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FinalFinal lineupsAL Central / NL East

Kansas City Royals 6, Washington Nationals 2

Final Score and Game Recap

Final score, pitching lines and standings context.

1:05 PM ET · Nationals ParkStats updated Jun 18, 3:03 AM ETFinal lineups locked
T-Score38
Kansas City Royals
66–84 · 5th AL Central · T-Score 38
6
6–2
FINAL
Washington Nationals
70–81 · 4th NL East · T-Score 50
2
T-Score50
FINAL

Matchup at a glance

PitcherStat calculation
CategoryComparisonWhy
Starting pitcherEvenBoth starters enter with comparable season profiles; neither holds a meaningful statistical advantage.
Offense vs handNationalsWashington has produced the stronger offense against right-handed pitching.
Recent formEvenBoth clubs are 3–2 in their last five, with only a 12-run difference in run differential.
Team strengthNationalsWashington leads 50–38 in T-Score, driven by stronger offense.
PowerNationalsWashington has 96 home runs this season, 27 more than Kansas.

Starting pitchers

KC
Luinder Avila RHP
Luinder Avila
Kansas City Royals
2026 season (MLB rank among qualified starters)
ERA
5.53
182nd
WHIP
1.61
205th
K/9
7.84
121st
BB/9
5.40
205th
P-Score39i
FIP
4.55
HR/9
0.90
49th
OPS/R
0.971
IP
70.0
2026 ERA splits
Home ERA7.88
Road ERA4.30
Last 5 starts
QUALITY
START %
0%
(0 of 5)
DAYS
REST
74
WSH
Zack Littell RHP
Zack Littell
Washington Nationals
2026 season (MLB rank among qualified starters)
ERA
5.21
166th
WHIP
1.41
150th
K/9
5.28
215th
BB/9
2.82
77th
P-Score33i
FIP
6.08
HR/9
2.17
213th
OPS/R
0.726
IP
124.1
2026 ERA splits
Home ERA4.66
Road ERA6.00
Last 5 starts
ERA
7.56
QUALITY
START %
0%
(0 of 5)
DAYS
REST
78
How the starters differ
·Avila owns the lower FIP, 4.55 to 6.08.
·Avila strikes out 2.6 more batters per nine innings.
·Littell allows fewer baserunners, with a 1.41 WHIP compared with 1.61.
·Avila allows the lower home-run rate: 0.90 vs 2.17 per nine.
Advanced starter metricsERA−, FIP, WAR, career vs opponent
MetricAvilaLittellNote
ERA−129122Park- and league-adjusted; 100 is average.
FIP4.556.08
WAR0.4-0.9Season 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
Littell arsenal
PitchUsageVelo
Slider28%88.2
Four-seam25%91.7
Splitter23%84.1
Sinker14%91.4
Sweeper9%79.3

Team OPS vs opposing starter's hand

Royals vs RHP (Zack Littell)
14th
in MLB
0.722OPS
.600.700.800.9001.000
Nationals vs RHP (Luinder Avila)
9th
in MLB
0.739OPS
.600.700.800.9001.000

Lineups

Final lineupsOrder from the stored snapshot; treat as unofficial until the card is filed.Full lineup page

Team comparison

OffenseKCKC·WSHWSH
AVG.246 14th.248 9th
OPS.715 18th.749 3rd
Home runs155 25th198 4th
Runs634 23rd772 3rd
OBP.316 17th.323 8th
SLG.399 20th.426 2nd
PitchingKCKC·WSHWSH
1stMLB rank30th
ERA4.63vs4.74
KCWSH
WHIP1.39vs1.39
KCWSH
K/97.4vs8.0
KCWSH
HR Allowed181vs203
KCWSH
ResultsKCKC·WSHWSH
+11627th
Run differential
+2717th
66–84 Record70–81
5–5 Last 104–6
Last 10 games
Kansas City Royals (5–5)
L
L
W
W
W
L
L
W
L
W
Washington Nationals (4–6)
W
L
W
W
L
L
L
L
L
W
2026 head-to-head
Season Series
2—1
3 Games Played

Frequently asked

Who is starting for the Royals?+
Luinder Avila (5.50 ERA, 2–3) is listed as the starter.
Who is starting for the Nationals?+
Zack Littell (5.45 ERA, 6–6) is listed as the starter.
What time does the game start?+
1:05 PM ET at Nationals Park.
Where is the game being played?+
Nationals Park, home of the Washington Nationals.
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 Nationals performed head-to-head?+
Season series: Nationals 1–2 this season.
How do the starters compare on P-Score?+
Luinder Avila is at 39; Zack Littell is at 33. P-Score is PitcherStat's 0–100 season index for qualified starters.