August 9, 2026 · AL Cent
Chicago Cubs at Kansas City Royals
@
Probable starters
AWAY
TBD
HOME · KC
Lineups
Lineups are usually announced ~90 minutes before first pitch. Check back soon.
Hitter season stats
Season-to-date lines for each hitter in the projected lineup, with a Marcel projection (Proj OPS). Season columns are 2026 to date; Proj is a forward-looking estimate, not a result.
AWAY · CHC Projected · top 9 by AB
| BATTER | 2026 SEASON | PROJ OPS | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | HR | RBI | K | ||
| 1 Nico Hoerner 2B · R | .260 | .321 | .363 | .684 | 7 | 54 | 45 | .723 |
| 2 Alex Bregman 3B · R | .248 | .338 | .384 | .722 | 12 | 50 | 83 | .738 |
| 3 Michael Busch 1B · L | .241 | .352 | .390 | .742 | 14 | 63 | 117 | .748 |
| 4 Pete Crow-Armstrong CF · L | .289 | .386 | .550 | .936 | 26 | 69 | 136 | .744 |
| 5 Ian Happ LF · S | .211 | .323 | .404 | .727 | 18 | 48 | 148 | .735 |
| 6 Dansby Swanson SS · R | .217 | .294 | .406 | .700 | 17 | 63 | 101 | .713 |
| 7 Seiya Suzuki RF · R | .270 | .364 | .476 | .840 | 19 | 64 | 111 | .749 |
| 8 Carson Kelly C · R | .265 | .352 | .381 | .733 | 7 | 40 | 50 | .712 |
| 9 Michael Conforto DH · L | .227 | .323 | .448 | .771 | 9 | 24 | 58 | .706 |
HOME · KC Projected · top 9 by AB
| BATTER | 2026 SEASON | PROJ OPS | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | HR | RBI | K | ||
| 1 Salvador Perez DH · R | .215 | .263 | .376 | .639 | 16 | 48 | 93 | .713 |
| 2 Jac Caglianone RF · L | .254 | .309 | .453 | .762 | 18 | 45 | 112 | .732 |
| 3 Bobby Witt Jr. SS · R | .286 | .356 | .457 | .813 | 13 | 41 | 74 | .792 |
| 4 Carter Jensen C · L | .228 | .301 | .415 | .716 | 15 | 54 | 127 | .751 |
| 5 Isaac Collins LF · S | .238 | .337 | .366 | .703 | 6 | 34 | 86 | .726 |
| 6 Michael Massey 2B · L | .263 | .297 | .426 | .723 | 9 | 39 | 53 | .711 |
| 7 Nick Loftin 3B · R | .249 | .332 | .399 | .731 | 5 | 35 | 38 | .717 |
| 8 Kyle Isbel CF · L | .243 | .293 | .347 | .640 | 3 | 13 | 42 | .705 |
| 9 Starling Marte RF · R | .255 | .311 | .314 | .625 | 1 | 12 | 37 | .700 |
Pitcher vs. lineup projection
Projected expected wOBA for each probable starter against the opposing lineup, by batting order. A season-to-date matchup read — forward-looking, not a result.
-
1 NH Nico Hoerner RHB .311
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Nico Hoerner
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .322 xwOBA over 396 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .298 xwOBA over 150 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .305 xwOBA over 135 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .290 xwOBA over 249 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .338 xwOBA over 535 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
-
2 AB Alex Bregman RHB .312
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Alex Bregman
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .329 xwOBA over 381 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .317 xwOBA over 128 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .281 xwOBA over 98 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .294 xwOBA over 242 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .310 xwOBA over 518 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
-
3 MB Michael Busch LHB .331
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Michael Busch
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .373 xwOBA over 214 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .275 xwOBA over 184 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .298 xwOBA over 107 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .316 xwOBA over 220 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .374 xwOBA over 550 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
-
4 PC Pete Crow-Armstrong LHB .338
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Pete Crow-Armstrong
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .352 xwOBA over 188 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .364 xwOBA over 192 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .299 xwOBA over 116 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .312 xwOBA over 195 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .325 xwOBA over 459 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
-
5 IH Ian Happ SH .324
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Ian Happ
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .376 xwOBA over 205 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .251 xwOBA over 290 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .311 xwOBA over 99 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .290 xwOBA over 185 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .357 xwOBA over 586 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
-
6 DS Dansby Swanson RHB .304
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Dansby Swanson
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .356 xwOBA over 302 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .235 xwOBA over 165 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .291 xwOBA over 139 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .258 xwOBA over 264 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .342 xwOBA over 475 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
-
7 SS Seiya Suzuki RHB .332
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Seiya Suzuki
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .392 xwOBA over 320 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .292 xwOBA over 137 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .286 xwOBA over 142 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .275 xwOBA over 274 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .351 xwOBA over 446 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
-
8 CK Carson Kelly RHB .298
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Carson Kelly
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .310 xwOBA over 206 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .289 xwOBA over 86 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .282 xwOBA over 83 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .276 xwOBA over 166 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .329 xwOBA over 310 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
-
9 MC Michael Conforto LHB .320
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Michael Conforto
- Sinker (37% usage) projects to .371 xwOBA over 162 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Changeup (22% usage) projects to .267 xwOBA over 164 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Sweeper (18% usage) projects to .276 xwOBA over 68 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Slider (12% usage) projects to .297 xwOBA over 126 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Four-Seam Fastball (10% usage) projects to .356 xwOBA over 417 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
Manager comparison
AWAY · CHC
Lineup 3.3 R
Bunts 0.7 R
IBBs 0.9 R
HOME · KC
Lineup 3.7 R
Bunts 2.4 R
IBBs 1.8 R
Bullpen availability
AWAY · CHC
- Available 5
- Limited 0
- Rest required 0
- Inactive 0
HOME · KC
- Available 6
- Limited 3
- Rest required 0
- Inactive 0
Recent form
AWAY · CHC
7-3
W4
+20 run diff
WWWWLWLWLW
HOME · KC
4-6
L1
-6 run diff
LWWLLLLWLW
Pitching & bullpen preview
Probable starters and each bullpen's availability load in the sections above — the Cubs and Royals staffs going in.
Once the game ends, a full pitching and bullpen breakdown appears here: starter lines, the relief sequence and each arm's role, pitch counts, and where the game turned.
Keep reading
How RunsLeft analyzes games
Standard content on this page comes from the MLB Stats API. The pitching analysis describes how the game was pitched — the starter's line, the bullpen sequence and each arm's role (opener, bulk, setup, closer), pitch counts as a fatigue signal, and the leverage context where the game turned. Reliever roles are inferred from how the manager used each arm up to that date. It describes structure and constraints; it does not grade the manager.