Kansas City Royals News

Miguel Cabrera blasted a two-run, first-inning homer and seven Detroit pitchers made the lead stand as the host Tigers won their fifth straight by edging Kansas City 2-1 on Wednesday.Cabrera's long ball was his first since July 25 and fifth of the season.Detroit's scheduled starter, Matt Manning, was scratched moments before the game due to arm fatigue. Emergency starter Will Vest gave up one run in one inning.Daniel Norris (1-4) pitched two scoreless innings and was awarded the victory. Gregory Soto pitched a perfect ninth for his 28th save for the Tigers (62-92).Kansas City starter Daniel Lynch (4-12) gave up two runs and five hits in six innings. The Royals got a leadoff homer from MJ Melendez off Vest, but then squandered numerous opportunities. They left 13 runners on base and Detroit catcher Eric Haase cut down two baserunners attempting to steal.Edward Olivares had three of the Royals' 10 hits. Cabrera was the only Tigers player with more than one hit.Melendez smacked his 18th homer, an opposite-field shot. Cabrera answered with his two-out, two-run blast, the 507th homer of his career, after a Haase single.

John Wathan is retiring after 51 years in professional baseball, including 47 years with the Kansas City Royals.The Royals announced Wednesday that the 72-year-old Wathan will retire at the end of the season.Wathan played catcher for the Royals from 1976-85 and managed the team from 1987-91. He also managed the California Angels for part of the 1992 season before returning to Kansas City as a broadcaster, assistant coach, scout, roving instructor and special assistant to player development.

Harold Castro hit a two-out, bases-loaded single in the bottom of the 10th to give the Detroit Tigers a 4-3 victory over Kansas City on Tuesday.Castro, who had three hits and drove in three runs, slapped an 0-2 pitch from Anthony Misiewicz (1-2) to bring home pinch-runner Ryan Kreidler. Riley Greene supplied two hits and an RBI for Detroit (61-92), which has won six of its last seven games.Alex Lange (6-4) held the Royals (63-91) scoreless in the top of the inning with the aid of a double play to notch the win.Hunter Dozier blasted a two-run homer for Kansas City in the opener of a three-game series. Royals starter Zack Greinke pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits and one walk.Tigers starter Joey Wentz gave up three runs and five hits in five innings. He also walked three while striking out four.Wentz got into trouble in the second by issuing a leadoff walk to Edward Olivares. Dozier then drilled his 12th homer of the season over the left field wall. Michael A. Taylor had a one-out double later in the frame but was left stranded.

Cal Raleigh's one-out double in the ninth lifted the visiting Seattle Mariners to a 6-5 win over the Royals Saturday night in Kansas City.Raleigh also had a two-run, pinch-hit home run in the sixth.The Mariners (83-68) won for just the fourth time in 11 games, despite leaving 14 runners on base.The Royals (62-90) walked nine Mariners hitters and hit two more.Paul Sewald (5-4) earned the win. Brad Keller (6-14) took the loss. Andres Munoz earned his fourth save.Seattle starter Logan Gilbert, who came into the game having allowed two runs in 23 innings combined in his last four starts, allowed five runs on seven hits in five innings. Royals starter Kris Bubic allowed three runs on five hits (and four walks) in 4 2/3 innings.Dylan Moore singled to left center in the first to give Seattle the early lead. Moore's hit was Seattle's first of the series with a runner in scoring position, after going 0-for-8 in that situation Friday.Salvador Perez extended his home hitting streak to 20 games with a double in the first. Vinnie Pasquantino followed with a two-run, 432-foot home run.

Michael Massey had a two-run homer and a two-run single in an 11-run sixth inning that propelled the Kansas City Royals to a 13-12 victory over the visiting Seattle Mariners on Sunday in the rubber game of their three-game series.The Royals sent 14 batters to the plate in the sixth, scoring at least 11 runs in an inning for the sixth time in team history.For the Royals (63-90), who have won five of their past six games, Hunter Dozier had three hits and two RBIs, Bobby Witt Jr. and Ryan O'Hearn each had two hits and two RBIs, and Edward Olivares had two hits and scored three runs.Royals starter Max Castillo allowed six runs and six hits in four innings. He struck out four and walked four. Jose Cuas (4-2) earned the win in relief, and Scott Barlow pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 24th save.Ty France and Mitch Haniger each had three hits and two RBIs for the Mariners (83-69), who started the day holding the third and final wild-card spot in the American League, four games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles.Mariners starter Luis Castillo was unable to take advantage of an 11-2 lead. He allowed five runs and seven hits in 5 1/3 innings, striking out five and walking three.Matt Brash (3-5) was responsible for four runs in the sixth inning and took the loss.

