Royals star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., whose hitting streak came to an end at 15 on Saturday night, will look to get a fresh start on Sunday afternoon after Kansas City wraps up a four-game series at Detroit. Witt went 0-for-4 with a sacrifice fly as Kansas City lost to the Tigers 6-5 in the 11th inning, ending the streak at five. Witt is still batting .345, which is tops the majors, and he’s a strong candidate for the American League Most Valuable Player award.
“He’s the face of baseball, or at least part of it, along with a lot of other good players. And I don’t say that lightly,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “He can hit, he can get on base, he’s got power, he’s got speed.” There’s a reason he’s a generational player. All of those qualities will be a problem for future Royals players.” The 24-year-old Witt has 20 homers and 79 RBIs this season, and is hitting well. The right-hander has not allowed more than three earned runs in his last 12 games.
In two of his last three games, Wacha (8-6, 3.58 ERA) has been lucky to win two of his competitive starts against the woeful Chicago White Sox. He pitched seven scoreless innings on July 19 and held the White Sox to two runs and five hits on Tuesday. Wacha has split two decisions against the Tigers this season. On April 28, Detroit won 4-1 with Wacha allowing nine hits and four runs in 5 2/3 innings. On May 20 against Kansas City, Wacha held the Tigers to six hits and two runs in seven innings. He is 2-1 with a 3.21 ERA in five career games against Detroit.
The Tigers had not named a starting pitcher as of Sunday morning, but left-hander Brant Huerter is expected to make his major league debut. Any points will be awarded during the game. Huerter has appeared in 19 games with Triple-A Toledo, including 18 starts. He went 2-4 with a 5.80 ERA, allowing 82 hits in 71 1/3 innings and striking out 70. Detroit snapped a five-game losing streak on Saturday behind a big performance from center fielder Parker Meadows, who came off the disabled list earlier in the day. He made a crucial sliding catch in the 10th inning and tripled to tie the game in the 11th. Meadows scored the winning run on a Wensel Perez single.
Meadows is sidelined with a hamstring strain and could miss Sunday’s game. “We’re excited to have him back,” Hinch said. “We’re probably going to give him a day off and slowly get him used to an everyday role. … It’s good to see him come in the door and ready to play.” Vinny Pescantino hit his fourth home run in four games for the Royals, and his first since acquiring Paul DeJong from the Chicago White Sox at the trade deadline. It was his 19th home run of the season and gave the Royals a temporary lead in the seventh inning. “He had just hit a splitter and I was able to hit a nice line drive,” DeJong said. “And, you know, it just took a little run down the left field line and went outside. It was really nice to be able to contribute like that in that moment.”
