Kansas City Royals News

Jonathan Villar, Anthony Santander, Renato Nunez and Hanser Alberto homered as the Baltimore Orioles defeated the visiting Kansas City Royals 8-1 on Wednesday night in the rubber game of a three-game series.Baltimore has won two straight games after dropping eight in a row. Kansas City lost for the fourth time in five games.The four home runs gave the Orioles seven of their eight runs on the night. Baltimore took an early 3-0 lead and never trailed.That helped starter Aaron Brooks (3-7) earn his first win with the Orioles after he took started 0-4 since being acquired from the Oakland A's. Brooks gave up one run and scattered seven hits in five innings, working his way out of a few jams. He walked one and struck out four.Baltimore relievers Paul Fry, Shawn Armstrong and Richard Bleier then blanked the Royals -- keeping them hitless -- over the final four innings.Royals starter Mike Montgomery (3-6) allowed five runs on eight hits -- including three homers -- in five innings. He struck out three and walked three.The Orioles took the lead in the second inning when Villar belted a two-run homer. Stevie Wilkerson added an RBI double later in the inning that made it 3-0.

Brock Holt hit a game-winning single in the bottom of the 10th inning to lead the host Boston Red Sox past the Kansas City Royals 5-4 in the completion of a suspended game on Thursday afternoon.Holt's liner down the left-field line drove in pinch runner Chris Owings and brought an end to a contest that originally began Aug. 7. The score was tied at 4 in the top of the 10th when heavy rains forced a delay of 1 hour and 49 minutes that ultimately led to the decision to call for a suspension.The resumption, scheduled for Thursday - a mutual off day for both clubs - lasted all of 12 minutes before Holt's game-winning hit. The Royals had flown in from playing in Baltimore on Wednesday.When things kicked off Thursday, the Royals pinch-hit Nick Dini for Meibrys Viloria, who had worked a 2-1 count against Red Sox reliever Josh Taylor before the original game was halted. Dini inherited that 2-1 count, and Taylor (1-1) picked up where he left off and got a first-pitch lineout to first.After Ryan O'Hearn struck out, Bubba Starling pinch-hit for Billy Hamilton, who is no longer on the Royals after being claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Braves on Monday. Starling grounded out.

Hanser Alberto belted a three-run homer with two outs in the eighth inning as the host Baltimore Orioles snapped an eight-game losing streak with a 4-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday.Rio Ruiz had an RBI single in the seventh inning for the Orioles, who posted just their second win in 15 games overall and snapped a four-game losing skid to Kansas City.Meibrys Viloria's sacrifice fly plated Alex Gordon in the second inning for the Royals, who were thwarted in their bid for a season-high fourth straight road win.Jacob Barnes (1-2) issued walks to Trey Mancini and Jace Peterson in the eighth inning of a tie game before Alberto deposited 1-1 cutter over the wall in center field to give Baltimore a 4-1 lead.Alberto's eighth homer of the season made a winner of Hunter Harvey (1-0), who recorded his first career decision after striking out a pair of batters in one inning.Mychal Givens retired the side in the ninth inning to secure his 10th save.The Royals opened the scoring in the second as Gordon singled off Dylan Bundy to lead off the inning before advancing to third on a base hit from Ryan O'Hearn. Viloria's sacrifice fly to center field plated Gordon to give Kansas City a 1-0 lead.

Nicky Lopez and Nick Dini homered on back-to-back pitches starting the seventh inning, and that helped the visiting Kansas City Royals defeat the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 on Monday night.The victory ended a two-game losing streak for the Royals while Baltimore has dropped eight consecutive games.Kansas City scored three in the sixth and was up 3-2 when Lopez homered on the first pitch of that seventh inning off Gabriel Ynoa. Dini followed with his solo shot on the next pitch. That was Dini's first major league home run and gave the Royals a three-run lead.Kansas City starter Jorge Lopez (2-7) turned in one of his best performances this season, giving up one run on two hits in five innings.Ian Kennedy came on in the ninth and closed it for his 21st save despite allowing a home run.Baltimore left-hander John Means (8-9) had been working on some mechanical things after struggling since the All-Star break. Means kept the Royals hitless through five innings before running into trouble.The Orioles took a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Jace Peterson singled to lead off the inning, then scored when DJ Stewart doubled to deep right two batters later.