Brady Singer pitched effectively around traffic most of the night, helping the host Kansas City Royals defeat the Seattle Mariners 5-1 on Friday night in the first game of a three-game series.Singer (10-4) threw seven innings of one-run ball, allowing five hits and two walks while striking out eight.Seattle (82-68) saw its lead for the final American League wild-card spot slip to three games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles (79-71). The Mariners have not been to the postseason since 2001, the longest postseason drought in the four major North American major sports leagues.The Mariners, who were 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position, fell for the sixth time in eight games.The Royals (62-89) moved closer to avoiding their third 100-loss season in the past four full seasons by registering their season-best, fourth straight win.Singer (10-4) didn't have a clean inning until the sixth. He allowed the leadoff hitter to reach base in four of the first five innings.The 26-year-old right-hander has pitched at least six innings in 13 of his past 14 starts. He has allowed one run total in his past 20 innings.Marco Gonzales (10-15) took the loss. He allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits in five innings, striking out two without issuing a walk.

Jonathan Heasley allowed one run and two hits over six innings as the host Kansas City Royals posted a 4-1 win over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday to complete a three-game series sweep.The Royals (61-89) came into the series having scored a total of 10 runs during a seven-game losing skid to the Twins.Kansas City's bullpen didn't allow a run in 11 2/3 innings in the three-game series.Bobby Witt Jr. recorded his third straight multi-hit performance and Salvador Perez drove in a run for the seventh straight game for the Royals.The Twins (73-77) have lost seven of their last eight games.The Royals outscored the Twins 14-7 in the series.Brad Keller earned his first career save after striking out two batters in one inning.Josh Winder (4-5) had good success against former teammates. He held high school teammate Vinnie Pasquantino and college teammate Nate Eaton to a combined 0-for-6. But he was not as successful against the rest of the Royals. He allowed three runs on six hits in six innings.

Salvador Perez went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI as the Royals defeated the Minnesota Twins 5-2 Wednesday night in Kansas City, their second straight victory over Minnesota.Perez drove in a run for the sixth straight game.The Royals (60-89) were playing their first game since the firing of longtime executive Dayton Moore. Dismissed Wednesday afternoon as the team president of baseball operations, Moore had been with the organization since 2006.The Twins (73-76) lost their sixth game in the last seven and fell nine games behind division-leading Cleveland.Anthony Misiewicz (1-1) picked up the win in relief. Scott Barlow earned his 23rd save.Bailey Ober (1-3) pitched five innings for the Twins, allowing three runs on seven hits. Royals starter Daniel Lynch allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits in four innings.The Royals jumped on Ober early. MJ Melendez led off with a career-long 437-foot home run to left center with the wind blowing from left to right. Bobby Witt Jr. singled sharply to center, followed by a bloop double by Perez that eluded right fielder Matt Wallner, allowing Witt to score.

With the 2022 season slipping away, both in terms of days remaining on the calendar for every team and in opportunities to extend it for teams like the Minnesota Twins, the focus turns toward the 2023 season.With that in mind, the Twins and Kansas City Royals need to figure out who their future starting pitchers will be.The Twins (73-76) and the Royals (60-89) will conclude their three-game series Thursday afternoon in Kansas City with a pair of rookies getting the start. Minnesota will turn to Josh Winder (4-4, 4.17 ERA), while Kansas City will hand the ball to Jonathan Heasley (3-8, 5.09).After losing five of their previous six games, the Royals won their second straight over the Twins on Wednesday, 5-2. Salvador Perez drove in a run for the sixth straight game.The Twins managed a pair of one-run innings on Wednesday but still fell for the sixth time in seven games."The runs are tough to come by right now and you just have to come up with a way," Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. "We might have one guy that comes out and has a good night, but we need more than that."Minnesota saw its playoff hopes all but evaporate with the latest loss. The Twins slipped nine games back of the American League Central-leading Cleveland Guardians with 13 games remaining.The Twins have a mix of veterans and young starters, though much of their difficulty this season has been because of injuries on their pitching staff. Starting pitchers Chris Archer, Sonny Gray, Tyler Mahle, Kenta Maeda and Chris Paddack are on either the 15-day or 60-day injured list.Winder has showed promise, though he has battled right shoulder impingement for the past two seasons. He has had two stints on the IL this season.

