The 28-year-old went 19-7 with a 3.89 ERA overall this season and went 10-2 with a 3.11 ERA in his final 14 starts. McHugh and Dallas Keuchel, who went 20-8 this season and got the win over the Yankees in Tuesday's AL Wild Card Game presented by Budweiser, are the first Astros duo to win at least 19 games each since 1999, when Mike Hampton went 22-4 and Jose Lima 21-10.
McHugh has faced the Royals just once in his career, tossing seven shutout innings at Kauffman Stadium on May 27, 2014.
The Royals, who won the AL Central and finished the season with the league's best record, will start right-hander Yordano Ventura in the opener of the five-game series.