Pete Alonso hit his 40th home run of the season, establishing a National League record for rookies, as the New York Mets defeated the Kansas City Royals 11-5 on Sunday in Kansas City. Alonso's ninth-inning blast cleared the Mets bullpen in left.Trailing 4-3, the Mets scored six runs off the Kansas City bullpen in the seventh inning to seize the game.Kevin McCarthy (2-2) relieved Royals starter Glenn Sparkman to start the inning. McCarthy gave up a double to Todd Frazier, who scored the tying run on a single by pinch-hitter J.D. Davis. Tomas Nido doubled to right sending Davis to third. Amed Rosario then singled in both runners with a single up the middle.Richard Lovelady relieved McCarthy. He faced four batters and gave up hits to Joe Panik, Alonso, Michael Conforto and Wilson Ramos, with the last three accounting for RBIs. Josh Staumont relieved Lovelady and put out the fire.Jeurys Familia (4-1) picked up the win after a scoreless sixth before the Mets rally.Neither Sparkman nor Mets starter Zach Wheeler factored in the decision. Sparkman allowed three runs on five hits through six innings. Royals starting pitchers had thrown six straight quality starts, but that streak was on the line early. Conforto hit a three-run home run off Sparkman with one out in the first. Wheeler gave up four runs (three earned) on four hits through five innings.

Jacob deGrom pitched seven innings of one-run ball and star rookie Pete Alonso hit a tiebreaking two-run bases-loaded single with two outs in the seventh inning and the visiting New York Mets defeated the Kansas City Royals 4-1 Saturday night.DeGrom (8-7) gave up two of his three hits to Hunter Dozier, who singled in the fourth and seventh. He struck out five, walked two and threw 107 pitches.DeGrom allowed three runs or less for the 16th straight time and, not including openers, it is the longest active streak in the majors. He also moved five ahead of injured Washington ace Max Scherzer for the National League lead with 194 strikeouts.Alonso snapped a 1-1 deadlock after barely missing a grand slam. He hit a long fly ball that appeared to land in fair territory in a right field seating area filled with Mets fans. The Mets asked for a crew chief review but following a 1:47 review, the call stood as a foul ball when it appeared umpires could not get a good angle at the ball traveling into the dusk.Two pitches later, Alonso slapped a single to the lip of the dirt at second baseman Whit Merrifield, who was shifted behind the bag. Merrifield fielded the ball as Juan Lagares scored but the ball was cut off at the mound and Aaron Altherr scored the second run to make to 3-1.New York's stars helped the Mets win for the 17th time in their past 22 games.DeGrom allowed two hits to start the seventh but got a double play on Cheslor Cuthbert. After walking Brett Phillips, the reigning NL Cy Young award winner blew a fastball past Ryan O'Hearn for his final strikeout.

The Kansas City Royals designated struggling center fielder Billy Hamilton for assignment on Friday.The 28-year-old Hamilton is batting just .211 with no homers and 12 RBIs. He has 18 steals in 93 games.Kansas City recalled outfielder Brett Phillips from Triple-A Omaha in a corresponding move.The Royals signed Hamilton to a one-year deal in the offseason. He spent the previous five-plus seasons with Cincinnati and batted .245 with 277 steals during his time with the Reds.The speedy Hamilton stole 56 or more bases in each of his first four full seasons with Cincinnati.

Mike Montgomery and four relievers limited the New York Mets to just one run as the Kansas City Royals defeated the Mets 4-1 Friday night in Kansas City. Ian Kennedy loaded the bases in the ninth but escaped with his 21st save in 24 chances.Montgomery (3-5) had his second straight solid outing. After seven scoreless innings in Detroit in his last outing, Montgomery allowed one run on five hits in six innings, with two walks and three strikeouts.Noah Syndergaard (8-6) took the loss for the Mets. Syndergaard who had pitched at least seven innings in five straight starts, saw that streak snapped. He allowed two runs on five hits through six innings. He walked two and struck out six.The Royals, who averaged 5.4 runs per game on their most recent road trip, struggled early. After being shut out in consecutive games by the St. Louis Cardinals, they did not score in the first four innings against Syndergaard, stretching the streak of futility to 22 innings.Montgomery faced traffic in each of the first three innings, allowing two runners with one out in all three innings. After squandering the opportunities in the first two innings, the Mets finally converted in the third. Michael Conforto singled in J.D. Davis, but Todd Frazier rolled into a double play to end the threat with just one run.

