Minnesota Twins

Royals look to end 3-game losing streak against Twins

Published Sep. 20, 2019 3:24 a.m. ET

Kansas City Royals (56-98, fourth in the AL Central) vs. Minnesota Twins (94-59, first in the AL Central)

Minneapolis; Friday, 8 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Royals: Eric Skoglund (0-1, 8.36 ERA) Twins: Randy Dobnak (0-1, 2.12 ERA)

BOTTOM LINE: Kansas City enters the game as losers of their last three games.

The Twins are 43-24 against opponents from the AL Central. Minnesota's team on-base percentage of .336 is fourth in the MLB. Nelson Cruz leads the club with an OBP of .376.

The Royals are 29-41 against AL Central Division teams. Kansas City's lineup has 156 home runs this season, Jorge Soler leads them with 45 homers. The Twins won the last meeting 8-5. Lewis Thorpe notched his third victory and Cruz went 2-for-4 with two home runs and five RBIs for Minnesota. Jacob Barnes took his third loss for Kansas City.

TOP PERFORMERS: Cruz leads the Twins with 39 home runs and is batting .299. Eddie Rosario is 13-for-40 with four doubles, three home runs and seven RBIs over the last 10 games for Minnesota.

Soler leads the Royals with 76 extra base hits and is batting .254. Adalberto Mondesi is 10-for-39 with a double, a triple, two home runs and seven RBIs over the last 10 games for Kansas City.

LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 6-4, .264 batting average, 4.40 ERA, outscored opponents by three runs

Royals: 3-7, .243 batting average, 5.38 ERA, outscored by 20 runs

Twins Injuries: Sergio Romo: (knee), Sean Poppen: (elbow), Sam Dyson: (biceps), Byron Buxton: (shoulder), Ehire Adrianza: (oblique).

Royals Injuries: Trevor Oaks: (hip), Jakob Junis: (undisclosed), Kelvin Gutierrez: (toe), Salvador Perez: (elbow).