Crown points

• David Lough wasn't in the lineup for the second day in a row as the Royals opened Monday night's series at Progressive Field. Yost said the outfielder is not feeling any lingering effects from Saturday, when he was injured sliding into Detroit catcher Brayan Pena in the third inning.

Yost said, depending on matchups, that Lough will rotate between Lorenzo Cain (who is back after suffering a strained oblique), Justin Maxwell and Jarrod Dyson.

• The Royals kicked off September with six wins and two losses, making for the organization's best start to a September since the World Series championship year of 1985, when the Royals started September 7-1 en route to an 18-12 finish in the month. Kansas City has now posted winning records in four of the first five months in a non-strike season for the first time since 1989.

• Sunday's 5-2 win over Detroit gave the Royals a 9-7 season record against the AL Central leaders. By comparison, Cleveland went 4-15 against the Tigers this season.