Held hitless by Brad Keller through six innings, the St. Louis Cardinals scored five runs in the seventh and defeated the host Kansas City Royals 6-0 on Wednesday.The Cardinals didn't allow a run in the two-game series, as they won 2-0 on Tuesday. St. Louis earned its fifth win in a row while Kansas City fell for the 11th time in 14 games.In the series finale, the Cardinals produced six consecutive singles to start the seventh inning. Five of those runners scored.Dakota Hudson (11-6) matched Keller in scoreless innings long enough to pick up the win. He scattered five hits over six frames, walking two and striking out four.Keller (7-13) gave up back-to-back singles by Marcell Ozuna and Paul DeJong to start the seventh. Matt Carpenter hit a line drive back up the middle, scoring Ozuna and sending Keller to the showers.The 24-year-old right-hander wound up charged with three runs on three hits with five strikeouts and three walks in six-plus innings.Kevin McCarthy replaced Keller and gave up an RBI single to Yadier Molina for the second run. Kolten Wong reached on a bunt single, loading the bases.Randy Arozarena, making his major league debut, followed with an infield single for his first big-league hit and RBI. A sacrifice fly by Dexter Fowler and an RBI fielder's choice by Tommy Edman gave the Cardinals their fourth and fifth runs.

Jack Flaherty continued his recent hot streak with seven shutout innings, as the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Kansas City Royals 2-0 Tuesday in Kansas City.Flaherty has the longest current scoreless-innings streak in the majors at 23 2/3 innings.The Cardinals improved to 38-19 all-time at Kauffman Stadium.Flaherty (6-6) is just 2-1 in his last seven starts, but it's not because of his efforts. He's allowed just four earned runs over 45 1/3 innings (0.79 ERA), beginning with a loss in San Francisco July 6, when he allowed one run on two hits in seven innings. He allowed just three hits Tuesday while striking out seven with one walk.Carlos Martinez got the final two outs for his 13th save in 16 chances.The Royals didn't mount much of a threat against Flaherty. They had two runners on base in the first and the sixth innings, but couldn't come through with the big hit.

Mike Montgomery pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out a career-high 12 batters, and the visiting Kansas City Royals silenced the Detroit Tigers 7-0 on Saturday.Montgomery (2-5) retired the first 12 batters he faced and surpassed his previous career high of 10 strikeouts, set in 2015. He joined the Royals last month after the Chicago Cubs traded him for catcher Martin Maldonado. He allowed just four hits and did not issue a walk.Jorge Soler led the offense with his 33rd homer, a two-run shot. He also scored another run. Whit Merrifield supplied two hits, two runs and two RBIs, and Hunter Dozier added an RBI triple.Detroit's rookie starter Spencer Turnbull (3-10) gave up two runs on three hits in six innings. The Tigers, who won the first two games of the four-game series, were shut out for the 11th time this season. Brandon Dixon had two hits.Montgomery got off to a stellar beginning by striking out the side in the first inning.Neither team had a baserunner until Whit Merrifield led off the fourth with a single. With two down and Merrifield on second, Soler blasted his 444-foot homer to center to give the Royals a 2-0 advantage.Montgomery once again struck out the side in the fourth. Brandon Dixon became the Tigers' first baserunner when he led off the fifth with a single, but he was quickly erased on a strikeout-caught-stealing double play.

Jorge Soler and Hunter Dozier each hit two homers and Jakob Junis continued his dominance against Detroit as the visiting Kansas City Royals overpowered the Tigers 10-2 on Sunday.Soler, who has eight homers against Detroit this season, reached base five times and drove in five runs. Dozier added a triple and scored three runs. Whit Merrifield homered and knocked in three runs.Junis (8-10) is 7-1 in 11 career outings against Detroit. He gave up two runs on six hits and struck out six.The teams split the four-game series.Tigers starter Daniel Norris (3-10) gave up four runs on four hits in three innings. Niko Goodrum homered and drove in both Detroit runs.Merrifield led off the game with a home run, the second time he did so during the series. His 14th homer of the season was also his fourth career homer off Norris in 20 official at-bats.One out later, Dozier blasted his 21st homer over the wall in left-center field.Goodrum put the Tigers on the board in the bottom of the first when he pulled a Junis offering just inside the right-field foul pole.

