Athletics vs Royals Wild Card Preview and Roster

Aug 14, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; Oakland Athletics right fielder Josh Reddick (16) hits a RBI triple against the Kansas City Royals during the sixth inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

Oakland Athletics @ Kansas City Royals

Tuesday, September 30, 8:00 PM EDT, Kauffman Stadium

Radio: ESPN Radio             TV: TBS

One game stands between the Athletics and Thursday’s ALDS Game 1 against the Angels. Unfortunately, the same is true for the Royals. It has been 29 years since the Royals last saw the postseason. The exact opposite is true for the Athletics. Throughout those 29 years the A’s have made 11 playoff appearances, including a World Series win. The Athletics are making their third consecutive postseason run and have structured their team specifically to play in October.

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• Oakland A’s bring Deolis Guerra back on minor league deal

Season Series: The Royals have won the season series against the Athletics 5-2, but all of those games took place in August when the A’s were at their worst and the Royals were at their best. All that really matters is that the Athletics beat the Royals twice when Jon Lester was the starter. While the Athletics did lose the season series, they did outscore them overall, 26-24. The A’s outscored the Royals 3 to 1 during the games Lester started for the A’s.  The Athletics scored 19 runs while only allowing 6 runs over Lester’s two starts against the Royals.

I will keep this article as an overview. Jason Burke has written a wonderful article discussing the A’s and Royals matchup if you are interested in more information.

Pitching Match-Up

Jon Lester, LHP (16-11, 2.46 ERA) vs James Shields, RHP (14-8, 3.21 ERA)

Lester, 2014: 2.46 ERA, 32 starts, 16-11, 219.2 innings, 1.10 WHIP, 220 K, 48 BB, 16 HR

Shields, 2014: 3.21 ERA, 34 starts, 14-8, 227 innings, 1.18 WHIP, 180 K, 44 BB, 23 HR

Lester, 2014 vs KC: 2.61 ERA, 3 starts, 20.2 innings, 20 K, 5 BB, 0 HR

Shields, 2014 vs OAK:  3.21 ERA, 2 starts, 14 innings, 7 K, 1 BB, 2 HR

Lester, career postseason: 1.97 ERA , 11 starts, 6-4, 1.04 WHIP  *Stats as a starter, Lester has also made 2 career postseason relief performances. He has a 2.11 ERA overall for postseason appearances.

Shields, career postseason: 4.98 ERA, 6 starts, 2-4. 1.40 WHIP

OAK vs Shields: .216 AVG, 11 hits, 6 earned runs, 2 home runs, 7 strikeouts, 1 walk

KC vs Lester: .253 AVG, 19 hits, 6 earned runs, 0 home runs, 20 strikeouts, 5 walks

 Athletics’ Wild Card Lineup and 25-Man Roster

1. Crisp CF – Switch
2. Fuld LF – Left
3. Donaldson 3B – Right
4. Moss DH – Left
5. Reddick RF – Left
6. Lowrie SS – Switch
7. Vogt 1B – Left
8. Soto C – Right
9. Sogard 2B – Left

Pitchers (8): Fernando Abad, Ryan Cook, Sean Doolittle, Luke Gregerson, Jason Hammel, Jon Lester, Dan Otero, Drew Pomeranz

Catchers (3): Derek Norris, Geovany Soto, Stephen Vogt

Infielders (9): Alberto Callaspo, Josh Donaldson, Adam Dunn, Nate Freiman, Jed Lowrie, Brandon Moss, Andy Parrino, Nick Punto, Eric Sogard

Outfielders (5): Billy Burns, Coco Crisp, Sam Fuld, Jonny Gomes, Josh Reddick

Royals’ Wild Card Lineup and 25-Man Roster

1. Escobar SS – Right
2. Aoki RF – Left
3. Cain CF – Right
4. Hosmer 1B – Left
5. Butler DH – Right
6. Gordon LF – Left
7. Perez C – Right
8. Infante 2B – Right
9. Moustakas 3B – Left

Pitchers (9): Wade Davis, Danny Duffy, Brandon Finnegan, Jason Frasor, Jeremy Guthrie, Kelvin Herrera, Greg Holland, James Shields, Yordano Ventura

Catchers (2): Erik Kratz, Salvador Perez

Infielders (7): Billy Butler, Christian Colon, Alcides Escobar, Eric Hosmer, Omar Infante, Mike Moustakas, Jayson Nix

Outfielders (7): Nori Aoki, Lorenzo Cain, Jarrod Dyson, Alex Gordon, Terrance Gore, Raul Ibanez, Josh Willingham

Offense Comparison

AVG: OAK .244/.264 KC

Runs: OAK 729/651 KC

HR: OAK 146/95 KC

XBH: OAK 432/410 KC

OBP: OAK .320/.314 KC

SLG: OAK .381/.376 KC

Pitching Comparison

ERA: OAK 3.22/3.51 KC

K: OAK 1,244/1,168 KC

BB: OAK 406/440 KC

WHIP: OAK 1.14/1.26 KC

AVG: OAK .255/.276 KC

SV: OAK 31/53 KC

I want to know your game predictions. Who will win? Which players will be the stars of the game? Will Crisp and Shields have a brawl on the mound? Comment below or tweet me: @JenniferTrumpp