The Kansas City Royals fired president of baseball operations Dayton Moore on Wednesday.J.J. Picollo effectively will replace Moore, who was in his 16th season with the Royals. Picollo was named executive vice president and general manager overseeing baseball operations on Wednesday.Under Moore's watch, Kansas City advanced to the World Series in 2014 before winning the title the following season."Dayton's 16 years of leadership here will always mark the transformation into a World Championship club," Royals chairman and CEO John Sherman said in a statement. "Our fans, our region and our community will never forget the excitement we shared in back-to-back pennants and the World Series championship in 2015. He always put the Kansas City Royals first, and we're stronger today because of it."The Royals are out of playoff contention for the seventh straight season and 59-89 heading into Wednesday's game against the visiting Minnesota Twins.

Salvador Perez drove in Bobby Witt Jr. with a two-out double in the seventh inning to help the Royals defeat the Minnesota Twins 5-4 Tuesday night in the opener of a three-game series in Kansas City.The Royals (59-89) won for the first time this season when trailing by three runs at any point in the game. Minnesota opened the scoring with three runs in the second inning.The Twins (73-75) fell to 6-12 in September.Dylan Coleman (5-2) pitched a scoreless seventh to pick up the win. Scott Barlow picked up a five-out save, his 22nd in 26 chances.Michael Fulmer (5-6) took the loss.Neither starter factored in the decision. Dylan Bundy allowed four runs on four hits, including two homers, in 4 2/3 innings. Zack Greinke allowed four runs on 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings.After escaping a jam in the first, Greinke was not as fortunate in the second. Jake Cave beat out a one-out infield single. Gilberto Celestino lined a single to right and then Matt Wallner doubled to right, scoring Cave. Carlos Correa stroked a two-out single between third and short, scoring Celestino and Wallner.In the top of the third, Greinke struck out Cave, notching his 1,000th career strikeout with the Royals, passing Tom Gordon for seventh place on the club's all-time list.

Rafael Devers went 4-for-6 with three RBI while Tommy Pham and Reese McGuire were 3-for-4 as the Boston Red Sox cruised to a 13-3 win over the visiting Kansas City Royals on Sunday afternoon.Bookending the Boston (71-75) lineup, which recorded 20 hits, Pham drove in three runs and scored three more, and McGuire had two RBI and scored two runs.Xander Bogaerts (2-for-4) became the fourth Red Sox player ever to record 1,400 career hits before turning 30. He reached the milestone on an RBI double in the first inning.Nick Pivetta punched out seven over five innings of seven-hit, three-run ball as Boston bookended the weekend series with victories.Salvador Perez, Vinnie Pasquantino and Drew Waters had two hits apiece for the Royals (58-89), who went 1-5 on their six-game road trip.Kansas City southpaw Kris Bubic (2-13) allowed five runs on seven hits, walked three and struck out two in 2 2/3 innings.Pasquantino lined a run-scoring double to right to lift the Royals in the opening frame. MJ Melendez drew a leadoff walk and advanced on a wild pitch before crossing home with two outs.Boston began with three consecutive hits, as the Bogaerts RBI double followed singles by Pham and Devers.The teams also traded runs in the second. A one-out walk hurt Pivetta as Drew Waters doubled to right to bring Nate Eaton home from first, but Pham's sacrifice fly to center brought in Enrique Hernandez after a leadoff walk.

