Kansas City 4, Seattle 1
When: 4:10 PM ET, Sunday, May 1, 2016
Where: Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington
Temperature:
66°
Umpires:
Home -
D.J. Reyburn, 1B -
Clint Fagan, 2B -
Victor Carapazza, 3B -
Bill Welke
Attendance:
37053
By The Sports Xchange
SEATTLE -- Mired in a five-game losing streak that saw them go two-plus games with scoring a run, the Kansas City Royals were in desperate need of a slump-buster Sunday afternoon.
Starting pitcher Ian Kennedy and second baseman Omar Infante provided just the antidote.
Infante's two-out RBI single in the second inning and a solid start from Kennedy helped Kansas City get back on the winning track with a 4-1 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday.
Kennedy went five-plus innings before handing it over to the Royals' bullpen, which produce four shutout innings.
"It feels good," said Kansas City first baseman Eric Hosmer, who hit a solo home run in the eighth inning to help the team take the finale of a three-game series. "Like I said (during the losing streak), we still have confidence in each other. We realize we were having bad luck and stuff that wasn't going our way. It was good to get this win before going home and playing a tough team in the Washington Nationals (on Monday)."
Infante ended the Royals' 27-inning scoreless streak in the second, and Kansas City (13-11) never trailed. Lorenzo Cain also drove in a run for the Royals, who jumped out to a 3-0 lead and had to hold off potential Seattle rallies in each of the final three innings.
Kansas City closer Wade Davis earned his eighth save of the season by working around a hit in the ninth.
The Royals won for the first time in a week. Kansas City's five-game losing streak was its longest since August 2013.
"It's been a rough road trip," Royals manager Ned Yost said.
Kennedy (3-2) allowed one run on four hits while walking two and striking out six. He matched his 2015 season total for road victories -- two.
"With the way it's been going the last couple of days, we need an outing like that," Hosmer said. "And (Kennedy) really stepped up for us."
The Royals ended the scoreless streak that extended back to Wednesday when Infante blooped a single over second baseman Luis Sardinas. Alex Gordon came in to score from third base to give Kansas City a 1-0 lead on the team's first run since the first inning of a 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday.
Cain added an RBI single up the middle in the third inning, giving the Royals a 2-0 lead.
Two innings later, Cain came around from second base to score on a throwing error by Seattle shortstop Ketel Marte.
Seattle starter Taijuan Walker, who hadn't allowed more than two runs in a game in any of his first four starts, struggled through five innings. Walker (2-1) allowed three runs -- two earned -- on seven hits before the bullpen took over to open the sixth.
"He kept us in there," Seattle manager Scott Servais said. "He gave us a shot. We just couldn't get the big hit for him."
Seattle (13-11) trailed by three when it looked to be on the verge of a sixth-inning rally. However, Kansas City right fielder Jarrod Dyson took the wind out of the Mariners' sails with an inning-ending throw to home plate.
Seattle loaded the bases with no outs on a pair of singles and a walk against Kennedy before reliever Danny Duffy came in and struck out back-to-back hitters. Mariners catcher Chris Iannetta hit a two-out single to cut the Royals' lead to 3-1, but Robinson Cano was thrown out at home plate by Dyson trying to score from second.
The Mariners threatened again in the seventh, with two outs and Cano coming to the plate with runners on first and second, but the slugger flied out to center field to end that threat.
"I just wanted to take my time and field the ball," Dyson said. "I know Cano is not the fastest runner, so I wanted to take my time before making the throw."
Hosmer added to the Kansas City lead with his eighth-inning solo shot.
Kansas City leadoff hitter Alcides Escobar went 3-for-5 with a double and a run. Cain and Hosmer each had a pair of hits and an RBI for the Royals, while Seattle got two apiece from Cano and Seth Smith.
"I thought we had a good homestand," said Seattle's Servais after his team went 4-2 against 2015 playoff teams Houston and Kansas City. "The energy was there, we battled (Sunday), and the atmosphere in the stadium was very good."
NOTES: Kansas City issued 15 walks through the first two games of the series but just three on Sunday. ... The Mariners, at 13-10, finished above .500 in April for the first time since 2009. ... The Mariners open a seven-game road trip with a Monday game at Oakland. The Royals host the Washington Nationals on Monday.
Top Game Performances
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Hits |
HR |
TB |
Avg |
LOB |
K |
RBI |
BB |
SB |
Errors |
Kansas City
|
11 |
1 |
15 |
.297 |
15 |
12 |
3 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
Seattle
|
8 |
0 |
9 |
.235 |
18 |
10 |
1 |
3 |
0 |
1 |