The downside. 

Royals 8, Tigers 1

In the opening act of the battle for the AL Central, the Royals bested the Tigers by pummeling the Tigers pitching on Thursday evening. Danny Duffy was effective in his own right, but the Royals succeeded in jumping on the Tigers for three in the 3rd on a Hosmer HR and five in the 5th on all kinds of everything. Alfredo Simon (5 GS, 31.2 IP, 3.13 ERA, 3.16 FIP) twirled his first clunker in a Tigers uniform, showing some of the concerns we had about him when the season got underway. The bats weren’t able to do much regardless, waiting until the top of the 8th to push across their first and only run. With three left in the series, the club will turn to Kyle Lobstein (3 GS, 18 IP, 3.50 ERA, 3.39 FIP) on Friday.

The Moment: Iglesias triples in the 8th.