With three weeks left in the 2024 Major League Baseball regular season, there are two key American League series that commence on Monday. The New York Yankees host the Kansas City Royals at Yankee Stadium, and the Boston Red Sox host the Baltimore Orioles in an American League East battle at Fenway Park.
Royals @ Yankees
The Royals are in second place in the American League Central with a record of 79 wins and 65 losses. Kansas City trails the division leading Cleveland Guardians by two and a half games. Kansas City also holds down the second wildcard spot in the American League. They lead the Seattle Mariners and Detroit Tigers by six games for a playoff spot.
The Royals are winners of four straight games. Over the weekend, they swept the Minnesota Twins.
The Yankees have the best record in the American League at 82 wins and 61 losses. They lead the Baltimore Orioles by half a game.
You could make the argument that the two best hitters in the American League are in this series. Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge of Linden, California leads the Majors with 51 home runs and 125 runs batted in, and is third in the Major Leagues with a .321 batting average. Meanwhile, Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. of Colleyville, Texas leads the Majors with a .336 batting average and 192 hits. There is one other batter in the series worth noting. That is Yankees outfielder Juan Soto of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, who is third in the American League with 38 home runs.
On the mound, the Royals are led by starting pitchers Seth Lugo of Shreveport, Louisiana, and Cole Ragans of Crawfordville, Florida. Lugo, who gets the start on Tuesday, is second in the American League in wins (15) and quality starts (20). Meanwhile, Ragans, who gets the start on Wednesday, is second in the American League with 204 strikeouts.
Orioles @ Red Sox
The Orioles are at 82 wins and 62 losses, and are in striking distance of the Yankees. The Red Sox are at 72 wins and 71 losses, and trail the Minnesota Twins by four games for an American League wildcard spot. Orioles rightfielder Anthony Santander of Margarita, Venezuela is second in the American League with 39 home runs, and Red Sox centerfielder Jarren Duran of Corona, California is third in the American League with 172 hits.
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