Royals Win 15 Inning Marathon Against Cardinals

Yuniesky Betancourt blasted a two-run home run in the 15th, giving the Royals a 5-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. The win improved Kansas City’s record to 29-35 on the season, and the Royals have now won five of their last six games and trail the Chicago White Sox by only five games in the AL Central standings.

Betancourt wound up the hero, despite not even starting the game. He was forced into action when Chris Getz suffered a leg injury in the first inning. Betancourt nearly ended the game in the fourteenth inning, when his RBI double gave Kansas City a 3-2 lead. However, Jonathan Broxton blew the save and the game continued.

Before Betancourt’s heroics, Billy Butler had the game’s biggest hit. Butler hit a pinch-hit home run to tie the game in the ninth inning, his 12th blast of the season. Kansas City also got a bizarre contribution from Alex Gordon, who drew a franchise record five walks in the game. Gordon has now drawn five walks in a game twice, the only Royal in club history to achieve this feat.

While Betancourt and Butler stole the headlines with their homers, Kansas City would not have been in the game if it wasn’t for some strong pitching. Luis Mendoza pitched six strong innings, only allowing two runs while striking out five and only allowing one walk. The Royals’ bullpen also pitched well, as the Cardinals did not record a run between the sixth and fourteenth inning.

The Royals continue their interleague schedule tonight, when they will travel to Houston to begin a series with the Astros. Jonathan Sanchez (1-2) will start for Kansas City, while J.A. Happ (4-7) will start for Houston. The Royals have won seven of their last ten games against the Astros.

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Royals Place Felipe Paulino On Disabled List

The Royals' pitching staff has already been hit hard by injuries this season, and it appears as if things are getting even worse. Kansas City has now placed Felipe Paulino on the 15 day disabled list.

Paulino has pitched incredibly well for the Royals in his brief stint in the rotation this year, compiling a 3-1 record and an impressive 1.67 ERA. Paulino has a strained groin, and joins a long list of Kansas City pitchers who have gotten hurt this season.

Kansas City has called up Nate Adcock from Triple A Omaha, who already has seen significant major league experience this season. The Royals will also move Luis Mendoza back into the rotation after his recent stint in the bullpen.

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Bruce Chen Continues To Pitch Well As Royals Blank Twins

Bruce Chen gave up only four hits and kept Minnesota off the scoreboard, allowing a lone run scored in the second inning to be good enough for the Royals to earn a 1-0 victory over the Twins. The win moved Kansas City’s record to 24-30 on the season, and the team is currently only 6.5 games out of first place.

The big story from last night is Chen, who has rebounded from an awful start to the season to win for the fifth time in his last six starts. With injuries depleting the Royals’ pitching staff, it was imperative that Chen step up and pitch like an All-Star if the Royals were going to have any shot at respectability this season. The veteran has done that and more, and Chen will be a big factor in how far the Royals go this season.

Kansas City’s lone run came off a Bryan Pena RBI single, as Chen’s performance wasted a fantastic effort by Minnesota’s Francisco Liriano. The Royals also got a nice boost from its bullpen, as Greg Holland and Jonathan Broxton both pitched well to preserve the shut out. Broxton now has 14 saves this season.

The Royals will face the Twins again tonight at 7:10 p.m. in Kansas City. Felipe Paulino (3-1), who is in the midst of a phenomenal pitching stretch himself, will take the mound for Kansas City. He will face Minnesota’s Nick Blackburn (1-4), who has really struggled this season and currently holds an 8.37 ERA.

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Previewing The Royals' Upcoming Series

The Royals’ game against the Detroit Tigers was postponed last night, meaning that Kansas City will officially start the series tonight. If there was ever a time for the Royals to turn its season around and pick up some much-needed wins against an AL Central opponent, this is it. The Tigers are in a tailspin, losing eight of their last 10 games. To make matters worse for Detroit, the team recently lost Delmon Young to a seven game suspension.

After a ridiculous losing streak, Kansas City has responded well, winning three of its last four games. However, the Royals may have dug themselves in too deep a whole to get back to respectability this season. The schedule is about to get tougher, with New York and Boston coming to town, and series with first place teams like Texas and Baltimore on the horizon. Both the Yankees and Red Sox have been inconsistent this season, and the team’s seven game home stand against these two may very well be the make-or-break point of the season.

