INDEPENDENT MLB ANALYTICSINDEPENDENT ANALYTICS
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FinalFinal lineupsAL West / AL Central

Athletics 3, Kansas City Royals 4

Final Score and Game Recap

Final score, pitching lines and standings context.

7:40 PM ET · Kauffman StadiumGame-day snapshot Aug 18, 10:30 PM ETFinal lineups lockedCurrent 2026 season stats — updated Oct 2, 5:00 AM ET
T-Score26
Athletics
64–98 · 4th AL West · T-Score 26
3
3–4
FINAL
Kansas City Royals
69–93 · 5th AL Central · T-Score 31
4
T-Score31
FINAL

Matchup at a glance

PitcherStat calculation
CategoryComparisonWhy
Starting pitcherEvenBoth starters enter with comparable season profiles; neither holds a meaningful statistical advantage.
Offense vs handAthleticsAthletics has produced the stronger offense against left-handed pitching.
LineupAthleticsAthletics's official lineup includes 6 right-handed bats against the opposing starter.
BullpenRoyalsKansas has allowed fewer runs from the bullpen on the season ERA.
Recent formRoyalsKansas has won 4 of its last 10 and owns the stronger recent run differential.

Starting pitchers

ATH
Brady Basso LHP
Brady Basso
Athletics
2026 season (MLB rank among qualified starters)
ERA
4.35
WHIP
1.40
K/9
7.84
BB/9
1.31
FIP
–
HR/9
0.87
OPS/R
–
IP
20.2
Last 5 starts
QUALITY
START %
0%
(0 of 5)
DAYS
REST
3
KC
Daniel Lynch IV LHP
Daniel Lynch IV
Kansas City Royals
2026 season (MLB rank among qualified starters)
ERA
2.88
107th
WHIP
1.02
53rd
K/9
7.20
213th
BB/9
2.52
69th
P-Score39i
FIP
–
HR/9
0.72
100th
OPS/R
–
IP
50.0
Last 5 starts
QUALITY
START %
0%
(0 of 5)
DAYS
REST
6
How the starters differ
·Lynch allows fewer baserunners, with a 1.02 WHIP compared with 1.40.
·Lynch enters with a 2.88 ERA compared with Basso's 4.35.
·Basso enters with a 4.42 road ERA; Lynch owns a 4.62 ERA at home.
·Basso is on 3 days of rest; Lynch is on 6.
Advanced starter metricsERA−, FIP, WAR, career vs opponent
MetricBassoIVNote
Career vs opponent6.75 ERA, 1 GS0.00 ERA, 1 GSCareer history against this opponent.

How the lineups match the starters' pitch mix

Pitch data coverage: partial. Usage and velocity only.

Basso arsenal
PitchUsageVelo
Four-seam44%92.6
Curveball18%77.5
Slider15%83.7
Cutter10%89.2
Sinker8%92.4
Changeup4%86.7
Sweeper0%81.8
IV arsenal
PitchUsageVelo
Sinker31%94.0
Changeup25%85.5
Slider19%87.3
Four-seam15%94.5
Knuckle Curve9%81.8

Team OPS vs opposing starter's hand

Athletics vs LHP (Daniel Lynch IV)
9th
in MLB
0.724OPS
.600.700.800.9001.000
Royals vs LHP (Brady Basso)
19th
in MLB
0.699OPS
.600.700.800.9001.000

