy (L) | 23 | 142.0 | 126 | 21.4 | 38 | 6.5 | 3.68 | 3.45 | 4.36 | 4.27 | 3.3 | 3.5 |
The Royals will face the trio of Aníbal Sánchez, Jordan Zimmermann, and Daniel Norris. The first two are classic cases of the hazards of doling out tens of millions to free agent starting pitching, both the deadest of dead weight. A look at Sánchez’s peripherals suggest he may not be peak Kyle Davies—that he might be more like good Mark Redman. Zimmermann? Well, it’s hard to reconcile a 5.27 FIP over 154 innings with being nearly a win above replacement, but that’s the run environment in which we currently live. Daniel Norris? Well, the walks are and always have been a problem. His K-rate is down this year as he has struggled through more injuries, though many of his issues with run prevention can be tied to the defense behind him that has enabled opposing offenses to own a .353 BABIP against Norris.
Detroit Tigers position players
| Player | Pos | PA | HR | R | RBI | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG | wOBA | wRC+ | fWAR | rWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Pos | PA | HR | R | RBI | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG | wOBA | wRC+ | fWAR | rWAR |
| Ian Kinsler | 2B | 598 | 22 | 88 | 51 | 14 | .236 | .313 | .416 | .313 | 92 | 2.4 | 2.2 |
| Jose Iglesias | SS | 475 | 6 | 56 | 54 | 7 | .263 | .294 | .379 | .290 | 76 | 2.0 | 1.6 |
| Nick Castellanos | RF | 641 | 25 | 71 | 96 | 4 | .270 | .318 | .488 | .339 | 109 | 1.9 | 0.5 |
| Mikie Mahtook | LF/CF | 379 | 12 | 50 | 38 | 6 | .276 | .330 | .457 | .335 | 107 | 1.6 | 0.6 |
| James McCann | C | 371 | 13 | 39 | 48 | 1 | .255 | .322 | .423 | .321 | 97 | 1.5 | 1.4 |
| Jeimer Candelario (S) | 3B | 88 | 2 | 15 | 9 | 0 | .355 | .443 | .526 | .417 | 162 | 1.0 | 0.5 |
| Alex Presley (L) | OF | 239 | 2 | 25 | 17 | 5 | .317 | .357 | .407 | .333 | 105 | 0.6 | 0.1 |
| John Hicks | C/DH | 180 | 6 | 25 | 22 | 1 | .273 | .328 | .455 | .334 | 106 | 0.4 | 0.5 |
| Efren Navarro (L) | 1B | 50 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 0 | .233 | .340 | .442 | .330 | 103 | 0.1 | 0.3 |
| Bryan Holaday | C | 19 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .263 | .263 | .316 | .249 | 48 | 0.0 | -0.1 |
| Miguel Cabrera | 1B/DH | 529 | 16 | 50 | 60 | 0 | .249 | .329 | .399 | .312 | 91 | -0.1 | -0.8 |
| Tyler Collins (L) | OF | 169 | 5 | 18 | 14 | 0 | .193 | .278 | .333 | .269 | 62 | -0.2 | 0.1 |
| Dixon Machado | IF | 162 | 1 | 16 | 11 | 1 | .275 | .313 | .342 | .286 | 73 | -0.3 | -0.6 |
| Andrew Romine (S) | Util | 328 | 4 | 44 | 25 | 5 | .230 | .285 | .342 | .273 | 64 | -0.4 | -1.2 |
| JaCoby Jones | CF | 137 | 3 | 11 | 12 | 4 | .159 | .226 | .270 | .221 | 29 | -0.7 | 0.0 |
In the second half (a rough approximation of the true-talent level of this current incarnation of the Tigers), Detroit has managed a .266/.324/.434 triple-slash with a .324 wOBA and a 99 wRC+, the wOBA and wRC+ being identical to the Royals’ marks over that time. They’re arguably decent, though hardly world-beaters. Miguel Cabrera is traveling with the team, but he is suffering through two herniated discs with the treatment he is to receive shortly determining whether he’ll play again this season.
Poll
How will the Royals fare against the Tigers?
This poll is closed
-
40%
Royals sweep
(31 votes) -
36%
Royals take two of three
(28 votes) -
11%
Tigers take two of three
(9 votes) -
11%
Tigers sweep
(9 votes)
All stats courtesy of FanGraphs and Baseball Reference through action on Monday, September 25.
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