Kansas City Royals News

Veteran left-handed reliever Will Smith is finalizing a one-year, $5 million deal with the Kansas City Royals, according to multiple reports on Sunday.Smith is the only player in major league history to win three straight World Series rings with three different teams. He earned rings with the Atlanta Braves in 2021, the Houston Astros in 2022 and the Texas Rangers last season.Smith had 22 saves while going 2-7 with a 4.40 ERA in 60 appearances for Texas last season.The 2019 All-Star with the San Francisco Giants might have a hard time continuing that streak if he remains with the Royals all season. Kansas City hasn't made the postseason field since winning the 2015 World Series and had the second-worst record (56-106) in the majors last season.Smith, 34, is 33-41 with a 3.67 ERA and 113 saves in 573 appearances (17 starts) with six teams over 11 big-league seasons.

Left-handed reliever Will Smith is set to return to where it all began by signing a one-year, $5 million deal with the Kansas City Royals, ESPN reported Sunday.Smith was with the Royals for his first two major league seasons in 2012 and 2013. The 34-year-old won a World Series ring last season with the Texas Rangers when he went 2-7 with a 4.40 ERA and 22 saves in 60 regular-season appearances.In five postseason appearances in 2023 (3 1/3 innings), Smith had a 10.80 ERA. He made two appearances in the World Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks with a 13.50 ERA.

The Kansas City Royals put on a power display in the season finale, hammering three solo homers in support of Zack Greinke during a 5-2 win over the visiting New York Yankees on Sunday.In possibly the final appearance of his 20-year career, Greinke (2-15) threw five-plus innings of one-run ball. He allowed four hits and two walks while striking out two.MJ Melendez, Edward Olivares and Dairon Blanco went deep off Michael King (4-8), helping the Royal build a 4-0 lead and chasing New York starter after four innings. King surrendered eight hits and a season-high four runs with one strikeout and no walks.Greinke was treated rudely at the start by the Yankees, who opened the game with three straight singles, but he escaped the jam with a double-play grounder.Throwing first-pitch strikes to 15 of 19 batters, Greinke pitched into the sixth inning for the first time since July 4. After walking DJ LeMahieu to open the sixth, Greinke exited to a standing ovation from the home crowd.Melendez connected for his 16th home run leading off the second before Nick Pratto added a two-out RBI single for a 2-0 Kansas City lead.Olivares, his 12th, and Blanco, his third, went deep in the fourth, expanding Kansas City's lead to 4-0. Blanco had three hits and two stolen bases while scoring twice.Bobby Witt Jr. tripled leading off the fifth, his major-league-leading 11th, and scored on Salvador Perez's sacrifice fly for a 5-0 advantage.Isiah Kiner-Falefa's two-out, two-run single in the sixth cut the deficit to 5-2.

The New York Yankees rallied for five unanswered runs in a 5-2 victory over the host Kansas City Royals on Saturday evening, giving Frankie Montas a win in his season debut.Estevan Florial delivered a go-ahead single with two outs in the sixth, breaking a 2-all tie, before Gleyber Torres' bases-loaded, two-run single capped the decisive three-run inning.Montas (1-0), who had right shoulder surgery at the beginning of spring training, pitched for the first time in the regular season since Sept. 16, 2022. He recorded four outs while allowing two hits and a walk with one strikeout.After Montas' debut, three additional Yankees relievers pitched out of trouble for 3 2/3 scoreless innings as the Royals went 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position in the game. Clay Holmes earned his 24th save, striking out two in a hitless ninth.The Royals collected leadoff hits in each of the first three innings against starter Clarke Schmidt, who threw four innings, allowing two runs on eight hits.Kansas City jumped ahead 1-0 in the first on three singles as Nelson Velazquez drove in Maikel Garcia with a bloop hit to left.After Bobby Witt Jr. was caught trying to steal his 50th base, Salvador Perez connected for his 23rd homer to increase the Royals' lead to 2-0 in the third inning.In the second inning, Royals opener Steven Cruz gave way to Alec Marsh (3-9), who opened the fourth by throwing nine consecutive balls before allowing two-out RBI hits to Oswaldo Cabrera and Everson Pereira, tying the score 2-2.