Leadoff-hitting catcher MJ Melendez went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBI and four runs scored as the Kansas City Royals cruised to a 9-0 win over the host Boston Red Sox on Saturday.Brady Singer (9-4) worked six innings in his second consecutive scoreless start for the Royals (58-88), who had lost their previous four games. Singer struck out five and allowed just five hits and a walk.Vinnie Pasquantino had three RBI singles and four other Royals logged multiple hits. Bobby Witt Jr. went 2-for-5 with two RBI and a run scored.Enrique Hernandez and Christian Arroyo had two hits apiece as Boston (70-75) lost for the third time in four games.Boston starter Rich Hill (7-7) was charged with four runs on eight hits and struck out four over 4 2/3 innings.Hill retired seven of the first eight batters he faced, with the lone hit during that span coming in the form of Salvador Perez's two-out single in the first inning.Kansas City jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the third. Melendez lined the go-ahead single into right field to score Nate Eaton, who hit a one-out infield single and stole second.After a groundout by Bobby Witt Jr. moved Melendez into scoring position, Perez sent a single through to the base of the Green Monster in center to make it 2-0.

The Kansas City Royals activated outfielder Edward Olivares from the 60-day injured list on Saturday.Olivares returned from a rehab assignment with Triple-A Omaha after being sidelined with a left quadriceps injury.He batted .303 with three homers and 12 RBIs in 36 games earlier this season with the Royals.Olivares, 26, is hitting .260 with 11 homers and 34 RBIs in 106 career games with the San Diego Padres and Royals.

J.D. Martinez's two-out RBI single in the eighth inning propelled the Boston Red Sox to a 2-1 win over the visiting Kansas City Royals on Friday night.The Red Sox (70-74) won despite logging just three hits. However, they drew eight walks from the fifth inning on, including four in the two-run eighth inning.With Kansas City ahead 1-0, Boston's Enrique Hernandez and pinch hitter Abraham Almonte drew back-to-back walks to begin the eighth before Royals closer Scott Barlow replaced Dylan Coleman (4-2) with one out.After Rafael Devers walked to load the bases and Xander Bogaerts struck out, Alex Verdugo worked a four-pitch free pass to bring in the tying run. Martinez then lined the go-ahead single past diving Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. on the first pitch he saw from Barlow.Boston starter Michael Wacha scattered seven hits, allowing a single run and striking out four across seven innings. He didn't walk a batter. Garrett Whitlock (4-2) was the winner after dealing a scoreless eighth.Matt Strahm worked around a two-out walk to Michael Massey in the ninth to record his fourth save, helping the Red Sox snap a two-game losing skid.Eight players recorded one hit and Salvador Perez drove home the lone run for the Royals (57-88), who have lost four straight.After Wacha dealt two 1-2-3 innings to start the game, Hunter Dozier led off the third with a single to left and was immediately retired on a relay throw from Tommy Pham to second baseman Christian Arroyo.

Carlos Correa and Nick Gordon each homered and five Minnesota relievers combined to pitch five shutout innings as the Twins completed a three-game series sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 3-2 victory on Thursday night in Minneapolis.It was the third time this season that Minnesota (72-70) swept the Royals in a series. The Twins, who open a five-game series at American League Central leader Cleveland on Friday night, closed to within four games of the Guardians.Trevor Megill (4-3), the first of five Minnesota relievers, picked up the win with a hitless fifth inning.Jhoan Duran bounced back from allowing back-to-back singles to begin the ninth to earn his seventh save. He struck out Michael A. Taylor and Nick Pratto with runners at second and third to end the game.Starter Dylan Bundy left after allowing two runs on four hits over four innings.Salvador Perez homered and had two hits and Michael Massey also had two hits for Kansas City (57-87), which lost its seventh straight game against the Twins. Daniel Lynch (4-11) suffered the loss, allowing three runs on seven hits over five innings while striking out eight.