Kansas City will face Detroit tonight at 6:05 p.m. Luke Hochevar (2-1) will start for the Royals, fresh off his best performance of the season. He will face Rick Porcello (1-2), who has struggled this season.

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Kansas City Royals vs Blue Jays April 21st, 2012 Rookie Drew Hutchinson Handles the Royals - Kansas City News

Along the way to their 10 game losing streak, The Kansas City Royals were embarrassingly overmatched losing game number 9 of the streak on Saturday April 21st when the Royals self-destructed vs the Toronto Blue Jays.  The Kansas City Royals followed up Saturday's game with an equally terrible outing vs the Blue Jays, stretching their losing streak to 10 games.

Back to Saturday's game;  this was a game that the Royals could have won.  Take away a few bad coaching decisions, and we could have had this one.

Bad Decision Number 1 - Pulling Mendoza Too Early
The first coaching mistake falls into the "hindsight is 20/20" category and it is hard to fault the management on this one, but even after starting Royals pitcher Luis Mendoza got shelled in the 4th inning, it would have been wise not to panic and pull him out so early in the game.  It is easy to understand why Grand Master Ned would take Mendoza out of the game after allowing 4 runs in one inning, but Teaford and eventually Herrera did nothing to stop the bleeding.  It is conceivable that the Royals would have stood a better chance if they would have left Mendoza in for a few more innings as the Royals offense indeed started making a hasty comeback after he was benched...a comeback that Teaford and Herrera basically threw out the window.  Teaford, the left hander was just throwing up ducks, the Blue Jays just swatted almost everything he threw at them, he had absolutely no skills on Saturday.

Bad Decision Number 2 - What Was Billy Butler Doing?
In the Royals highest scoring inning so far this season, Billy Butler let all of the air out of the tires.  After the nightmare that was the 4th inning, the Royals started a big time rally in the 5th inning.  The inning started off with a double by Alcides Escobar, who was pushed home by Mitch Maier's super hustle triple (Mitch STREAKED around those base pads, son).  Yuniesky Betancourt kept the magic going with a nice little single that brought Maier home, and then the rookie pitcher Drew Hutchinson started to sweat and walked Alex Gordon.  Up comes our 2012 MLB All Star Game candidate Billy Butler, who has been carrying the Royals offense all season...until Saturday.  With Butler at the plate with two men on base, the Royals fans rose to their feet.  Rookie pitcher Drew Hutchinson, who was literally pulled up from the AA roster that week, was obviously freaking out.  He could NOT find the plate and quickly put the pitch count up to 3-0.  Yes, 3-0.  Now what does a professional baseball player do at the plate when the count is 3-0?  That's right kids, he TAKES THE FREAKING NEXT PITCH.  We don't know if old Ned gave Butler the green light to swing on a 3-0 count or whether Billy took matters into his own hands, but with the entire stadium on it's feet and the rookie pitcher about to pee his pants and simultaneously walk the bases loaded, Billy Butler decided to swing the bat.  Clearly the pitch was going to be ball 4, as Butler awkwardly reached for a total squirrel pitch and grounded into an AROUND THE HORN double play.  We just have one question for you Billy, what the hell were you doing?  Butler would go hitless for the game.

The Blue Jays finished the job after that debacle, smacking the Royals up 9-5.  Oh well, the Royals keep losing, but the fans keep coming.  I suppose that is why management trades away all of our good players and keeps the fans dangling by promising them that "we're building our team from our farm team program" - yeah, right.  Attendance for the entire weekend series was around 27,000 each night - so if the people of Kansas City keep spending money to come out to the games no matter how dismal the Royals perform, why change the formula?  The reality is that Royals stadium is just a giant bar - well - it's a giant bar......with a mascot....and a massive cover charge.....and you have to pay for parking......and....oh well, we've got to be the most gullible and sheepish city with an MLB team, we just sit back and take it.

~~ Kansas City News, Royals vs. Blue Jays April 21st, 2012

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All-Star Ballot Unveiled Today - Kansas City News

The 2012 MLB All-Star game has unveiled its ballot today, allowing fans across the nation to cast ballots for their team’s best players. Fans will have until July 5 to cast votes in at their team’s stadium for who they think should be in the game, which takes place on July 10 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. Online voting will end on June 28. Royals fans who attend today’s game against Toronto will have an opportunity to be the first fans in Kansas City to vote, as in-park balloting begins today.