The Kansas City Royals blasted visiting New York Yankees starter Carlos Rodón for eight first-inning runs in a 12-5 shellacking Friday evening.Rodón (3-8) closed out his disappointing first season in pinstripes by surrendering six hits and two walks to the first eight batters, becoming the third starter in baseball history - and first since Paul Wilson in 2005 - to allow eight earned runs without recording an out.Signed in the offseason to a six-year, $162 million contract, Rodón added more than a run to his ERA, finishing the year at 6.85.During their biggest inning of the year, the Royals set a franchise record as the first 10 batters reached safely, highlighted by Edward Olivares' two-run homer, his 11th.Maikel Garcia and Salvador Perez each collected two hits in the frame while Perez and Kyle Isbel delivered two-run doubles as Kansas City sent 14 batters to the plate, scoring nine.The Red Sox were the last team to have the first 10 players reach safely. Boston put 11 straight on base against Florida on June 27, 2003, scoring 14 in the first inning of a 25-8 win.Meanwhile, Jordan Lyles (6-17) retired the first 10 batters he faced before walking Aaron Judge ahead of Austin Wells' three-run homer in the fourth inning.Judge doubled and scored on Wells' fourth RBI, a sixth-inning grounder, cutting the deficit to 10-5.Wells' home run, his fourth, was the 39th surrendered by Lyles, setting a Royals' franchise record.

Spencer Torkelson's three-run home run capped a seven-run, seventh-inning outburst, and the host Detroit Tigers completed a three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 7-3 victory on Thursday.Parker Meadows had three hits, a run and an RBI, while Matt Vierling supplied two hits and two RBIs. Andy Ibanez had the go-ahead hit for the Tigers (76-83), who have won four straight.The Tigers claimed an 8-0 victory earlier in the day, completing a suspended game from the previous night.Detroit starter Sawyer Gipson-Long gave up three runs (two earned) and four hits while striking out six in five innings. Jose Cisnero (3-4) pitched a scoreless inning and was credited with the win.Royals starter Cole Ragans (7-5) was charged with four runs in 6 1/3 innings while striking out eight. Michael Massey hit a two-run homer for Kansas City (54-105).The Royals grabbed the lead in the first inning. Bobby Witt Jr. reached on a fielder's choice, stole second and moved up to third when first baseman Tyler Nevin booted Massey's grounder. Edward Olivares brought Witt home with a two-out single.Kansas City added to its advantage in the third. MJ Melendez drew a leadoff walk, and after a pair of flyouts, Massey smashed his 15th homer over the right field wall.

Miguel Cabrera hit his 511th career homer and four pitchers combined on a shutout, lifting the host Detroit Tigers to an 8-0 win over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday in the completion of a suspended game.Cabrera, who is retiring at the end of the season, homered during the second inning on Wednesday night. The game was suspended after four innings due to inclement weather.Tyler Nevin launched a three-run homer as a pinch-hitter. Cabrera reached base three times, scoring two runs and driving in a pair. Nevin also scored two runs.Jake Rogers added a two-run shot for Detroit (75-83).Detroit starter Tarik Skubal cruised through the four innings, holding the Royals to two hits while racking up eight strikeouts. Miguel Diaz (1-0) tossed two innings of hitless relief and was credited with the win.Brenan Hanifee and Trey Wingenter finished off the Tigers' 14th shutout of the season.The Royals (54-104) used Jonathan Bowlan as their opener. Bowlan, making his major-league debut, gave up Cabrera's homer in two innings of work.Kansas City batters were limited to four hits and didn't draw a walk.

