Pirates aim to end slide in matchup with the Royals

Pittsburgh Pirates (38-53, fifth in the NL Central) vs. Kansas City Royals (43-48, third in the AL Central)

Kansas City, Missouri; Monday, 7:40 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: Andrew Heaney (4-7, 4.16 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 71 strikeouts); Royals: Noah Cameron (2-4, 2.56 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 43 strikeouts)

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Royals -156, Pirates +129; over/under is 8 1/2 runs

BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates aim to stop their three-game skid with a win over the Kansas City Royals.

Kansas City has a 43-48 record overall and a 20-24 record in home games. The Royals have a 26-9 record in games when they did not give up a home run.

Pittsburgh has a 12-32 record in road games and a 38-53 record overall. The Pirates have the seventh-best team ERA in the majors at 3.62.

The matchup Monday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams.

TOP PERFORMERS: Bobby Witt Jr. has 12 home runs, 28 walks and 49 RBIs while hitting .292 for the Royals. Vinnie Pasquantino is 11 for 39 with five doubles, three home runs and 13 RBIs over the last 10 games.

Oneil Cruz has 11 doubles, a triple and 15 home runs while hitting .203 for the Pirates. Tommy Pham is 15 for 35 with two doubles and two home runs over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Royals: 5-5, .243 batting average, 4.03 ERA, outscored opponents by two runs

Pirates: 6-4, .245 batting average, 1.57 ERA, outscored opponents by 29 runs

INJURIES: Royals: Daniel Lynch: 15-Day IL (elbow), Cole Ragans: 15-Day IL (rotator cuff), Michael Massey: 10-Day IL (ankle), Hunter Harvey: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Alec Marsh: 60-Day IL (shoulder), James McArthur: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Pirates: Ryan Borucki: 15-Day IL (back), Endy Rodriguez: 60-Day IL (elbow), Colin Holderman: 15-Day IL (thumb), Enmanuel Valdez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Justin Lawrence: 60-Day IL (elbow), Tim Mayza: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Jared Jones: 60-Day IL (elbow), Johan Oviedo: 60-Day IL (elbow)

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.