The Royals are very tough at home where they've won 25 of their last 36. They have defeated Texas in eight of the past 11 meetings, including the past four in Kansas City.




The Rangers are minus injured Adrian Beltre and Josh Hamilton. Rookie Chi Chi Gonzalez is making only his second big league start. He was 3-5 with a 4.15 ERA in Triple A. He was effectively wild in his debut this past Saturday against the Red Sox. Gonzalez walked five in 5 2/3 innings, but didn't give up a run.




Look for the disciplined Royals to exploit Gonzalez's wildness now that they have something to go on, something the Red Sox were missing. Kansas City ranks No. 1 in the majors in batting average and is fifth in runs. The Red Sox, by contrast, are 26th in runs.




Royals starter Edinson Volquez has pitched much better at home where he is 4-1 with a 2.19 ERA in six starts at Kauffman Stadium this year.