(Photo credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images)

The Detroit Tigers have a seemingly comfortable lead over second-place Kansas City in the AL Central. And yet, it's the Royals that are playing more like a playoff team at the moment.

While looking to continue their season success against those Royals, the Tigers try to avoid a fifth straight defeat Friday night in Kansas City.

Detroit owns an 8 1/2-game lead over the Royals in the Central and is 7-3 in the season series between the clubs.

The Tigers won the first two of last weekend's three-game home set versus Kansas City, then fell 10-8 in Sunday's finale.

They then went to northern California and were outscored 22-9 while being swept in a three-game series by the Athletics.

'Things can change in a heartbeat,' Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said.

'I think when you get outplayed on offense, defense, pitching, kind of across the board, it's painful to watch sometimes and painful to experience as a team.'

Against the A's, Detroit went 3-for-26 with runners in scoring position, made six errors and each starting pitcher yielded at least five runs. The Tigers managed just two hits during Wednesday's 7-0 defeat.

'We're going to head to Kansas City and be better,' Hinch added.

Detroit totaled 19 runs against the Royals last weekend, and tagged scheduled Kansas City starter Seth Lugo (8-6, 3.99 ERA) for six runs and six hits over 4 1/3 innings on Sunday. The veteran right-hander is 0-1 with a 10.13 ERA in his last four starts.

In three 2025 starts versus Detroit, Lugo is 0-2 with an 8.16 ERA. Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler is 3-for-6 with a home run versus Lugo this season, while Riley Greene has homered twice against him in 2025.

Teammate Wenceel Perez is 3-for-5 and has also homered against Lugo this year.

Kansas City, though, followed that rough series at Detroit by taking two of three against the Chicago White Sox to split its six-game trip. Though catching the Tigers in the Central seems like a tall order, the Royals entered Thursday just three games out of the final wild-card spot in the AL.

'Everything is in front of us, we've just got to take care of business,' the Royals' Adam Frazier, who had three hits with an RBI during Wednesday's 12-1 rout of the Chicago White Sox, told the Kansas City Radio Network.

Star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr is batting .397 with nine RBIs during a 16-game hitting streak for the Royals, who have won 11 of the last 16. Meanwhile, teammate Vinnie Pasquantino has batted .333 with two home runs and seven RBIs in the last seven games versus Detroit.

Witt and Pasquantino are a combined 4-for-12 all-time against scheduled Detroit starter Chris Paddack (5-11, 4.98 ERA), who allowed eight runs and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings at Minnesota on Aug. 17. But, he bounced back Saturday by giving up a run in five innings of a 4-2 win over the Royals.

'(The Royals are) an aggressive team. We got some quick outs, and were pretty efficient,' Paddack told the Tigers' official website.

Detroit's Spencer Torkelson went 1-for-11 against the A's this week, but is batting .297 with four homers and 12 RBIs in 10 games versus Kansas City this season.

--Field Level Media