What It Means:

Jake Marisnick will instead get the start in center field. Gomez was able to play in Tuesday's wild-card game, but it's not known if his absence is related to the intercostal injury that limited him throughout September.

Gomez had a big impact in that game, as well, belting a long solo home run. Marisnick is more often used against left-handed pitchers, but Thursday is different. Royals' starter Yordano Ventura has a lower strikeout rate against righties (20.2 percent) than lefties (24.6 percent), but both Gomez and Marisnick experience that advantage. It's possible this is just a day of rest to keep Gomez from overextending himself too quickly.