The final week of August of the 2024 Major League Baseball regular season is underway. Here are two key series that will take place.
Kansas City Royals @ Cleveland Guardians
The Royals and Guardians are the top two teams in the American League Central. The Guardians are the division leaders with a record 75 wins and 55 losses. Meanwhile, the Royals are tied for second place in the American League Central with the Minnesota Twins. The Royals and Twins both have records of 72 wins and 58 losses.
From an offensive perspective, the Royals are led offensively by shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. of Colleyville, Texas and first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino of Richmond, Virginia. Witt Jr. leads the Major Leagues with a .347 batting average and 180 hits. Pasquantino is third in the Major Leagues with 96 runs batted in. The Guardians are led by third baseman Jose Ramirez of Bani, Dominican Republic. Ramirez is second in the Major Leagues with 103 runs batted in, and second in the American League with 32 stolen bases.
From a pitching perspective, Royals starting pitcher Cole Ragans of Crawfordville, Florida is second in the American League with 183 strikeouts. Ragans has the start Monday for Kansas City. Meanwhile, Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase of Rio San Juan, Dominican Republic is second in the Majors with 38 saves.
Houston Astros @ Philadelphia Phillies
The Astros lead the American League West with a record of 70 wins and 60 losses. They lead the Seattle Mariners by four and a half games. The Phillies are at 76 wins and 54 losses. They lead the Atlanta Braves by six games.
The Astros are led offensively by designated hitter Yordan Alvarez of Las Tunas, Cuba and second baseman Jose Altuve of Puerto Cabello, Venezuela. Alvarez is fourth in the Major Leagues with a .306 batting average and second baseman Jose Altuve of Puerto Cabello, Venezuela is fourth in the American League with 154 hits.
Zack Wheeler of Smyrna, Georgia gets the start Monday for the Phillies. He is second in the National League with a 2.73 earned run average and leads the National League with 19 quality starts.
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