Edwin Jackson pitched 6 1/3 strong innings in his first game with Detroit in 10 seasons as the host Tigers defeated the Kansas City Royals 5-2 on Friday.Jackson (2-5) gave up one run and four hits, striking out four and walking two. The right-hander signed with the Tigers after being released by the Toronto Blue Jays last month. Jackson, who has pitched for 13 teams, spent a full season with the Tigers in 2009, going 13-9 in an All-Star season.Dawel Lugo had three hits and drove in two runs for the Tigers, who won back-to-back games for the first time since a three-game winning streak in late May. Jake Rogers smacked a solo homer, while Miguel Cabrera reached base three times, scored a run and knocked in another.Jordy Mercer added two hits and scored a run. Niko Goodrum reached base twice and scored both times.Nick Ramirez tossed 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief and Joe Jimenez got the final out for his first save this season.Whit Merrifield hit his second inside-the-park homer of the season, and Jorge Soler supplied his 32nd homer for the Royals. Bubba Starling added two hits. Royals starter Brad Keller (7-12) gave up five runs on 10 hits and struck out six in six innings.Merrifield provided some early excitement with his inside-the-park homer to center in the first inning. The deep shot bounced away from center fielder Victor Reyes as Merrifield circled the bases.

The host Boston Red Sox and Kansas City Royals had the rubber match of their three-game series Wednesday night suspended tied 4-4 in the top of the 10th inning due to unrelenting rain and lightning in the area.The downpour picked up in the ninth, when both teams put the leadoff runner on but failed to score to force extras. Three pitches into the 10th, the decision to pull the tarp on the field was made, and after nearly two hours, the suspension was announced.The contest will resume Thursday, Aug. 22 -- a mutual day off for both teams.The Royals knotted the score at 4 in the seventh against Red Sox reliever Nathan Eovaldi. Hunter Dozier led off with a single and crossed home when a Nicky Lopez grounder up the middle bounced off the glove of second baseman Brock Holt and into center field for an RBI double.Prior to then, Boston went ahead 4-2 in the fifth when Xander Bogaerts lined a two-run double into the left field corner with one out. Bogaerts moved to third on a J.D. Martinez single that chased Kansas City starter Glenn Sparkman, but Tim Hill came out of the bullpen and got the next two outs.The Royals got within one on a Whit Merrifield RBI single with two outs in the sixth.

Jorge Soler homered twice to eclipse 30 for the season as the Kansas City Royals snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 6-2 win over the host Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night.Ryan O'Hearn also went yard as the Royals won for just the second time in their last 12. Kansas City also ended a franchise-long run of eight straight losses to Boston.J.D. Martinez and Christian Vazquez had two hits apiece for the Red Sox, who fell for the ninth time in their past 10 contests. Boston had a record streak of 18 straight games at Fenway Park with a home run come to an end.Soler's first blast, a two-run shot, put the Royals ahead for good, 2-1, with two outs in the fourth inning. O'Hearn then added a run with his homer on the 10th pitch he saw to lead off the fifth, before Soler highlighted a three-run sixth with yet another two-run jack for a 6-1 advantage.The homers were the 30th and 31st of the year for the 27-year-old, who entered the campaign with 38 in parts of five major league seasons.All the damage came against Red Sox right-hander Andrew Cashner, who took the loss for the fourth time in five starts with Boston. Cashner (10-7) gave up six runs on seven hits and two walks in 5 1/3 innings, striking out four.

Rick Porcello emerged from a personal slump by pitching six quality innings as the Boston Red Sox held off the visiting Kansas City Royals 7-5 Monday night to snap an eight-game losing streak.Sam Travis and Rafael Devers homered as Boston took the opener of a three-game series to end its longest skid since 2015. Porcello (10-8) gave up one run on four hits and two walks, striking out five.Bubba Starling, Cheslor Cuthbert and Meibrys Viloria homered for Kansas City, which dropped its seventh straight.With his team trailing 7-2, Starling's three-run shot off Matt Barnes pulled the Royals within two with two outs in the eighth. Barnes got the final out and turned it over to Brandon Workman, who pitched around a one-out double in the ninth for his sixth save.Porcello, who had given up six runs in four of his last six starts, hung zeroes over the first five innings. Boston's offense kicked into gear in a three-run third as Mookie Betts led off with a four-pitch walk, moved to third on a Devers single and scored when a Xander Bogaerts grounder was muffed by Nicky Lopez at shortstop.After a double play, Travis crushed a two-run shot to left-center for a 3-0 lead.