Despite a terrible start to the season, there are several Royals on the ballot. Despite an All-Star worthy season last year, Alex Gordon was snubbed from the team. This season, the only player in Kansas City who is playing at an All-Star level is Billy Butler, who is on his way towards a career year.

The following is a full list of players on the ballot:

Billy Butler
Jeff Francoeur
Alex Gordon
Lorenzo Cain
Salvador Perez
Chris Getz
Alcides Escobar
Eric Hosmer
Mike Moustakas

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Royals Swept By Indians, Off To Terrible Start - Kansas City News

After a promising road trip to start the year, the Royals season has completely fallen apart during the team’s recent home stand. The Royals lost their sixth straight game at home last night to Detroit, which lead to two troubling outcomes – the Royals are winless at home for the season, and Kansas City is now alone in last place in the AL Central.

Kansas City’s offense completely disappeared during its series against the league-leading Tigers. The Royals only scored six runs combined for the entire series, wasting three good outings from its starting pitching. The only player who has consistently produced at the plate this season is Billy Butler. Butler is batting .375 so far this season, with 2 home runs, 9 RBI and 6 doubles. The other big bats in the Royals lineup have yet to consistently produce, and hopefully Butler will get some help from his teammates soon.

The main problem for Kansas City has been consistency. The nights the Royals get strong pitching, its offense disappears. The nights Kansas City’s bats come alive, the pitching and defense struggle. The team has shown some flashes here and there, and for the most part, the starting pitching has been solid. The team must find some consistency and soon, or it will suffer yet another lackluster season.

The Royals have a good opportunity to turn things around Friday, when they start a four game home series with the Blue Jays. Luke Hochevar (1-1) will try to atone his dismal start last week in which he allowed seven runs in the first inning of the Royals’ home opener. He will face Kyle Drabek (2-0), who has pitched extremely well this season.

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Alex Gordon Named Official Spokesperson for 2012 MLB All-Star FanFest - Kansas City News

Alex Gordon has been named the official spokesperson for the 2012 MLB All-Star FanFest, which will begin on Friday, July 6^th. Gordon’s spokesperson role includes making personal appearances at many of the events being held from July 6 through July 10.

With the Royals hosting the 2012 MLB All-Star game, it is no surprise that Gordon got the spokesperson nominee. He is coming off the best season of his career in which he not only put up great offensive numbers, but significantly improved his defense in the outfield and earned a gold glove award.

Unfortunately, Gordon couldn’t capitalize on the momentum of being named official spokesperson in tonight’s game against the Tigers. Gordon made a spectacular catch in the outfield, but struck out with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth. The Royals lost to the Tigers, 3-2, and fell to 3-7 for the season.

 

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Royals Swept By Indians - Kansas City News

After surviving a tough road trip out west, the Royals returned home to face one of the worst teams in the league and hopefully gain some momentum in its first division matchup of the season. Unfortunately, everything that could go wrong for Kansas City did, and the Royals were swept by the Cleveland Indians.

After an impressive start in his first appearance of the season, Luke Hochevar got absolutely rocked by the Indians in the Royals' home opener. Hochevar allowed seven runs in the first inning alone, and Kansas City fell to Cleveland 8-3. In the second game of the series, Kansas City fell behind 9-2 before eventually tying the game at 9-9 after a furious comeback. The Royals couldn’t keep the momentum going, and Cleveland prevailed in extra innings, 11-9.

It appeared that the Royals were going to salvage game three of the series early, when Kansas City took a 3-0 lead off of the struggling (and recently suspended) Ubaldo Jimenez. Cleveland erased that deficit in a hurry, scoring six runs in the third inning and cruising to a 13-7 victory. That loss dropped the Royals to 3-6 on the season, and Kansas City current sits in fourth place in the AL Central standings.

The entire series was an ugly one for Kansas City. After a fantastic start to the season, the Royals’ starting pitching was terrible all weekend. The Indians officially have Kansas City’s number, and the Royals will have to find a way to start winning more games against division opponents.

Kansas City starts another AL Central series today against the Detroit Tigers. Danny Duffy (1-0) will get the start for the Royals, and will face one of the best pitchers in the game in Detroit’s Justin Verlander (0-1).

