Win number eight wasn’t pretty, but the Royals got the job done in an 11-7 victory over the Tigers to extend their wining streak. The Royals won all seven games of their homestand, just the fourth time in club history they have had a perfect homestand of seven or more games.
If you had “Salvador Perez stolen base” on your bingo card today, congrats, you’re a winner! Salvy stole second base in the second inning, his first steal in five years.
The Royals loaded the bases before Kyle Isbel brought home two with a single. Nick Loftin delivered a big blow with a three-run homer. Loftin finished 3-for-4 with four RBIs and scored three times.
Daniel Lynch IV had his longest start of the season, pitching into the fifth. He exited after a one-out walk, and Mason Black allowed the run to score. Lynch finished with two runs allowed in 4.1 innings with two strikeouts and a walk. Detroit rallied against Black scoring four runs to turn a 5-1 deficit into a 5-5 tie. But the Royals immediately answered in the bottom of the inning. Vinnie Pasquantino doubled home Loftin, Salvy followed with an RBI double, and John Rave’s two-run homer pushed Kansas City’s lead to 9-5.
Black gave up a run in the sixth, and Jose Cuas gave up a run in the seventh, although he escaped a jam that could have been a lot worse. But the lineup added some insurance runs in the eighth off Tigers rookie Andrew Sears, who making his MLB debut. Isbel and Loftin each singled home runs to make it 11-7. Isbel enjoyed a 3 RBI afternoon.
Steven Cruz closed the door with a scoreless ninth, the last out recorded on an overturned call for strike three. The Royals improve to 58-74 and they are 7.5 games out of a playoff spot, just four games back of the Tigers. They will travel tomorrow and begin a six-game road trip in Toronto and Cleveland, starting on Tuesday.
