Here are six players to watch as the Kansas City Royals take on the Houston Astros in the American League Division Series.
2B Jose Altuve, Astros
The Royals are a good contact-hitting team with a deeper lineup than the crew that took the San Francisco Giants to seven games in the World Series, so it’s going to be up to the Astros defence to avoid giving away extra outs – and defence goes up the middle, right? Altuve is perhaps the most professional hitter on this team and he hits well against the Royals (.333/.385/.500) with a .885 OPS in 26 plate appearances. He’s also had a strong finishing kick, slashing .337/.372/.512 in the second half.
CF Lorenzo Cain, Royals
Small sample size and all that, but my goodness: Cain has worn out the Astros in 53 career at bats, hitting .396 and he has been particularly difficult on Dallas Keuchel, who is expected to be the Astros Game 3 starter. The Royals are a much deeper offensive team than they were last season, with Kendrys Morales, Ben Zobrist and break-out player Mike Moustakas leading the improvement. The Royals are tough to finish off, too – they hit an AL-best .277 with two outs, 34 points higher than last season, and led the Majors with a .278 average with two out and runners in scoring position. Cain’s .372 average lead the league among two-out hitters.
C Jason Castro, Astros
They’re already doing studies of how Castro was able to coax strikes out of home plate umpire Eric Cooper in Tuesday’s wild-card game, and his game-calling and defensive skills will be put to the test against the full-court press Royals. His 3.51 catcher’s earned run average was best in the American League, and while he threw out a career-best 36 per-cent of opposing base runners, look out in the seventh and eighth innings: teams were 15-for-17 against set-up guys Will Harris and Chad Qualls.
RHP Wade Davis, Royals
The Royals are the template for bullpen construction. Greg Holland, last year’s closer, gets shut down mid-season for Tommy John surgery and in steps Davis, who recorded 17 saves and finished the season with one earned run in his last 19 2/3 innings, while holding opposing hitters to a .098 average. Dating back to Sept. 13, 2013, Davis has a 0.96 ERA.
RHP Collin McHugh, Astros
With Keuchel burned in the AL Wild Card game and not starting until Game 3 in Houston, and Game 2 down to the likes of Lance McCullers, Mike Fiers or possibly Scott Kazmir, McHugh’s ability to work his way around the Royals lineup will be vital in Game 1. His stock in trade is an ability to induce soft contact and allow the Astros defence to make plays. He was particularly effective after Aug. 1, with 69 strikeouts and 20 walks in 72 innings;
3B Mike Moustakas, Royals
Moustakas had a break-out year offensively, including raising his average against left-handed pitchers by 50 points, and if this series deteriorates into a slug-fest it is wise to remember that even last season, when he hit .212 and the Royals didn’t know what to make of him, Moustakas still managed five post-season homers.
THE CALL
Kansas City in four games.
