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FinalFinal lineupsAL Central

Kansas City Royals 5, Detroit Tigers 4

Final Score and Game Recap

Final score, pitching lines and standings context.

1:40 PM ET · Comerica ParkGame-day snapshot Jul 26, 2:45 PM ETFinal lineups lockedCurrent 2026 season stats — updated Oct 24, 5:00 AM ET
T-Score27
Kansas City Royals
69–93 · 5th AL Central · T-Score 27
5
5–4
FINAL
Detroit Tigers
76–86 · 4th AL Central · T-Score 45
4
T-Score45
FINAL

Matchup at a glance

PitcherStat calculation
CategoryComparisonWhy
Starting pitcherTigersDetroit has the stronger starting-pitcher profile: Valdez leads in P-Score, WHIP and BB/9.
Offense vs handTigersDetroit has produced the stronger offense against right-handed pitching.
LineupTigersThe confirmed Detroit order includes 6 hitters with an OPS above .750 against right-handed pitching.
BullpenTigersDetroit has allowed fewer runs from the bullpen on the season ERA.
Recent formTigersDetroit has won 6 of its last 10 and owns the stronger recent run differential.

Starting pitchers

KC
Luinder Avila RHP
Luinder Avila
Kansas City Royals
2026 season (MLB rank among qualified starters)
ERA
4.86
191st
WHIP
1.56
212th
K/9
8.14
127th
BB/9
5.00
216th
P-Score38i
FIP
–
HR/9
0.86
47th
OPS/R
–
IP
63.0
Last 5 starts
ERA
3.91
QUALITY
START %
20%
(1 of 5)
DAYS
REST
5
DET
Framber Valdez LHP
Framber Valdez
Detroit Tigers
2026 season (MLB rank among qualified starters)
ERA
4.57
107th
WHIP
1.38
140th
K/9
7.31
170th
BB/9
3.16
138th
P-Score55i
FIP
–
HR/9
0.91
35th
OPS/R
–
IP
108.1
Last 5 starts
ERA
3.30
QUALITY
START %
40%
(2 of 5)
DAYS
REST
5
How the starters differ
·Valdez allows fewer baserunners, with a 1.38 WHIP compared with 1.56.
·Valdez has produced a quality start in 40% of outings versus 20%.
·Avila enters with a 4.30 road ERA; Valdez owns a 4.00 ERA at home.
·Both pitchers work on a normal five days of rest.

How the lineups match the starters' pitch mix

Pitch data coverage: partial. Usage and velocity only.

Avila arsenal
PitchUsageVelo
Sinker27%96.4
Four-seam26%96.1
Slider22%88.1
Curveball15%83.0
Changeup10%89.5
Valdez arsenal
PitchUsageVelo
Sinker44%93.8
Curveball29%78.4
Changeup18%89.1
Slider4%85.7
Four-seam4%94.8
Cutter0%93.2

Team OPS vs opposing starter's hand

Royals vs LHP (Framber Valdez)
19th
in MLB
0.699OPS
.600.700.800.9001.000
Tigers vs RHP (Luinder Avila)
14th
in MLB
0.723OPS
.600.700.800.9001.000

