Royals bring road losing streak into matchup against the Rays

Updated Aug. 18, 2022 3:01 a.m. ET

Associated Press

Kansas City Royals (48-71, fourth in the AL Central) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (62-54, second in the AL East)

St. Petersburg, Florida; Thursday, 7:10 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Royals: Brad Keller (0-0); Rays: TBD

BOTTOM LINE: The Kansas City Royals will attempt to break their five-game road skid in a matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Tampa Bay has a 35-22 record in home games and a 62-54 record overall. The Rays have the 10th-ranked team on-base percentage in the AL at .306.

Kansas City has a 48-71 record overall and a 19-37 record on the road. The Royals have a 29-14 record in games when they scored at least five runs.

The matchup Thursday is the fourth time these teams square off this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Yandy Diaz has a .273 batting average to rank seventh on the Rays, and has 24 doubles and six home runs. Francisco Mejia is 9-for-23 with four RBI over the past 10 games.

Bobby Witt Jr. has 19 doubles, five triples and 15 home runs for the Royals. Vinnie Pasquantino is 15-for-32 with a double and five home runs over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Rays: 5-5, .212 batting average, 3.78 ERA, outscored opponents by three runs

Royals: 4-6, .239 batting average, 4.24 ERA, outscored by 18 runs

INJURIES: Rays: Matt Wisler: 15-Day IL (neck), Shane Baz: 60-Day IL (elbow), Kevin Kiermaier: 60-Day IL (hip), Mike Zunino: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Josh Fleming: 15-Day IL (oblique), Wander Franco: 10-Day IL (wrist), J.P. Feyereisen: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Manuel Margot: 60-Day IL (knee), Andrew Kittredge: 60-Day IL (elbow), JT Chargois: 60-Day IL (oblique), Brendan McKay: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Tyler Glasnow: 60-Day IL (elbow), Nick Anderson: 60-Day IL (elbow), Yonny Chirinos: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Royals: Taylor Clarke: 15-Day IL (oblique), Edward Olivares: 60-Day IL (quadricep), Angel Zerpa: 60-Day IL (knee), Jake Brentz: 60-Day IL (flexor), Adalberto Mondesi: 60-Day IL (knee), Tyler Zuber: 60-Day IL (shoulder)

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