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Royals 2012 Home Opener Preview - Kansas City News

The Royals 2012 home opener is just hours away! After starting the season off with a road trip out west, Kansas City will play its first home game this afternoon at 3:10 p.m. The Royals (3-3) will take on the struggling Cleveland Indians (1-4).

For the second year in a row, Luke Hochevar (1-0) will get the start in Kansas City’s home opener. Hochevar looked impressive in his first outing of the season, allowing only two runs in 6 innings pitched against the Angels. While Cleveland has looked terrible so far this season, the Royals will face one of the league’s better pitchers in Derek Lowe. In his only start this season, Lowe threw seven scoreless innings against Toronto to lead the Indians to their only win of the season. The pitching matchup suggests that this could be a very low scoring affair; however Hochevar has struggled against Cleveland in the past. In 2011, the Royals’ Ace went 1-2 against the Indians with a 5.31 ERA. Derek Lowe has struggled against the Royals in his career, with a 5.72 ERA in games played in Kansas City.

After a disappointing end to its series against the A’s, Kansas City has a great opportunity to take this series and build some momentum. The Royals’ next three series are at home, and several AL Central matchups loom in the near future as well. A hot start could catapult this team into playoff contention, and this year, the Royals seem capable of living up to their early hype.

This will be the first home opener for both Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas, as both were called up from the minor leagues during last season. The Indians went 12-6 against the Royals last season, and won 4 out of the 5 games played in Kansas City.

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Royals Shut Out Again In Loss To A's - Kansas City News

For the second time this season, the Royals’ offense failed to put a run on the board, and Kansas City fell to Oakland 1-0 last night. The Royals had absolutely no answer for Tommy Milone, who threw eight scoreless innings while only surrendering three hits. The loss dropped the Royals record to 2-2 on the season.

The embarrassing offensive output wasted a great outing from Luis Mendoza, who pitched 5 2/3rds innings and only gave up one run on five hits. Mendoza had a fantastic spring, compiling a 4-0 record and a 0.47 ERA in exhibition play, and hopefully this is a sign of things to come for the journeyman the Royals are counting on this year.

While early, it has been hard to figure out the Royals this season. The offense has looked great in the team’s two wins, and dreadful in Kansas City’s two losses. One constant so far has been starting pitching – the Royals starters have all pitched extremely well. With a young and talented lineup, the Royals offense should start to find some consistency. The big question mark entering the season was the starting rotation, and so far, the Royals’ rotation has looked good.

With Kansas City hosting the 2012 All Star game and young stars like Eric Hosmer, there has been a lot of buzz surrounding the Royals early in the season. With an easy early schedule, the Royals have a great chance to build some momentum and live up to the early hype.

Kansas City faces Oakland again today at 9:05 PM. Danny Duffy (0-0) will get the start for the Royals, while Graham Godfrey (0-0) will start for the A’s.

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Royals Winning Streak 6 Games

The Kansas City Royals keep the party going. Now into a 6 game winning streak, our boys in blue are playing like they are vying for a playoff slot. Many concerned Royals media are very irritated that the Royals are putting up wins, as each win takes them further away from a good draft spot in 2012. On 810 AM today a few skeptics claimed that "other teams are wisely dropping games to get to a better draft pick and the Royals should do the same". That sounds familiar to me as an avid Kansas City Chiefs fan, in the 2008 and 2009 seasons I was hoping that the Chiefs would drop all of their remaining games in order to get a great draft position - but alas, they would usually win just enough games to get them mediocre players in the draft like Glen Dorsey and Tyson Jackson.

This raises an interesting question when it comes to baseball, however, as baseball players base their entire careers on batting averages, and pitching wins, losses and ERA scores. How can a Major League Baseball team throw games on purpose without some players having to take a personal blow to their batting average or pitching stats? How would they even get the players to agree to do something like that? As we in Kansas City are WAY too familiar with, The Kansas City Royals are more or less a launching pad for star players who cut their teeth here and then immediately ask to be traded away (Zack Greinke, Johnny Damon, Jermaine Dye, Carlos Beltran), The Royals refuse to pay any of these star players the salaries that they want, and away they go to other teams. The politics of the Kansas City Royals administration is appalling and it is a direct smack to the face of the faithful Royals fans. But, obviously they don't care at all, they keep all the money, turn Kauffman Stadium into a giant BAR, and trade away any players that show any promise.

