Athletics vs. Royals, 2014 A.L. Wild Card Game: Time, TV schedule, live stream and starting pitchers

The regular season is over, and the champagne celebrations have ended. Now the A’s and Royals will face off Tuesday in Kansas City to decide who plays the Angels in the ALDS.

by Alex Skillin

Sep 30, 2014, 12:00 PM UTC

Jonathan Daniel

The Kansas City Royals and Oakland Athletics both made big trades to acquire a top starting pitcher specifically for games like Tuesday night's AL Wild Card matchup. Now, James Shields and Jon Lester will face off to help determine which team advances to play the Angels in the ALDS.

Royals general manager Dayton Moore traded for Shields in the 2012 offseason, hoping the veteran right-hander would be the anchor for a starting rotation that could lead Kansas City to a long-awaited playoff berth. Although Moore gave up young outfielder Wil Myers as part of the deal, Shields has been everything the Royals could have hoped for. The 32-year-old topped 225 innings in back-to-back seasons, and posted a 3.21 ERA with more than four times as many strikeouts as walks in 2014.

Lester, meanwhile, has had a career year, hardly missing a beat since arriving in Oakland from Boston at the trade deadline. The left-hander finished the season with a career-best ERA (2.46) and FIP (2.80), and his highest strikeout rate since 2010 (24.9 percent). With the A’s, Lester has made 11 starts, compiling a 2.35 ERA with 71 strikeouts in 76⅔ innings. He hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in any outing with Oakland.

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Given how much both clubs’ offenses have struggled, it’s safe to say runs will be hard to come by with Lester and Shields toeing the rubber. The Royals and A’s made it this far on the backs of their respective aces. Can Shields help the Royals continue a storybook run to the postseason? Or will Lester reward the A’s and Billy Beane for their faith in acquiring him at the deadline?