Lineups

Final lineupsOrder from the stored snapshot; treat as unofficial until the card is filed.Full lineup page
AthleticsOfficial lineupvs LHP Daniel Lynch IV
#HitterPosH-ScoreOPSHRvs LHPVs IV (BvP)
1Henry BolteRCF63.76411.844No MLB historyNo history
2Zack GelofR3B69.79722.822No MLB historyNo history
3Jeff McNeilL2B46.6819.5940-for-1Very small sample
4Jonah HeimSC46.62813.8521-for-2Very small sample
5Tommy WhiteR1B31.6003.632No MLB historyNo history
6Lawrence ButlerLRF61.72017.6641-for-1Very small sample
7Max MuncyR3B51.6839.6780-for-1Very small sample
8Alika WilliamsRSS42.7354.833No MLB historyNo history
9Darell HernaizRSS28.5931.6360-for-1Very small sample
1Henry Bolte CF · R.277 / .764 · 11 HRvs hand .844 · No MLB history · No history63H-Score2Zack Gelof 3B · R.256 / .797 · 22 HRvs hand .822 · No MLB history · No history69H-Score3Jeff McNeil 2B · L.264 / .681 · 9 HRvs hand .594 · 0-for-1 · Very small sample46H-Score4Jonah Heim C · S.204 / .628 · 13 HRvs hand .852 · 1-for-2 · Very small sample46H-Score5Tommy White 1B · R.254 / .600 · 3 HRvs hand .632 · No MLB history · No history31H-Score6Lawrence Butler RF · L.237 / .720 · 17 HRvs hand .664 · 1-for-1 · Very small sample61H-Score7Max Muncy 3B · R.230 / .683 · 9 HRvs hand .678 · 0-for-1 · Very small sample51H-Score8Alika Williams SS · R.270 / .735 · 4 HRvs hand .833 · No MLB history · No history42H-Score9Darell Hernaiz SS · R.234 / .593 · 1 HRvs hand .636 · 0-for-1 · Very small sample28H-Score
Kansas City RoyalsOfficial lineupvs LHP Brady Basso
#HitterPosH-ScoreOPSHRvs LHPVs Basso (BvP)
1Nick LoftinR3B53.7108.722No MLB historyNo history
2Bobby Witt Jr.RSS78.80018.8190-for-2Very small sample
3Jac CaglianoneLRF75.83423.732No MLB historyNo history
4Maikel GarciaR3B55.7153.9121-for-2Very small sample
5Vinnie PasquantinoL1B69.76117.5480-for-1Very small sample
6Salvador PerezRDH56.65721.744No MLB historyNo history
7Michael MasseyL2B60.73513.8481-for-1Very small sample
8Carter JensenLC76.79027.6641-for-2Very small sample
9Kyle IsbelLCF36.5916.392No MLB historyNo history
1Nick Loftin 3B · R.240 / .710 · 8 HRvs hand .722 · No MLB history · No history53H-Score2Bobby Witt Jr. SS · R.281 / .800 · 18 HRvs hand .819 · 0-for-2 · Very small sample78H-Score3Jac Caglianone RF · L.289 / .834 · 23 HRvs hand .732 · No MLB history · No history75H-Score4Maikel Garcia 3B · R.268 / .715 · 3 HRvs hand .912 · 1-for-2 · Very small sample55H-Score5Vinnie Pasquantino 1B · L.249 / .761 · 17 HRvs hand .548 · 0-for-1 · Very small sample69H-Score6Salvador Perez DH · R.229 / .657 · 21 HRvs hand .744 · No MLB history · No history56H-Score7Michael Massey 2B · L.274 / .735 · 13 HRvs hand .848 · 1-for-1 · Very small sample60H-Score8Carter Jensen C · L.239 / .790 · 27 HRvs hand .664 · 1-for-2 · Very small sample76H-Score9Kyle Isbel CF · L.224 / .591 · 6 HRvs hand .392 · No MLB history · No history36H-Score

Team comparison

OffenseATHATH·KCKC
AVG.245 15th.248 8th
OPS.719 15th.718 16th
Home runs194 11th170 21st
Runs699 21st690 22nd
OBP.317 16th.316 17th
SLG.402 14th.402 12th
PitchingATHATH·KCKC
1stMLB rank30th
ERA5.51vs4.77
ATHKC
WHIP1.51vs1.41
ATHKC
K/98.5vs7.4
ATHKC
HR Allowed247vs210
ATHKC
BullpenATHATH·KCKC
1stMLB rank30th
Bullpen ERA5.54vs4.79
no league rank
Bullpen WHIP1.50vs1.42
no league rank
Saves39vs38
ATHKC
ResultsATHATH·KCKC
+5330th
Run differential
+16827th
64–98 Record69–93
4–6 Last 104–6
Last 10 games
Athletics (4–6)
L
W
L
W
L
L
L
W
W
L
Kansas City Royals (4–6)
W
W
L
W
L
L
L
L
W
L
2026 head-to-head
Season Series
4—2
6 Games Played

Frequently asked

Who is starting for the Athletics?+
Brady Basso (4.35 ERA, 0–0) is listed as the starter.
Who is starting for the Royals?+
Daniel Lynch IV (2.88 ERA, 4–4) is listed as the starter.
What time does the game start?+
7:40 PM ET at Kauffman Stadium.
Where is the game being played?+
Kauffman Stadium, home of the Kansas City Royals.
Are the lineups confirmed?+
Not as official league cards. The orders shown are the current projected or last-posted lineups.
How have the Athletics and Royals performed head-to-head?+
Season series: Royals 2–4 this season.
How do the starters compare on P-Score?+
P-Score is available for one starter only.