Lineups

Final lineupsOrder from the stored snapshot; treat as unofficial until the card is filed.Full lineup page
Kansas City RoyalsOfficial lineupvs LHP Framber Valdez
#HitterPosH-ScoreOPSHRvs LHPVs Valdez (BvP)
1Lane ThomasRLF52.70111.804No MLB historyNo history
2Nick LoftinR3B51.7108.722No MLB historyNo history
3Salvador PerezRDH53.65721.744No MLB historyNo history
4Jac CaglianoneLRF72.83423.732No MLB historyNo history
5Starling MarteRRF28.6122.627No MLB historyNo history
6Isaac CollinsSLF49.6416.594No MLB historyNo history
7Tyler TolbertRSS41.7393.716No MLB historyNo history
8Luke MaileRC—.5021.574No MLB historyNo history
9Andrew VelazquezSSS—.1340.000No MLB historyNo history
1Lane Thomas LF · R.224 / .701 · 11 HRvs hand .804 · No MLB history · No history52H-Score2Nick Loftin 3B · R.240 / .710 · 8 HRvs hand .722 · No MLB history · No history51H-Score3Salvador Perez DH · R.229 / .657 · 21 HRvs hand .744 · No MLB history · No history53H-Score4Jac Caglianone RF · L.289 / .834 · 23 HRvs hand .732 · No MLB history · No history72H-Score5Starling Marte RF · R.242 / .612 · 2 HRvs hand .627 · No MLB history · No history28H-Score6Isaac Collins LF · S.213 / .641 · 6 HRvs hand .594 · No MLB history · No history49H-Score7Tyler Tolbert SS · R.285 / .739 · 3 HRvs hand .716 · No MLB history · No history41H-Score8Luke Maile C · R.159 / .502 · 1 HRvs hand .574 · No MLB history · No history—H-Score9Andrew Velazquez SS · S.067 / .134 · 0 HRvs hand .000 · No MLB history · No history—H-Score
Detroit TigersOfficial lineupvs RHP Luinder Avila
#HitterPosH-ScoreOPSHRvs RHPVs Avila (BvP)
1Colt KeithL3B56.72810.757No MLB historyNo history
2Kevin McGonigleLSS71.80618.868No MLB historyNo history
3Gleyber TorresR2B51.7278.702No MLB historyNo history
4Riley GreeneLLF75.84421.860No MLB historyNo history
5Dillon DinglerRC66.74827.820No MLB historyNo history
6Kerry CarpenterLRF42.69213.723No MLB historyNo history
7Spencer TorkelsonR1B66.76626.786No MLB historyNo history
8James OutmanLCF26.5535.436No MLB historyNo history
9Hao-Yu LeeR2B56.74610.753No MLB historyNo history
1Colt Keith 3B · L.258 / .728 · 10 HRvs hand .757 · No MLB history · No history56H-Score2Kevin McGonigle SS · L.278 / .806 · 18 HRvs hand .868 · No MLB history · No history71H-Score3Gleyber Torres 2B · R.260 / .727 · 8 HRvs hand .702 · No MLB history · No history51H-Score4Riley Greene LF · L.280 / .844 · 21 HRvs hand .860 · No MLB history · No history75H-Score5Dillon Dingler C · R.243 / .748 · 27 HRvs hand .820 · No MLB history · No history66H-Score6Kerry Carpenter RF · L.208 / .692 · 13 HRvs hand .723 · No MLB history · No history42H-Score7Spencer Torkelson 1B · R.230 / .766 · 26 HRvs hand .786 · No MLB history · No history66H-Score8James Outman CF · L.172 / .553 · 5 HRvs hand .436 · No MLB history · No history26H-Score9Hao-Yu Lee 2B · R.264 / .746 · 10 HRvs hand .753 · No MLB history · No history56H-Score

Team comparison

OffenseKCKC·DETDET
AVG.248 8th.241 20th
OPS.718 17th.720 12th
Home runs170 21st181 18th
Runs690 22nd723 14th
OBP.316 18th.320 10th
SLG.402 15th.400 17th
PitchingKCKC·DETDET
1stMLB rank30th
ERA4.77vs3.67
KCDET
WHIP1.41vs1.22
KCDET
K/97.4vs8.2
KCDET
HR Allowed210vs167
KCDET
BullpenKCKC·DETDET
1stMLB rank30th
Bullpen ERA4.58vs3.36
no league rank
Saves38vs32
KCDET
ResultsKCKC·DETDET
+27926th
Run differential
+4037th
69–93 Record76–86
6–4 Last 106–4
Last 10 games
Kansas City Royals (6–4)
W
L
L
W
W
W
L
W
W
L
Detroit Tigers (6–4)
L
W
W
W
L
W
L
W
W
L
2026 head-to-head
Season Series
4—9
13 Games Played

Frequently asked

Who is starting for the Royals?+
Luinder Avila (4.86 ERA, 5–3) is listed as the starter.
Who is starting for the Tigers?+
Framber Valdez (4.57 ERA, 5–7) is listed as the starter.
What time does the game start?+
1:40 PM ET at Comerica Park.
Where is the game being played?+
Comerica Park, home of the Detroit Tigers.
Are the lineups confirmed?+
Not as official league cards. The orders shown are the current projected or last-posted lineups.
How have the Royals and Tigers performed head-to-head?+
Season series: Tigers 9–4 this season.
How do the starters compare on P-Score?+
Luinder Avila is at 38; Framber Valdez is at 55. P-Score is PitcherStat's 0–100 season index for qualified starters.