The game between Detroit and visiting Kansas City Royals was suspended after four innings due to rain on Wednesday night with the Tigers leading 4-0.The contest will be resumed at 1:10 p.m. ET on Thursday. The regularly scheduled game will begin approximately 40 minutes after the conclusion of the suspended game.Miguel Cabrera, who is retiring at the end of the season, blasted his fourth homer of the season and 511th of his career in the second inning. Tyler Nevin launched a three-run homer as a fourth-inning pinch hitter.Rain fell for much of the contest and picked up after the fourth inning, forcing the umpires to call a delay. After a wait of more than an hour, the decision was made to suspend the game.Detroit starter Tarik Skubal cruised through the four innings, holding the Royals to two hits while racking up eight strikeouts and issuing no walks.Skubal won all four of his previous starts in September, and the rain delay may have cost him another victory.In 10 previous appearances against Kansas City, including eight starts, Skubal was 1-7 with a 5.51 ERA.The Royals (54-103) used Jonathan Bowlan as their opener. The 26-year-old right-hander, making his major league debut, gave up one run, on Cabrera's homer, and three hits in two innings. He struck out two and didn't walk a batter.

Pinch hitter Akil Baddoo and Parker Meadows hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth inning and the host Detroit Tigers snapped the Kansas City Royals' six-game winning streak with a 6-3 victory on Tuesday.Baddoo's 11th homer broke a 2-2 deadlock. Spencer Torkelson supplied a two-run double for the Tigers (74-83) in the opener of a three-game series.Jason Foley (3-3) pitched one scoreless inning of relief to pick up the win.Salvador Perez, Nick Pratto and Nick Loftin drove in the runs for the Royals (54-103).Kansas City starter Zack Greinke gave up one hit and one walk in five scoreless innings while notching five strikeouts. Detroit starter Reese Olson allowed two runs, one earned, on five hits in 5 2/3 innings. He finished with seven strikeouts and two walks.Olson created his own mess in the second inning, and it cost him a run. Nelson Velazquez reached on a throwing error by Olson. After Olson retired the next two batters, he unleashed a wild pitch to allow Velazquez to move to second, and Pratto followed with an RBI single.After walking the next batter and committing a balk, Olson prevented further damage by striking out Maikel Garcia.

Taylor Clarke muted a late rally attempt and the Kansas City Royals turned small-ball offense into a 3-2 victory over the host Houston Astros and a three-game road series win on Saturday.The Royals (53-102) earned their fourth win in five games over the slumping Astros (85-70), whose postseason hopes took a blow with their eighth loss in 11 games. Houston fell 1 1/2 games behind the Texas Rangers, who beat the Seattle Mariners 2-0, in the American League West.Houston is in possession of the AL's third wild-card spot by a half-game over Seattle.Kansas City has won five straight games and nine of its past 10.Stymied by Royals right-hander Jordan Lyles (5-17) for five innings, the Astros mounted a rally against the Kansas City bullpen starting with a leadoff home run by Chas McCormick in the seventh that cut the deficit to two runs. McCormick clubbed his 22nd homer off Royals reliever Collin Snider, who rallied with strikeouts of pinch-hitter Jon Singleton and Jose Altuve to strand Jeremy Pena in scoring position.Houston then stroked back-to-back one-out doubles off Tucker Davidson in the eighth, with Kyle Tucker plating Yordan Alvarez and slicing the margin to one run. But Clarke entered for the Royals and, after plunking Jose Abreu with a pitch, retired McCormick and Yainer Diaz. Clarke then retired the side in order in the ninth for his third save.

