KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- When the calendar flips to September, contending teams do more than peek at the scoreboard and standings. They stare.The Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals, two teams hoping to extend their seasons deep into October, open a three-game series Friday night at Kauffman Stadium. Both teams are chasing the Cleveland Indians in the American League Central and both are in the thick of the wild card madness.We dont have many series that arent important, but Kansas City has been hot, so in that sense weve got to bring our A-game, Indians manager Brad Ausmus said. Theyve played very well against us this year.The Royals have won nine of 13 against the Tigers this season, including five of seven in Kansas City.The white-hot Royals had won 18 of 22 after thrashing the New York Yankees on Monday night, but then were cooled off, losing two-extra-inning games to snap their seven-series winning streak.Im very aware of KC, Ausmus said. When I do check the scoreboard, Im checking both of their (scores). I have with more frequency looked at what other teams are doing in the last week. The first two months of the season, I will look at highlights of games, parts of games, but not the standings very often.Both teams had Thursday off and Royals manager Ned Yost said it could not have come at a better time with his bullpen depleted from overwork.The off-day is going to do us good, Yost said. Everybody is going to be able to recharge a little bit. Its going to be good for us to just relax a little bit and get recharged.While the Royals have yet to announce who will be their September callups, Yost said closer Wade Davis will be activated Friday and return to the bullpen. Davis threw an inning Tuesday for Triple-A Omaha, striking out two and yielding a hit. He has been on the disabled list since July 28 with a strained flexor.Our bullpen is in dire straits right now, Yost said. Weve had a ton of usages on these guys the last four or five days. We were hoping to get to September 1st but we just couldnt. Wade threw (Tuesday for Omaha). It would have been perfect if they didnt get a rainout Monday, Wade would have been available for (Wednesday), but with him throwing him Tuesday, well activate him (Friday).The Tigers announced they will call up pitcher Buck Famer and third-string catcher John Hicks, who was with the Seattle Mariners last year but has yet to make his Detroit debut. This will be Farmers sixth stint this season with Detroit. While he started with Triple-A Toledo, he will be used out of the bullpen.Royals left-hander Danny Duffy will start the series opener. Duffy had won 10 straight decisions before losing his past outing at Boston, allowing seven runs on nine hits over five innings. Duffy is 7-1 with a 2.90 ERA and 55 strikeouts since the All-Star break.Duffy is 6-0 with a 3.16 ERA at home and hasnt lost at Kauffman Stadium since Sept. 5, 2015.Duffy is 2-0 with a 4.71 ERA in five appearances, including three starts, against Detroit this season. He beat the Tigers 6-1 on Aug. 16, limiting them to one run and three hits over 7 2/3 innings. He is 5-6 with a 3.24 ERA in 27 career appearances against Detroit.The Tigers will start right-hander Anibal Sanchez, who is 7-13 with a 5.92 ERA, but pitched brilliantly in his last start against the Royals. In one start and one relief appearance this season against the Royals, Sanchez has a 0.96 ERA, yielding one earned run while striking out nine in 9 1/3 innings.Eric Hosmer has a .306 average (11-for-36) with one home run and five RBI off Sanchez, while Jarrod Dyson is only 3-for-26 against him. Cheap Air Max . Note: The Calgary Flames announced Tuesday that Sean Monahan would not be made available to Canadas World Junior team. Air Max Outlet . Miller reached right to deflect Mikhail Grabovskis attempt with just over 2 minutes remaining in regulation, and then made two more saves in the shootout Sunday to give the Sabres a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals. http://www.chinaairmaxcheap.com/ . Houston won 3-0 to advance to face New York in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Last in the game, Di Vaio and Romero got into a shoving match with several Houston players. Romero appeared to elbow and kick Houston defender Kofi Sarkodie. Wholesale Air Max . Badenhop was 2-3 with a 3.47 ERA in 63 relief appearances for Milwaukee this season. He is 18-20 in his career with three saves and a 3. (STATS) -- Theres anticipation surrounding the FCS matchups between the Big Sky and Missouri Valley conferences this weekend, especially with three of them pitting nationally ranked teams.The one thats overshadowed is Weber State at South Dakota, two 0-1 teams coming off lopsided losses to FBS opponents.But that game includes a story that is as inspiring as any from the Eastern Washington-North Dakota State, Montana-Northern Iowa and Northern Arizona-Western Illinois showdowns.Weber State third-year coach Jay Hill has been juggling two concerns over the last month. His Big Sky team, of course, but also the fact his wife Sara is suffering from Hodgkins lymphoma, cancer of the immune system.Sara has been given a good prognosis, and the Hills, including their four children, have gained a lot of support beyond family and friends.This week, their network of support has included South Dakota fans who have joined the fight to stay #SaraStrong as former USD defensive end Dave Hultgren helped create a Coyotes for Sara GoFundMe page.Everyone (in the USD football brotherhood) said we all know people whove been touched by cancerr, Hultgren said.dddddddddddd It isnt really the amount (of money) that matters; its just the intent of it, and the good will that comes from it.Also, letting (the Hill family) know that were thinking about them, and praying for them. We want (Sara) to have a fast and speedy recovery.Donations also will be collected from tailgaters at the game and presented to Weber State athletic director Jerry Bovee afterward.This is an extremely classy act by the South Dakota fans, Jay Hill said. It sure puts things into perspective of whats most important. It shows how classy those Dakota schools are, and how they handle their business.The Weber State community in Ogden, Utah, has rallied around the Hill family as well. During the preseason, many coaches and players on the Wildcats team shaved their heads in support of Sara as she began chemotherapy.Also, notable college football coaches, including Ohio States Urban Meyer, Utahs Kyle Whittingham and BYUs Kalani Sitake, have given support to the Hills. ' ' '