The recent Royals winning streak is a cute little gesture of a small time team winning with heart and determination, but in the big picture The Royals will probably not return to the World Series in the next century. Thank God for the 1985 Royals, who continue to keep the team out of the record books for longest streak without a pennant. Thank you George Brett, thank you Bret Saberhagen, thank you Willie Wilson, you guys stuck it out here in Kansas City and brought home the gold........probably for the last time.

Royals Fall To Rays

A dominant pitching performance by Luke Hochevar wasn't enough, as the Royals' offense couldn't get anything going all night against Rays starter Jeremy Hellickson. Kansas City ended up on the wrong end of a pitchers' dual, losing 2-1.

Hochevar, who had won his previous three starts, certainly pitched well enough to earn another victory last night. He pitched seven strong innings, only giving up one run and five hits while striking out seven. After falling to 4-8 earlier in the year, Hochevar has been downright dominant for the Royals lately. It appears the light may have finally come on for the former top overall pick.

Early in the game, it appeared that Kansas City's offense was poised to put up some big numbers against Hellickson. Alex Gordon lead off the game with a double, and scored on Eric Hosmer's bloop single. The Royals would have plenty of chances to add to their lead later in the game, but failed to drive in several runners in scoring position.

Kansas City faces Tampa Bay again tonight at 6:10 p.m. Jeff Francis (4-11) will get the start for Kansas City, while James Shields (10-9) gets the start for the Rays.

Johnny Giavotella, Bruce Chen Lead Royals To Win Over Tigers

It appears that the Kansas City Royals may have found their second baseman of the future. Johnny Giavotella, who was recently called up from triple A ball, had a monster game today against Detroit, leading the Royals to a 4-3 victory.

Giavotella's start to his big league career has been stunning; since being called up, he has gone 5 for 11 from the plate with a .909 slugging percentage. He has also played very solid defense and has not been intimidated by some of the best pitchers in the American League. Giavotella put up very impressive numbers at Omaha, boasting a .338 batting average, suggesting that his fast start in the big leagues isn't a fluke.

While Giavotella got the Royals' offense going with a homer and a double, Bruce Chen made sure his efforts were not in vain. Chen finally displayed a glimpse of the stuff that made him so effective earlier this season, striking out five over five plus innings while allowing only three runs. Not the most dominating performance, but a significant improvement over his last several outings.

Alex Gordon picked up his 18th outfield assist for the season, breaking the club record shared by Jermaine Dye and Mark Teahen. Kansas City now has 40 outfield assists this season, which leads the major leagues. Jeff Francoeur also picked up an outfield assist in the seventh inning, and has the most assists in MLB since he debuted in 2005.

Royals Fall To Orioles In Hottest Game In Team History

After an impressive series victory over Cleveland, Kansas City fell flat on its face last night. The Royals got hammered at home by the Orioles, 8-2, and fell to 28-30 at home for the season.

Kansas City had no answer for Baltimore's Mark Reynolds, who drove in five runs and outscored the Royals by himself. Kansas City cut the lead to two runs in the eighth inning when Alex Gordon scored on Billy Butler's sacrifice fly, only to watch Reynolds blast a three run homer in the ninth to put the game out of reach.

Bruce Chen picked up the loss for Kansas City, dropping his record to 5-5 on the season. Chen has now lost three of his last four decisions, and appears to have lost the magic he had earlier in the year. Chen has pitched past the fifth inning only once since the All-Star break, and Kansas City may need to sit him or send him down to the minors for a week or two to get it together.

The game time temperature was 107 degrees, which allegedly is a record for a game at Kauffman Stadium. With a record heat wave heating the area, tonight and tomorrow's games will likely be just as hot, and fans at the K are encouraged to stay hydrated and avoid the sun as much as possible.

Royals Take Series Against Indians

With a strong performance from Danny Duffy and some timely hitting, Kansas City was able to defeat Cleveland today, 5-3. The win gave Kansas City a series victory over their struggling AL Central rival, and the Royals have now won eight of 12.

Duffy, who was filling in for the injured Kyle Davies, was able to escape several jams and struck out six in five innings of work. He gave up eight hits, but was also able to pick off two runners. Joakim Soria picked up the save, his 20th in 26 chances.

