RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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KANSAS CITY, MO - AUGUST 21: Vinnie Pasquantino #9 of the Kansas City Royals looks on during the game between the Detroit Tigers and the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on Friday, August 21, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Tanner Gatlin/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The Royals are already riding their longest winning streak of the season and look to make it even longer tonight. The team’s most consistent pitcher, Michael Wacha, will take the mound for the Royals. Wacha is tied for the AL lead in Quality Starts and is fourth overall. So he’s not just consistent, but he’s been pretty dang good.
Drew Anderson will start for the Tigers tonight. I have to be honest, I couldn’t remember ever seeing him pitch before, so I wondered if he was a rookie. It turns out, however, that he’s been pitching in the big leagues for nearly 10 years, since 2017, and is 32 years old. Whoops.
Anderson was a reliever for most of the year, but with the Tigers still dealing with myriad rotation injuries and then trading away their two best starters at the deadline, he was summoned to action. In three starts since rejoining the rotation, he hasn’t pitched deep into games, but he’s been effective with a 2.84 ERA. That comes with a measly 7.8% K-BB% and a 4.90 FIP. So Tigers fans probably don’t feel super comfortable with him on the mound, However, as the Royals have seen with Daniel Lynch IV and Randy Dobnak, those kinds of results can last a handful of starts, at least.
As you can see in the above graphic, Anderson is a five-pitch pitcher. He gets at least some chase or some whiff on every pitch; his changeup is regarded very favorably and has the results to match. That’s of particular interest to me because it comes in at only 5 average MPH slower than the four-seamer, and generally you want more difference in the two pitches. Wacha, in contrast, features 13 MPH in his average velocities – one of the reasons his changeup does so well.
Lineups
I’m not really sure why Tyler Tolbert is in there instead of John Rave, but at least some of us will be happy about it. Either way, it’s a lineup that goes at least six deep, even if at least one player is batting higher than he would in a competitive team’s lineup. Fingers crossed the Royals can get things done tonight.
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