Will Warren Takes 6-1 Record Into Yankees - Royals Series
Will Warren brings a 6-1 record into yankees - royals on Monday afternoon at Kauffman Stadium as the Yankees open a three-game series against Kansas City. He has won six of his first 10 starts in 2026, but he has not finished six innings in each of his last two outings.
Warren's Early Run
The right-hander has worked with strong support behind him. The Yankees averaged 7.8 runs per game in Warren's first 10 starts, a cushion that helped cover for shorter outings when he was not deep enough into games.
That leaves this start with a clear split: the record looks sharp, but the innings count has been lighter lately. Warren enters against a Royals lineup that will try to make him work deeper into the afternoon after he has fallen short of six full innings in back-to-back starts.
Michael Wacha And Kansas City
Michael Wacha starts for Kansas City, and he has been the Royals' best starter to this point. He already handled the Yankees once this season, throwing six innings of three-hit ball in the Bronx before New York won 4-2.
Wacha has also been one of the few Kansas City arms to give the club length. He has finished at least seven innings four times in 2026, including a couple of times in May, which makes him the obvious counterweight to Warren in the opener.
Royals' Rotation And Bullpen
The Royals have been piecing together the back end of their rotation with just four true starters working their schedule. Bailey Falter and Luinder Avila most recently filled the fifth spot, with Falter used as an opener and Avila as the bulk option on May 19.
Avila threw three scoreless innings in that home loss to the Red Sox before the bullpen faltered late. Kansas City now enters this series carrying a 23rd-place bullpen ERA and a 26th-place bullpen WHIP, two numbers that put more pressure on Wacha to keep the Yankees from turning the game into a late-inning chase.
The matchup also comes with a slight edge for New York after Aaron Judge ended the homestand on Sunday with a walk-off, two-run blast. For the Yankees, this first game in Kansas City is the next test of whether Warren can keep converting starts into wins even when he does not stay on the mound for six innings.