Offensively, the Royals were aided by Alex Gordon, who has been putting on a clinic during Kansas City's hot streak. In the month of July, Gordon batted .323 with four home runs and 13 RBI, and has raised his average on the season to .302. Gordon's emergence, paired with strong seasons from Jeff Francoeur and Billy Butler, has given the Royals offense some much-needed consistency.

Kansas City has tomorrow off, then starts a home series against Baltimore on Tuesday. The game is scheduled to start at 7:10 pm

Royals Can't Keep Up With Red Sox

The Royals enjoyed one of their better offensive games of the season, blasting several homers and notching seven runs by the fourth inning. Only problem was, Boston's offense was even better, and Kansas City fell 13-9.

Early on, it appeared that the Royals were en route to a victory. The team jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead, and later took a 7-5 lead in the fourth thanks to home runs by Alex Gordon and Billy Butler. However, Boston had a field day from the plate, and used a monster fifth inning to put the game out of reach.

The game was a polor opposite of Monday night's contest, a pitcher's dual that included a 1-1 tie entering the 14th inning. Kansas City was able to win that game despite scoring only one run in nine innings, yet nine runs weren't even close to good enough last night. Baseball can be a funny game sometimes.

Kansas City will play Boston again tonight at 6:10 PM. Bruce Chen (5-3) will get the start for the Royals. Chen only allowed one run over eight innings in his last start, a no decision against the White Sox.

Royals Take Series Vs. White Sox, Pitching Continues To Impress

After Felipe Paulino and the Royals bullpen shut down the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, Bruce Chen delivered an even better performance yesterday. Chen only allowed one run in six innings of work, and Kansas City won 4-1. The win gave the Royals a series victory over the White Sox.

Kansas City's offense quickly gave Chen a lead, highlighted by Eric Hosmer's eighth home run of the season. Hosmer now has three multi-hit games in the last four days, and he has given the Royals' offense a major shot in the arm since being called up.

The biggest story of the day, however, was Chen. Time and time again, he was able to escape jams while keeping Chicago's batters off balance all day long. Starting pitching was a major concern a few weeks ago, however Paulino and Chen's recent performances have given Kansas City fans some renewed hope. The team still needs to address its starting rotation if it wants to compete in the future, but the situation doesn't seem nearly as dire as it did earlier in the season.

The Royals begin a new series tonight against the struggling Detroit Tigers. Danny Duffy (1-3) will get the start for Kansas City.

Paulino Leads Royals to Win Over White Sox

Despite failing to pick up a victory, Felipe Paulino has been the best pitcher in Kansas City since the Royals stole him from the Rockies. Paulino finally earned a win last night, once again pitching well in a 5-3 victory over Chicago.

Paulino had a strong game, striking out nine batters over six innings. The win was his first since June 4, 2010, which seems shocking given how well he has pitched in Kansas City. The Royals aquired him for cash considerations after he was designated for assignment by Colorado - a move that is now looking like one of the biggest steals of the season. Paulino has brought consistency to a starting rotation that desperately needed it, and the Royals management deserves credit for finding a diamond in the rough.

Kansas City's bullpen pitched well after Paulino left the game, as Louis Coleman and Joakim Soria both kept the White Sox scoreless over the final three innings. Coleman has been very consistent this season, while Soria seems to be working his way back into all-star form.

Bruce Chen (4-2) will start for Kansas City this afternoon when the Royals face Chicago in a rubber match. The game will start at 1:10 p.m., and Edwin Jackson (5-6) will get the start for the White Sox.

Royals Blow Out Rockies

We might not have an NFL season, but the Royals were on the winning end of a football looking score today in Colorado. Kansas City's offense exploded late, giving the Royals a 16-8 victory over the Rockies.

Kansas City's offense put up staggering numbers this afternoon, which helped it overcome some poor pitching and defense. The Royals set a franchise record with 12 extra base hits, and Melky Cabrera enjoyed a monster game from the plate. Cabrera hit home runs in the first and third inning, giving Kansas City a quick 6-0 lead.

Colorado didn't go away quietly, however, and soon cut the lead to 6-5 with a huge fifth inning. The Royals quickly answered back, scoring six runs in the sixth and four runs in the seventh to put the game out of reach. Kansas City ended the day with 21 hits, a season high.

Kansas City will get back to its American League schedule tomorrow, when they travel to Chicago to take on the White Sox. Game one starts at 6:10 p.m., and Jeff Francis (3-9) will get the start for the Royals.