Jason Castro homered and Devin Smeltzer tossed six shutout innings to pick up his first major league victory as the Minnesota Twins completed a three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 3-0 victory on Sunday afternoon in Minneapolis.The left-handed Smeltzer (1-1), recalled from Triple-A Rochester earlier Sunday when reliever Sam Dyson was placed on the injured list with right biceps tendinitis, allowed just a pair of singles and a walk in his third major league start. He struck out four and also picked off a runner.Taylor Rogers pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his 17th save. Tyler Duffey and Sergio Romo each pitched a hitless inning of relief.Eddie Rosario had two hits and two RBIs and Luis Arraez went 2-for-3 with a walk and scored twice for the Twins, who won for the sixth time in seven games.Brad Keller (7-11) suffered his first loss in five career starts against Minnesota, allowing two runs on five hits and a walk over seven innings while striking out seven. It was the sixth straight loss for the Royals.Minnesota took a 1-0 lead in the sixth when Arraez led off with a single, took second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on a groundout by Nelson Cruz. He scored on a sacrifice fly by Rosario into the gap in right-center, where Jorge Soler made a diving catch on a sinking liner.

Nelson Cruz had his second three-home run game in 10 days and drove in five runs while C.J. Cron and Jorge Polanco also homered to power the Minnesota Twins to a 11-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night in Minneapolis.The 39-year-old Cruz, who also hit three homers in a 10-3 victory at Chicago on July 25, moved past Johnny Bench into a tie with Graig Nettles for 62nd on the all-time home run list with his 390th of his career in the sixth inning off reliever Jorge Lopez, his third of the game and 30th of the season. The reigning American League Player of the Week now has 11 home runs and 23 RBIs in his last nine starts and has also homered in five consecutive games at Target Field.Cruz also became the first player in Twins history to have two three-homer games in a season. It's the seventh time in his career that he has hit at least 30 home runs in a season.Minnesota extended its major league record with at least five home runs in a game to 10. The Twins lead the majors with 216 homers.Kyle Gibson (11-4) picked up the win, allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits over 6 2/3 innings.Jorge Soler hit his 29th home run of the season for Kansas City, which lost its fifth straight game. Danny Duffy (5-6), who entered the contest with a 4-1 record and 2.63 ERA in eight career starts at Target Field, allowed nine runs (eight earned) on eight hits and two walks over 4 2/3 innings and gave up four home runs.Minnesota took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on a two-run homer by Cruz, a 354-foot drive that sliced inside the right field foul pole.

Nelson Cruz hit a home run, doubled twice off the wall in right-center and drove in five runs, while Max Kepler had two doubles, two walks and scored three times to lead the Minnesota Twins to a wild 11-9 victory over the visiting Kansas City Royals on Friday.Jorge Polanco went 2-for-5 with two runs scored and Eddie Rosario went 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored for the Twins who remained three games in front of the Cleveland Indians in the American League Central.Trevor May (4-3) recorded one out to pick up the win. Sergio Romo got the final four outs, including two strikeouts, to pick up his first save with Minnesota and 18th of the season.Hunter Dozier hit two home runs and Cam Gallagher also homered and had two hits for Kansas City which lost its fourth straight game. Whit Merrifield, Cheslor Cuthbert and Jorge Soler each had a double and three hits for the Royals who finished with 15 hits. Richard Lovelady (0-1) allowed two runs in 1 1/3 innings of relief.Kansas City took a 1-0 lead in the first when Merrifield opened the game with a single, stole second and scored on a single by Soler.Minnesota took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the first when Kepler doubled and scored on Cruz's 27th home run of the season, a 412-foot line drive into the second deck in left-center.The Twins extended their lead to 4-1 an inning later when Luis Arraez opened the inning with a walk and scoredon a sacrifice fly by Ehire Adrianza. Kepler then came through with an RBI double.

Bo Bichette hit his first career home run and Jacob Waguespack pitched six strong innings as the visiting Toronto Blue Jays completed a three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 4-1 victory Wednesday afternoon.Bichette led off the eighth with a home run for a 3-1 lead. The touted shortstop prospect made his debut Monday against the Royals, and finished the series 6-for-9 with a double and a home run.Waguespack (2-1) went six innings, allowing one run on three hits. He struck out two and walked two. Waguespack joined recent call-ups Thomas Pannone and Sean Reid-Foley as the Toronto starters limited the Royals to three earned runs in 17 innings in the three-game series.Justin Shafer picked up his first career save with a scoreless ninth.Kansas City starter Jakob Junis (6-10) gave up four runs on six hits in seven innings. He struck out six and walked two, allowing two home runs.The Royals' first hit resulted in their first run. Cam Gallagher led off the third inning with a home run that just cleared the left field fence. It was Gallagher's second home run of the season. Gallagher is hitting .310 (9-for-29) since July 15, when starting catcher Martin Maldonado was traded to the Chicago Cubs.