Nelson Velazquez produced his second career multi-homer game and the Kansas City Royals capped a stunning three-game road series sweep of the reeling Houston Astros with a 6-5 victory on Sunday.The Royals (54-102) notched their sixth consecutive win and 10th in 11 games, with five of those victories coming against the stumbling Astros (85-71), who have dropped nine of 12 games since taking a 21/2-game lead in the American League West with a win over the San Diego Padres on Sept. 10. Houston lost 17 of its last 23 home games and finished the season 39-42 at Minute Maid Park.The Royals clubbed four homers off Astros rookie right-hander Hunter Brown (11-13), who retired the side in order in the first inning before suddenly coming undone in the second.Velazquez ignited the uprising with his 16th home run leading off the second, a 380-foot shot to right-center field with an exit velocity of 103.5 miles per hour. His blast pulled the Royals even at 1-1 but that deadlock was shortlived as three batters later, Matt Duffy smashed his second home run to left-center, driving home Nick Loftin and lifting the Royals to a 3-1 advantage.Brown needed 33 pitches to complete the second inning. And after the Astros clawed to within 3-2 in the bottom of that frame on a run-scoring groundout from Jose Altuve, Brown surrendered another three-spot in the third that pushed the Astros into a four-run hole.Royals captain Salvador Perez, fresh off reinstatement from the seven-day concussion list, followed a Bobby Witt Jr. leadoff walk with a 410-foot blast to left, his 22nd home run extending the lead to 5-2. Velazquez followed with a shot off the facade of the second deck in right for his 17th home run and first multi-homer game since July 22, 2022, against the Philadelphia Phillies while playing for the Chicago Cubs. Velazquez finished 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs.

Cole Ragans produced his seventh quality start since being acquired by the Kansas City Royals, who rode an ambush first inning into a 7-5 win over the host Houston Astros on Friday.The Royals (52-102) earned their third victory in four games against the spiraling Astros, who fell behind the Texas Rangers and out of first place in the American League West with their seventh loss in 10 games. Houston (85-69) occupies the third AL wild card spot, one-half game ahead of the Seattle Mariners, who lost 8-5 to Texas.Ragans (7-4) held a four-run lead before he took the mound in the bottom of the first. He allowed one run when Yordan Alvarez smoked a one-out double to left-center field that scored Jeremy Pena from first. The Astros halved the deficit an inning later by getting a leadoff, opposite-field home run to Jose Abreu.But Ragans, acquired from Texas on June 30, thwarted the Astros repeatedly over his final four innings of work. He retired the side in order in the third and fifth innings and worked around a leadoff triple by Kyle Tucker in the fourth by sandwiching two groundouts around his strikeout of Mauricio Dubon.When Alvarez and Alex Bregman walked in succession to open the sixth, Ragans buckled down again and recorded three consecutive outs to stymie the Astros once more. Ragans allowed two runs on three hits and four walks with five strikeouts over six innings by limiting the Astros to an 0-for-8 showing with runners in scoring position.

Nelson Velazquez homered to lead the Kansas City Royals past the visiting Cleveland Guardians, 6-2, completing a three-game sweep Wednesday afternoon.After a pair of first-inning Guardians errors, Velazquez pounded his 15th homer above the left-field bullpen for a 3-0 lead. It was the 37th home run surrendered by Guardians starter Lucas Giolito, third most in baseball.Giolito (8-14) allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits over 5 1/3 innings, walking three with six strikeouts. He has lost six of his last seven starts and 3 of 4 for Cleveland.Andres Gimenez's RBI single rallied the Guardians for a pair of fourth inning runs, driving Royals starter Zack Greinke from the mound.Greinke allowed two runs on five hits in 3 2/3 innings, throwing first-pitch strikes to 14 of 16 batters. With his five strikeouts, he moved past Bret Saberhagen for fourth most in Kansas City history at 1,094.Angel Zerpa (3-3) recorded his second consecutive long-relief win, striking out four and allowing three hits while retiring 16 of 19 batters over 5 1/3 shutout innings. It was Zerpa's career-long relief appearance.Bobby Witt Jr.'s two-out RBI single extended the Royals' lead to 4-2 in the fourth. Edward Olivares added an RBI grounder in the seventh.A third Guardians' miscue allowed Witt to score with two out in the eighth, capping the scoring.

