(Sports Network) - Cliff Lee goes for win No. 21 this afternoon when the Cleveland Indians play the rubber match of their three-game series with the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.

Lee became the Indians' first 20-game winner since Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry finished 21-13 in 1974 on Monday with his sixth straight win, a five-hit shutout against the Chicago White Sox, improving him to 20-2, while lowering his major league best earned run average to 2.32.

The 30-year-old Lee has now won his last nine decisions.

Three of Lee's 20 wins this season have come against the Royals and he is 10-4 lifetime against them with a 4.72 ERA in 17 starts.

Cleveland will need a big start from its ace this afternoon after it had its 10-game road winning streak snapped on Saturday, as Gil Meche pitched seven effective innings to give Kansas City a 3-1 victory.

Meche (11-10) finished the game allowing just one run on three hits and two walks while striking out 10 batters. Joakim Soria pitched a perfect ninth for his 35th save of the year.

David DeJesus finished the game batting 3-for-4 with two runs batted in while Mark Teahen had two hits for the Royals, winners in four out of five.

Zach Jackson (0-2) was solid for seven innings but received the loss. He allowed three runs on nine hits without walking a batter while striking out two.

Shin-Soo Choo recorded two of the Indians' three hits and scored the lone run, and Asdrubal Cabrera got the other hit as Cleveland lost for the fifth time in its last eight games overall.

Choo has now hit safely in his last 10 games.

Kansas City will hand the ball today to 24-year-old righty Zack Greinke, who is 10-9 with a 3.67 ERA. Greinke won for the first time in five starts on Tuesday against Oakland, as he surrendered a pair of runs and six hits in seven innings.

Greinke, though, is just 3-7 in 16 games (11 starts) against the Tribe with a 3.96 ERA.

Cleveland has won four of its last five against the Royals and is 8-5 on the season against their division's cellar dwellers, including wins in five of the eight matchups in Kansas City.