ST. LOUIS (Interstat) — The St. Louis Cardinals host the Kansas City Royals on Friday night at Busch Stadium III, opening a three-game interleague series. First pitch is set for 7:15 p.m. under a forecast of 66 degrees and rain.

The Cardinals (25-18) enter with a six-game lead over the Royals in the standings. Kansas City (19-25) has lost five of its last six games, including a 6-2 defeat Thursday at the Chicago White Sox.

Pitching matchup: Right-hander Dustin May (3-4) is scheduled to start for Kansas City. May has been inconsistent, allowing three earned runs or more in four of his last seven outings. The Cardinals have not announced a starter for Friday.

Players to watch: Royals reliever Luinder Avila has been effective out of the bullpen recently. Over his last six appearances, Avila has thrown 9⅓ innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits with 10 strikeouts. He threw two scoreless innings Thursday against the White Sox.

Cardinals right-hander Michael McGreevy has been dominant in his last three starts. Over 18 innings, McGreevy has allowed just one earned run on nine hits with 15 strikeouts. He earned the win Thursday at Oakland, allowing one run over six innings.

Recent results: Kansas City has lost four straight series, dropping two of three to Detroit and getting swept in a two-game set at Chicago. The Royals are 2-8 in their last 10 games.

St. Louis took two of three from this week and has won six of its last nine games. The Cardinals went 5-2 on their road trip through San Diego and Oakland.

Projections: Interstat’s game simulator projects a 6-5 Cardinals victory. The ELO system gives St. Louis a 53.6 percent probability to win. Despite being the road underdog in the standings, Kansas City opened as a -1.5 run favorite. The over/under is 8.5.

Schedule note: The series continues Saturday and Sunday before Kansas City returns home to host Boston on Monday. St. Louis hosts Pittsburgh for three games beginning Tuesday.