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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 ParkGame-day snapshot Jun 18, 3:03 AM ETFinal lineups lockedCurrent 2026 season stats — updated Oct 29, 5:00 AM ET
T-Score27
Kansas City Royals
69–93 · 5th AL Central · T-Score 27
6
6–2
FINAL
Washington Nationals
77–85 · 4th NL East · T-Score 42
2
T-Score42
FINAL

Matchup at a glance

PitcherStat calculation
CategoryComparisonWhy
Starting pitcherEvenBoth starters enter with comparable season profiles; neither holds a meaningful statistical advantage.
Offense vs handEvenThe handedness splits are nearly even, with less than a .004 difference in OPS.
Recent formEvenBoth clubs are 3–2 in their last five, with only a 12-run difference in run differential.
Team strengthNationalsWashington leads 42–27 in T-Score.
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
5.50
191st
WHIP
1.65
212th
K/9
7.88
127th
BB/9
5.50
216th
P-Score38i
FIP
–
HR/9
0.96
47th
OPS/R
–
IP
37.2
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
5.45
173rd
WHIP
1.38
159th
K/9
5.20
222nd
BB/9
2.92
82nd
P-Score32i
FIP
–
HR/9
2.54
220th
OPS/R
–
IP
71.0
Last 5 starts
ERA
7.56
QUALITY
START %
0%
(0 of 5)
DAYS
REST
78
How the starters differ
·Avila strikes out 2.7 more batters per nine innings.
·Littell allows fewer baserunners, with a 1.38 WHIP compared with 1.65.
·Avila allows the lower home-run rate: 0.96 vs 2.54 per nine.
·Avila has a 0% blow-up rate compared with Littell's 33%.

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
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)
13th
in MLB
0.727OPS
.600.700.800.9001.000
Nationals vs RHP (Luinder Avila)
10th
in MLB
0.731OPS
.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.248 8th.246 11th
OPS.718 17th.744 3rd
Home runs170 21st210 6th
Runs690 22nd821 3rd
OBP.316 18th.321 8th
SLG.402 14th.423 3rd
PitchingKCKC·WSHWSH
1stMLB rank30th
ERA4.77vs4.67
KCWSH
WHIP1.41vs1.39
KCWSH
K/97.4vs8.0
KCWSH
HR Allowed210vs218
KCWSH
ResultsKCKC·WSHWSH
+31723rd
Run differential
+4574th
69–93 Record77–85
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 38; Zack Littell is at 32. P-Score is PitcherStat's 0–100 season index for qualified starters.