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Kansas City Royals vs Pittsburgh Pirates Starting Lineups — September 20, 2026

Batting orders, positions, season stats, splits against the opposing starter's hand and batter-versus-pitcher history with sample size for both clubs.

1:35 PM ET · PNC ParkFinal lineups locked · Sep 20, 11:36 AM ETStats updated Oct 29, 3:36 AM ET
KC
69–93 · 5th AL Central
Official
HandRHP
L / R bats3 L / 6 R
OPS vs hand.727 vs RHP
PIT
82–80 · 3rd NL Central
Official
HandRHP
L / R bats4 L / 3 R / 2 S
OPS vs hand.749 vs RHP

Lineup strength vs today's starter

Weighted by batting-order spot. Season rates are regressed toward league average before they enter the model.

Updated Sep 20, 11:36 AM ET
KCKC
.729
−37 ptsOPS edge
PITPIT
.766

Slight edge: PIT

Power
Season HR
93vs122
Discipline
Adj. OBP
.319vs.342
Top of order
Slots 1–4
.737vs.782
Bottom of order
Slots 7–9
.718vs.746

KC wins 2 of 9 batting-order slots · PIT wins 7

KCSlotPIT
Maikel Garcia.700
1
.715Konnor Griffin
Bobby Witt Jr..791
2
.812Brandon Lowe
Jac Caglianone.802
3
.779Bryan Reynolds
Salvador Perez.653
4
.826Oneil Cruz
Michael Massey.745
5
.754Nick Gonzales
Nick Loftin.709
6
.763Ryan O'Hearn
John Rave.747
7
.807Rafael Flores Jr.
Luke Maile.662
8
.716Spencer Horwitz
Tyler Tolbert.747
9
.712Jake Mangum

3 of 9 Kansas City Royals hitters have the platoon advantage vs Lake Bachar (6 of 9 for Pittsburgh Pirates)

Kansas City Royals
  • Balanced lineup, no standout strength or weakness
  • Handedness works against them today
Pittsburgh Pirates
  • Platoon advantage in 6 of 9 spots
  • Real power throughout the lineup
  • Gets on base at an above-average rate

Kansas City Royals batting order

Official lineupvs RHP Lake Bachar
#HitterPosH-ScoreAVGOBPOPSHRPAOPS vs HandBvP
1Maikel GarciaR3B47.268.334.7153344.650241 PA0-for-1 · 1 PAVery small sample
1Maikel Garcia 3B · R.268/.334/.715·3 HRvs hand.650 · 241 PA · 0-for-1 · 1 PA · Very small47H-Score
2Bobby Witt Jr.RSS70.281.359.80018632.783420 PA1-for-1 · 1 PAVery small sample
2Bobby Witt Jr. SS · R.281/.359/.800·18 HRvs hand.783 · 420 PA · 1-for-1 · 1 PA · Very small70H-Score
3Jac CaglianoneLRF67.289.340.83423553.882356 PA0-for-1 · 1 PAVery small sample
3Jac Caglianone RF · L.289/.340/.834·23 HRvs hand.882 · 356 PA · 0-for-1 · 1 PA · Very small67H-Score
4Salvador PerezRDH50.229.274.65721627.628421 PANo MLB historyNo MLB history
4Salvador Perez DH · R.229/.274/.657·21 HRvs hand.628 · 421 PA · No MLB history · No MLB50H-Score
5Michael MasseyL2B54.274.305.73513452.721313 PANo MLB historyNo MLB history
5Michael Massey 2B · L.274/.305/.735·13 HRvs hand.721 · 313 PA · No MLB history · No MLB54H-Score
6Nick LoftinR3B47.240.322.7108426.685242 PANo MLB historyNo MLB history
6Nick Loftin 3B · R.240/.322/.710·8 HRvs hand.685 · 242 PA · No MLB history · No MLB47H-Score
7John RaveLRF51.232.314.7446161.78591 PANo MLB historyNo MLB history
7John Rave RF · L.232/.314/.744·6 HRvs hand.785 · 91 PA · No MLB history · No MLB51H-Score
8Luke MaileRC—.159.229.502148.24312 PA · Small sampleNo MLB historyNo MLB history
8Luke Maile C · R.159/.229/.502·1 HRvs hand.243 · 12 PA · No MLB history · No MLB—H-Score
9Tyler TolbertRSS39.285.347.7393148.81758 PANo MLB historyNo MLB history
9Tyler Tolbert SS · R.285/.347/.739·3 HRvs hand.817 · 58 PA · No MLB history · No MLB39H-Score

Pittsburgh Pirates batting order

Official lineupvs RHP Michael Wacha
#HitterPosH-ScoreAVGOBPOPSHRPAOPS vs HandBvP
1Konnor GriffinRSS45.272.324.7286339.690No MLB historyNo MLB history
1Konnor Griffin SS · R.272/.324/.728·6 HRvs hand.690 · No MLB history · No MLB45H-Score
2Brandon LoweL2B68.260.331.82435656.9102-for-13 · 13 PASmall sample
2Brandon Lowe 2B · L.260/.331/.824·35 HRvs hand.910 · 2-for-13 · 13 PA · Small68H-Score
3Bryan ReynoldsSLF69.261.365.78917699.7791-for-1 · 1 PAVery small sample
3Bryan Reynolds LF · S.261/.365/.789·17 HRvs hand.779 · 1-for-1 · 1 PA · Very small69H-Score
4Oneil CruzLCF69.280.368.85420419.8581-for-3 · 3 PAVery small sample
4Oneil Cruz CF · L.280/.368/.854·20 HRvs hand.858 · 1-for-3 · 3 PA · Very small69H-Score
5Nick GonzalesR3B48.303.367.7556608.790390 PA0-for-2 · 2 PAVery small sample
5Nick Gonzales 3B · R.303/.367/.755·6 HRvs hand.790 · 390 PA · 0-for-2 · 2 PA · Very small48H-Score
6Ryan O'HearnLRF59.265.330.77018451.8393-for-10 · 10 PASmall sample
6Ryan O'Hearn RF · L.265/.330/.770·18 HRvs hand.839 · 3-for-10 · 10 PA · Small59H-Score
7Rafael Flores Jr.RC61.264.331.85811163.800No MLB historyNo MLB history
7Rafael Flores Jr. C · R.264/.331/.858·11 HRvs hand.800 · No MLB history · No MLB61H-Score
8Spencer HorwitzL1B49.244.344.70810451.734No MLB historyNo MLB history
8Spencer Horwitz 1B · L.244/.344/.708·10 HRvs hand.734 · No MLB history · No MLB49H-Score
9Jake MangumSCF38.276.331.6945479.700320 PANo MLB historyNo MLB history
9Jake Mangum CF · S.276/.331/.694·5 HRvs hand.700 · 320 PA · No MLB history · No MLB38H-Score