The Royals are heading into the last road trip of their season, and Boston is first on the docket. Kansas City opens a three-game series against the Red Sox with a mix of familiar names, hot bats, and one particularly uncomfortable matchup waiting in game one.
The pitching matchups are set like this: Seth Lugo (6-8, 5.04 ERA) against Sonny Gray (17-4, 2.69 ERA) in the opener, Randy Dobnak (3-3, 2.55 ERA) against Ranger Suarez (6-4, 3.44 ERA) in game two, and Noah Cameron (9-8, 3.93 ERA) against Payton Tolle (9-6, 3.15 ERA) in the finale.
If there’s one Royals hitter who has turned September into his personal showcase, it’s Carter Jensen. He’s doing it again after already flashing this kind of late-season surge last year.
This month, Jensen is hitting .345/.457/.966 with an OPS of 1.423 and a wRC+ of 276. The power has been loud, too: four home runs, four doubles, and an eye-popping ISO of .621.
At his current pace, Jensen could push toward the 30-homer mark. That kind of finish would only add to what has become a familiar September pattern for him. Across the month, he now owns an OPS of 1.099 and a 199 wRC+.
The challenge is that he’ll be trying to keep that run going against a Red Sox rotation that has been solid this season.
Kansas City’s bullpen has been a mess for much of the year, but one small July deal may have changed part of the picture. On July 22, the Royals traded minor league pitching prospect Max Martin to the Astros for Nate Pearson, and Pearson has been excellent since arriving.
In 20 innings with the Royals, Pearson has posted a 0.45 ERA with three saves and 11 holds. He’s been just as sharp in September, throwing four scoreless outings without allowing a run. Even in a season that has gone sideways, the Royals may have found their closer or setup man for 2027 in a relatively minor move.
And then there’s Sonny Gray, who has been a nightmare for Kansas City for years. When the conversation turns to Royals killers, hitters usually get the spotlight, but Gray belongs in that group too. In 14 games against the Royals, he owns a 1.74 ERA and hasn’t had a bad outing against them since 2015.
The numbers get even more lopsided when you look at full seasons. The most earned runs Gray has allowed to Kansas City in any season is four, and that came in 2023 over three starts and in 2015 in one start. Among the current Royals, few have had much success against him, which makes his start in game one a tough opening test for Kansas City.
In Other News...
Royals Finally Got An Encouraging Jac Caglianone Injury Sign
Jac Caglianone took a meaningful step forward this week by getting back on the field for batting practice, his first such session since suffering a Grade 1 flexor strain in his left elbow. For a Royals team tracking every update on his recovery, that alone counts as encouraging news, especially after he had been limited to the margins while working his way back from the injury.
Matt Quatraro struck a hopeful tone about where Caglianone stands, though he stopped short of saying whether the young hitter would be available to pinch-hit in the next game. Caglianone still has not resumed throwing with game intensity, but he did make several throws during batting practice, another sign that the rehab process is moving in the right direction as Kansas City waits for the next checkpoint. [Read more 🡒]
Seth Lugo Gave The Royals Something They Had Been Missing On The Road
Road games have been a grind for Kansas City for much of the season, so Seth Lugos night at Fenway Park stood out for more than just the result. The right-hander settled in after Boston put up some early pressure, held the Red Sox to two runs over five innings and picked up his seventh win in a 3-2 Royals victory. Kansas City also got an encouraging showing from rookie Carter Jensen, who doubled twice and scored twice, while the bullpen took care of the rest with scoreless work to close it out.
For a club that has needed more dependable starts away from home, Lugo gave them the kind of steady outing that can travel. The Royals are still well below .500 at 66-82, but this was the sort of win that can matter in a season like this, especially with a young lineup contributor like Jensen making his Fenway debut look comfortable and the relief corps protecting a slim lead against a Boston team that has now dropped three straight. [Read more 🡒]
Nate Pearson Is Giving The Royals A Bullpen Decision To Make
Nate Pearson arrived in Kansas City in late July with the kind of arm that can change the conversation in a bullpen, and he has spent the weeks since backing that up. In 21 innings for the Royals, the right-hander has allowed just one earned run and piled up 20 strikeouts, giving the club a late-season look at a power pitcher who has fit in quickly after coming over from Houston.
Pearsons immediate impact has also created an offseason decision the Royals will have to sort through. Kansas City controls him through the 2027 season, which gives the front office some flexibility, but it also raises the question of whether his recent work has made him a legitimate piece for next years bullpen rather than just a short-term arm added for depth. [Read more 🡒]