Sonny Gray scattered three hits over seven innings and Gary Sanchez had a two-run double to lead the Minnesota Twins to a 4-0 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday night in Minneapolis.It was the sixth straight victory over the Royals for Minnesota (71-70), which closed to within one game of the second-place Chicago White Sox (73-70) in the American League Central while remaining five games behind first-place Cleveland (76-65). The Twins play five games in four days against the Guardians beginning on Friday night in Cleveland.Gray (8-4) walked one and struck out eight while improving to 3-0 in three starts against Kansas City (57-86) this season. Gray has allowed just one run and eight hits over 19 innings (0.47 ERA) against the Royals during that span while striking out 22.Carlos Correa doubled and had two hits for the Twins. AL batting leader Luis Arraez (.320) added a single before leaving after the first inning with left hamstring tightness. Caleb Thielbar and Jorge Lopez each pitched a scoreless inning of relief to complete the shutout.Zack Greinke (4-9) suffered the loss, allowing three runs on five hits and three walks over four innings. Greinke fell to 5-13 all-time against Minnesota. Bobby Witt Jr. doubled, and Michael Massey had two of the Royals' five hits.

Rookie Joe Ryan threw seven no-hit innings and the Minnesota Twins came within two outs of a combined hitter in a 6-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night in Minneapolis.With his next start this weekend in a make-it-or-break-it, five-game series at Cleveland, Ryan (11-8) was lifted after throwing 106 pitches, 72 for strikes. His career high for pitches in a game was 110. The right-hander walked two and fanned nine.Minnesota rookie left-hander Jovani Moran took over in the eighth and threw a 1-2-3 inning. The Twins sent him back to the mound for the ninth. He fanned Drew Walters, then walked pinch hitter Hunter Dozier and MJ Melendez before Bobby Witt Jr. lined a 1-2 pitch into the left field corner for an RBI double.The Royals added runs on a Sebastian Rivero single and a Vinnie Pasquantino sacrifice fly before Moran struck out Nick Pratto to end the game.Kansas City's only baserunners against Ryan came when MJ Melendez drew a four-pitch walk to open the game and a six-pitch walk in the third inning.Minnesota's last no-hitter was by Francisco Liriano on May 3, 2011, against the White Sox in Chicago. The Twins have never had a combined no-hitter in franchise history.The Royals were last no-hit by Jon Lester of the Boston Red Sox on May 19, 2008.Carlos Correa homered, doubled and drove in three runs for the Twins (70-70), who had lost six of their previous seven games.

Kansas City right-hander Brady Singer extended his dominance over the Detroit Tigers with seven shutout innings Sunday as the host Kansas City Royals averted a three-game sweep with a 4-0 victory.Singer (8-4) scattered four hits, struck out six and walked one in running his career record against the Tigers to 6-0 in 10 starts, while dropping his ERA against them to 2.44. Singer induced 13 groundouts vs. one flyout and over his last seven starts, he is 4-0 with a 2.25 ERA.Kansas City rookie Drew Waters doubled in two runs in the second inning and Michael Massey launched a solo home run in the fourth. Nick Pratto also had an RBI for the Royals (57-84).Detroit left-hander Tyler Alexander (3-10) was making his first-career start against Kansas City after nine relief appearances. He gave up four runs on six hits with two strikeouts and a walk.The Tigers' best chance to get on the board came in the seventh inning when Spencer Torkelson doubled to left field with one out and took third on a wild pitch. But Singer struck out Kerry Carpenter and got Jonathan Schoop to ground out.The Tigers(54-86) had only two batters reach base after the second inning.The Royals scored in the first inning when Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez hit singles with one out. Witt scored on Pratto's sacrifice fly. Witt finished with two of Kansas City's seven hits.

Victor Reyes was 2-for-4 with three RBIs as the Detroit Tigers defeated the Royals 8-4 Saturday in Kansas City. The game was called after seven-and-a-half innings because of rain.Detroit's second-, third- and fourth-place hitters combined to go 6-for-12 with seven RBIMatt Manning (2-2) had little trouble with the Royals. He allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits over 6 1/3 innings. Throwing a slippery baseball, he only walked one and struck out four.The Tigers pounded the Royals behind a rookie starter for the second straight night. They defeated Kansas City 10-2 Friday night behind Kansas City-area native Joey Wentz.Jonathan Heasley (3-8) allowed seven runs on seven hits in four-plus innings. The Royals have lost seven of their last 10 games.Salvador Perez lined a one-out single in the first to score Bobby Witt Jr. with the first run.Kerry Carpenter tied the game in the top of the inning with a solo home run. The Tigers have eight home runs in their last three games after hitting just four in their previous eight games.