Royals face Pirates, look to gain ground in postseason race

In the thick of the American League playoff picture, the Kansas City Royals are playing some of their best ball of the season ahead of Sunday afternoon's series finale in Pittsburgh against the Pirates.

Kansas City (82-67) is three games behind the AL Central-leading Cleveland Guardians, and just two games behind the Baltimore Orioles in the race for the top AL wild-card spot. The Royals also hold a 3 1/2-game lead on the Minnesota Twins, who currently occupy the third and final wild-card position.

The Royals' 5-1 win over the Pirates on Saturday clinched the weekend series over Pittsburgh but also guaranteed Kansas City's first winning season since 2015 -- the last time the club appeared in the postseason.

"It really doesn't mean that much to me," Royals manager Matt Quatraro said of securing the winning record. "Our guys have set the bar much higher than that. They've wanted to win the division since the first day of spring training, and we might need 90-some wins to do that."

Kansas City's Bobby Witt Jr. continued his stellar season on Saturday, recording two hits, including his 31st homer of the year. His three RBIs pushed him over the 100 mark for the first time in his career, and he leads the majors with a .333 batting average, 198 hits and 121 runs.

Looking to help the Royals complete the sweep on Sunday, Brady Singer (9-10, 3.42 ERA) will start. The 28-year-old right-hander is coming off a no-decision against the Yankees on Monday, when he threw five innings of three-run ball in his team's 10-4 loss.

Singer, who hasn't recorded a win since Aug. 18, has faced the Pirates once in his career. On June 1, 2021, he allowed four earned runs in 5 2/3 innings to get the 10-5 win.

For Pittsburgh (70-78), a victory on Sunday would salvage the second-to-last series at PNC Park in 2024. After Sunday, just three of the remaining 13 games are at home.

It's also one of the last opportunities that shortstop-turned-center-fielder Oneil Cruz will get to feel more comfortable in his home outfield.

Playing his first 100-plus game season, Cruz has driven in 74 runs, second only to teammate Bryan Reynolds' 84. Cruz was responsible for Pittsburgh's lone run driven in on Saturday but made key gaffes in center.

Twice, Cruz misplayed fly balls, both resulting in Kansas City runs. The Pirates decided to switch the 6-foot-7 Cruz to center on Aug. 26.

"When we moved him out there, we said there's going to be bumps in the road, and I think we saw a little bit of it today," Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. "Unfortunately, a couple of plays that ended up resulting in runs."

The Pirates will vie to put their sloppy play behind them on Sunday when right-hander Jared Jones (6-7, 3.82 ERA) takes the mound to start. The 23-year-old rookie was excellent last time out, allowing just two runs in seven innings last Sunday while striking out nine in a 7-3 win against the Washington Nationals.

Sunday will be Jones' first career appearance against the Royals.

--Field Level Media