MJ Melendez homered, drove in three runs and scored three times to fuel the host Kansas City Royals to a 7-6 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday.Kansas City's Nick Loftin had a pair of RBI singles, and Tyler Cropley collected an RBI with a sacrifice fly in his major league. Maikel Garcia had three of the 13 hits for the Royals (50-102), who have won six of their past seven games.Alec Marsh (2-8) picked up his second win in as many outings after allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits in 4 1/3 innings in relief of opener Steven Cruz.Royals reliever James McArthur entered the game with runners on the corners and no outs in the eighth inning. He ended the threat by striking out Josh Naylor, Kole Calhoun and Ramon Laureano to preserve the 7-6 lead.Collin Snider retired the side in order in the ninth inning to secure his first career save.Melendez deposited a 2-1 offering from rookie Logan Allen (7-8) over the wall in right-center field to stake Kansas City to a 2-0 lead in the first inning. The homer was Melendez's 15th of the season and first since Sept. 5.

Drew Waters' two-run double led the Kansas City Royals to a 6-4 comeback win over the Cleveland Guardians Monday afternoon in Cleveland.Waters' bases-loaded liner to left highlighted a four-run eighth for the Royals, who have won five of six but remain buried in last place with a 49-102 mark.The loss snapped a three-game Cleveland (72-79) winning streak, hampering their faint playoff hopes as they chase the Minnesota Twins (79-71) in the American League Central Division.Trevor Stephan (6-7) hit a batter and walked three, driving in one run, and loading the bases ahead of Waters' double. Waters had two of Kansas City's six hits, snapping his 0-for-12 slump.Jackson Kowar (2-0) earned the win with a scoreless eighth and James McArthur collected his first career save with a perfect ninth.Bo Naylor's RBI double highlighted a two-run second inning as Cleveland grabbed a 2-0 lead.Kansas City got on the scoreboard in the third when Bobby Witt Jr. beat out an infield hit, stole second and scored on MJ Melendez's triple. Witt has nine steals in his past eight games and his 48 stolen bases are the most for the Royals since Tom Goodwin's 66 in 1996.With one out in the fourth, Gabriel Arias drove Brady Singer's sinker over the right field wall for his 10th home run. Arias added a sacrifice fly in the sixth for a 4-1 lead.

The Kansas City Royals placed catcher Salvador Perez on the seven-day concussion list Monday.Perez, 33, was removed from Saturday's game against Houston following a foul tip to the mask.The eight-time All-Star is batting .252 with 21 homers and 72 RBIs in 133 games this season.

Yordan Alvarez and Jake Meyers each belted solo home runs and Framber Valdez gave up one unearned run in seven innings on Sunday as the Houston Astros defeated the host Kansas City Royals 7-1.The Astros (84-66) salvaged the final game of the series after dropping the first two, and the Royals (48-102) had their four-game winning streak snapped.The Astros broke the game open with three runs in the ninth. Meyers tripled and scored on Jose Altuve's third hit, a single to left. Alvarez walked with the bases full for an RBI and Altuve came home on a fielder's choice.With the win, the Astros are now 1 1/2 games ahead of the Texas Rangers, who were swept in their three-game series with the Cleveland Guardians, in the American League West.Valdez (12-10) yielded five hits and fanned five.Royals starter Jordan Lyles (4-17) was tagged for four runs on six hits in six innings. The right-hander struck out six.In the second inning, the Royals broke on top on Drew Waters' sacrifice fly to right field. Nick Loftin singled with one out, and a controversial play created some confusion.Logan Porter grounded back to Valdez, who couldn't make the play. The ball deflected toward the third base line. Valdez chased and made an off-balance throw toward first. To retrieve the wild toss, Astros first baseman Jose Abreu flipped his glove and knocked down the ball.

