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WED · SEP 9, 2026
SEP 9
FinalFinal lineupsAL Central

Kansas City Royals   vs   Detroit Tigers Preview

July 26, 2026

Starting pitchers, lineup status, recent form, weather and current moneyline context at Comerica Park.

1:40 PM ET · Comerica ParkStats updated Jul 26, 2:45 PM ETFinal lineups lockedLast update Jul 26, 1:15 PM ET
T-Score33
Kansas City Royals
64–82 · 5th AL Central · T-Score 33
5
5–4
FINAL
Detroit Tigers
66–79 · 4th AL Central · T-Score 55
4
T-Score55
FINALKC +165 · DET −181 · Total 9
KC +165 · DET −181 · Total 9Last update Jul 26, 1:15 PM ET

Matchup at a glance

PitcherStat calculation
CategoryComparisonWhy
Starting pitcherTigersDetroit has the stronger starting-pitcher profile: Valdez leads in P-Score, WHIP and ERA.
BullpenTigersDetroit has allowed fewer runs from the bullpen on the season ERA.
Starter formRoyalsAvila has a 3.91 ERA over his last five starts, while Valdez is at 6.20.
Recent formTigersDetroit has won 6 of its last 10 and owns the stronger recent run differential.
Team strengthTigersDetroit leads 55–33 in T-Score, driven by recent team form.

Starting pitchers

KC
Luinder Avila RHP
Luinder Avila
Kansas City Royals
2026 season (MLB rank among qualified starters)
ERA
5.53
190th
WHIP
1.61
211th
K/9
7.84
128th
BB/9
5.40
213th
P-Score38i
FIP
4.54
HR/9
0.90
59th
OPS/R
0.971
IP
70.0
2026 ERA splits
Home ERA7.88
Road ERA4.30
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
4.17
119th
WHIP
1.36
141st
K/9
6.79
179th
BB/9
3.31
127th
P-Score55i
FIP
4.19
HR/9
0.86
49th
OPS/R
0.721
IP
157.2
2026 ERA splits
Home ERA4.33
Road ERA4.02
Last 5 starts
ERA
6.20
QUALITY
START %
40%
(2 of 5)
DAYS
REST
5
How the starters differ
·Valdez allows fewer baserunners, with a 1.36 WHIP compared with 1.61.
·Valdez enters with a 4.17 ERA compared with Avila's 5.53.
·Avila owns a 7.8 K/9 compared with Valdez's 6.8.
·Valdez has produced a quality start in 40% of outings versus 20%.
Advanced starter metricsERA−, FIP, WAR, career vs opponent
MetricAvilaValdezNote
ERA−13099Park- and league-adjusted; 100 is average.
FIP4.544.19
WAR0.41.7Season value.

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%89.4
Valdez arsenal
PitchUsageVelo
Sinker45%93.8
Curveball29%78.4
Changeup18%89.1
Slider4%85.8
Four-seam3%94.8
Cutter0%93.2

Team OPS vs opposing starter's hand

Royals vs LHP (Framber Valdez)
16th
in MLB
0.702OPS
.600.700.800.9001.000
Tigers vs RHP (Luinder Avila)
16th
in MLB
0.717OPS
.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 ThomasRLF61.70111.804No MLB historyNo history
2Nick LoftinR3B56.7057.764No MLB historyNo history
3Salvador PerezRDH58.66119.752No MLB historyNo history
4Jac CaglianoneLRF79.82523.737No MLB historyNo history
5Starling MarteRRF34.6122.627No MLB historyNo history
6Isaac CollinsSLF54.6596.596No MLB historyNo history
7Tyler TolbertRSS49.7913.751No MLB historyNo history
8Luke MaileRC—.4681.512No MLB historyNo history
9Andrew VelazquezSSS—.1340.000No MLB historyNo history
1Lane Thomas LF · R.224 / .701 · 11 HRvs hand .804 · No MLB history · No history61H-Score2Nick Loftin 3B · R.237 / .705 · 7 HRvs hand .764 · No MLB history · No history56H-Score3Salvador Perez DH · R.230 / .661 · 19 HRvs hand .752 · No MLB history · No history58H-Score4Jac Caglianone RF · L.283 / .825 · 23 HRvs hand .737 · No MLB history · No history79H-Score5Starling Marte RF · R.242 / .612 · 2 HRvs hand .627 · No MLB history · No history34H-Score6Isaac Collins LF · S.221 / .659 · 6 HRvs hand .596 · No MLB history · No history54H-Score7Tyler Tolbert SS · R.302 / .791 · 3 HRvs hand .751 · No MLB history · No history49H-Score8Luke Maile C · R.143 / .468 · 1 HRvs hand .512 · 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 KeithL3B59.7149.744No MLB historyNo history
2Kevin McGonigleLSS74.79216.853No MLB historyNo history
3Gleyber TorresR2B61.7538.733No MLB historyNo history
4Riley GreeneLLF81.83619.855No MLB historyNo history
5Dillon DinglerRC72.76426.840No MLB historyNo history
6Kerry CarpenterLRF49.69213.723No MLB historyNo history
7Spencer TorkelsonR1B66.71622.713No MLB historyNo history
8James OutmanLCF32.5535.436No MLB historyNo history
9Hao-Yu LeeR2B58.7128.775No MLB historyNo history
1Colt Keith 3B · L.257 / .714 · 9 HRvs hand .744 · No MLB history · No history59H-Score2Kevin McGonigle SS · L.273 / .792 · 16 HRvs hand .853 · No MLB history · No history74H-Score3Gleyber Torres 2B · R.270 / .753 · 8 HRvs hand .733 · No MLB history · No history61H-Score4Riley Greene LF · L.277 / .836 · 19 HRvs hand .855 · No MLB history · No history81H-Score5Dillon Dingler C · R.245 / .764 · 26 HRvs hand .840 · No MLB history · No history72H-Score6Kerry Carpenter RF · L.208 / .692 · 13 HRvs hand .723 · No MLB history · No history49H-Score7Spencer Torkelson 1B · R.219 / .716 · 22 HRvs hand .713 · No MLB history · No history66H-Score8James Outman CF · L.172 / .553 · 5 HRvs hand .436 · No MLB history · No history32H-Score9Hao-Yu Lee 2B · R.257 / .712 · 8 HRvs hand .775 · No MLB history · No history58H-Score

Team comparison

OffenseKCKC·DETDET
AVG.247 11th.238 21st
OPS.717 17th.708 21st
Home runs152 23rd163 18th
Runs624 21st634 20th
OBP.316 15th.313 21st
SLG.401 15th.395 21st
PitchingKCKC·DETDET
1stMLB rank30th
ERA4.67vs3.68
KCDET
WHIP1.39vs1.22
KCDET
K/97.4vs8.2
KCDET
HR Allowed178vs149
KCDET
BullpenKCKC·DETDET
1stMLB rank30th
Bullpen ERA4.58vs3.36
no league rank
Saves34vs28
KCDET
ResultsKCKC·DETDET
+9226th
Run differential
+22110th
64–82 Record66–79
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.
What is the current moneyline?+
KC +165 · DET −181 · Total 9. Lines are informational only.
What is the current total?+
The total is 9. Lines are informational.
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.