Madrid ease past C diz to edge closer to title

Toronto Blue Jays (13-12, fourth in the AL East) vs. Kansas City Royals (15-10, second in the AL Central) Kansas City, Missouri; Thursday, 2:10 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Blue Jays: Jose Berrios (4-0, 0.85 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 27 strikeouts); Royals: Cole Ragans (0-2, 4.32 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 33 strikeouts) BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Royals -119, Blue Jays -101; over/under is 8 runs BOTTOM LINE: The Kansas City Royals play the Toronto Blue Jays with a 2-1 series lead. Kansas City has an 11-5 record in home games and a 15-10 record overall. The Royals rank third in the AL with 28 total home runs, averaging 1.1 per game. Toronto has a 7-9 record on the road and a 13-12 record overall. Blue Jays hitters are batting a collective .232, which ranks 10th in the AL. The teams meet Thursday for the fourth time this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Salvador Perez has four doubles, six home runs and 23 RBI for the Royals. Vinnie Pasquantino is 9-for-33 with three doubles, three home runs and three RBI over the past 10 games. Daulton Varsho has five doubles, six home runs and 13 RBI for the Blue Jays. George Springer is 12-for-40 with a double, a home run and an RBI over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Royals: 5-5, .207 batting average, 3.27 ERA, even run differential Blue Jays: 6-4, .246 batting average, 2.48 ERA, outscored opponents by 10 runs INJURIES: Royals: Alec Marsh: day-to-day (forearm), Josh Taylor: 60-Day IL (biceps), Jake Brentz: 15-Day IL (hamstring), Carlos Hernandez: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Kris Bubic: 60-Day IL (elbow), Kyle Wright: 60-Day IL (shoulder) Blue Jays: Kevin Kiermaier: 10-Day IL (hip), Chad Green: 15-Day IL (teres major), Alek Manoah: 15-Day IL (shoulder) ------ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.