Alvarez leads Astros against the Royals after 4-hit game
Houston Astros (4-8, fourth in the AL West) vs. Kansas City Royals (7-4, third in the AL Central)
Kansas City, Missouri; Wednesday, 7:40 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Astros: Hunter Brown (0-1, 6.43 ERA, 2.57 WHIP, eight strikeouts); Royals: Seth Lugo (1-0, 0.71 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, seven strikeouts)
: Astros -122, Royals +102; over/under is 9 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Houston Astros play the Kansas City Royals after Yordan Alvarez's four-hit game on Tuesday.
Kansas City is 7-4 overall and 6-2 in home games. The Royals have a 3-1 record in games when they hit two or more home runs.
Houston is 4-8 overall and 2/3 on the road. The Astros have the 10th-best team on-base percentage in the majors at .328.
Wednesday's game is the second time these teams meet this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Maikel Garcia leads Kansas City with three home runs while slugging .511. MJ Melendez is 11-for-33 with three home runs and eight RBI over the last 10 games.
Alvarez has a .347 batting average to lead the Astros, and has three doubles and four home runs. Jose Altuve is 13-for-38 with three home runs and three RBI over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Royals: 7-3, .252 batting average, 2.42 ERA, outscored opponents by 23 runs
Astros: 4-6, .261 batting average, 3.58 ERA, outscored opponents by seven runs
INJURIES: Royals: Josh Taylor: 60-Day IL (biceps), Jake Brentz: 15-Day IL (hamstring), Michael Massey: 10-Day IL (back), Carlos Hernandez: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Kris Bubic: 60-Day IL (elbow), Kyle Wright: 60-Day IL (shoulder)
Astros: Oliver Ortega: 60-Day IL (elbow), Framber Valdez: 15-Day IL (elbow), Bennett Sousa: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Penn Murfee: 60-Day IL (elbow), Luis Garcia: 60-Day IL (elbow), Lance McCullers Jr.: 60-Day IL (elbow), Shawn Dubin: 15-Day IL (forearm), Jose Urquidy: 15-Day IL (forearm), Justin Verlander: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Kendall Graveman: 60-Day IL (elbow)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