Salvador Perez and Nelson Velazquez each drove in two runs and the Kansas City Royals tripped up the Houston Astros 10-8 on Saturday night in Kansas City.Logan Porter belted his first big league home run, and the Royals extended their winning streak to four straight. The American League West-leading Astros have now lost the first two in the series.James McArthur (1-0) got the win, and Hector Neris (6-3) was tagged with the loss.The night was a salute to the Negro Leagues, and the Royals (48-101) wore Kansas City Monarchs uniforms while the Astros (83-66) were clad in Houston Eagles uniforms.The Royals snapped a 6-6 tie with three runs in the seventh inning. Kyle Isbel put Kansas City in front with an RBI bunt single off Neris. A throwing error by Astros third baseman Alex Bregman on Dairon Blanco's ground ball produced another run, and Nick Pratto's sacrifice fly gave the Royals a three-run cushion.The Astros closed the gap in the ninth inning on Yordan Alvarez's RBI double and Jose Abreu's run-scoring groundout off Carlos Hernandez. Taylor Clarke recorded a one-out save, his second.In the first inning, the Royals took a three-run lead. Maikel Garcia walked and stole second base. A single by Bobby Witt Jr. put runners on the corners, and Perez lined a two-run double. Velazquez provided a sacrifice fly.In the third inning, Witt walked and stole second base, his 47th of the season. MJ Melendez lined an RBI single to center to give Kansas City a 4-0 advantage.

Nelson Velazquez, Bobby Witt Jr. and Michael Massey homered to help the Kansas City Royals earn a 4-2 win against the visiting Houston Astros in the opener of a three-game series on Friday night.Witt, Massey and MJ Melendez had two hits each for the Royals (47-101), who have won three in a row.Kansas City starter Zack Greinke pitched two scoreless innings before departing. The former American League Cy Young winner and six-time All Star allowed three hits, struck out one and walked one, but remains winless in his past 20 games (17 starts).Angel Zerpa (2-3) allowed one run and two hits in four innings of relief to record the win. He fanned five and walked one.Taylor Clarke yielded a run in the ninth but still earned his first save of the season.Astros starter Cristian Javier (9-4) allowed three runs (two earned) and five hits in five innings. He struck out six and walked one.Jose Abreu homered and singled and Jeremy Pena also had two hits for the Astros, who have lost three of four.Houston (83-65) was unable to take advantage of a loss earlier in the day by the Texas Rangers (82-65) and remains a half-game ahead of the second-place Rangers in the AL West. The Seattle Mariners (81-65) were one game behind the Astros entering their late game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.Melendez singled with one out in the third, took second on a passed ball and moved to third on an infield single up the middle by Witt. Salvador Perez then lined out to left, and Melendez scored on the sacrifice fly for a 1-0 lead.

Salvador Perez had three hits and two RBIs and Michael Massey hit a two-run home run to lift the visiting Kansas City Royals past the Chicago White Sox 7-1 on Wednesday night.Rookie right-hander Alec Marsh earned his first career victory as Kansas City (46-101) took two of three to claim the season series from the White Sox 7-6.Chicago (56-90) lost for the ninth time in 12 games. The White Sox reached the 90-loss mark for the first time since the 2018 club lost 100.Andrew Benintendi hit a ground-rule double two batters into the game, but Chicago collected just one extra-base hit the rest of the night.The White Sox got their lone run on Yasmani Grandal's RBI fielder's choice in the seventh, two batters after a Yoan Moncada double.Working as an opener in what officially was his first start, Kansas City rookie Steven Cruz pitched two scoreless innings, allowing two hits with a career-best four strikeouts.Marsh (1-8) was sharp, too, following Cruz by spacing one run and three hits in 4 1/3 innings with two walks and five strikeouts.Massey, who grew up a White Sox fan and attended Brother Rice, a Chicago parochial high school, continued to torment his former muses.