KC Royals climb back into AL Central race, taking 3 of 4 from Guardians: recap

The Kansas City Royals faced perhaps their biggest challenge of the 2024 season this weekend.

A four-game series against the Cleveland Guardians.

The American League Central rivals entered as surprise contenders. The Guardians built themselves into one of the best teams in baseball, while the Royals have exceeded early expectations after losing a franchise-record 106 games last season.

Both teams knew the magnitude of their weekend clash. But it was the Royals, who had slumped in June, who took care of business at home, winning 6-2 on Sunday to secure a pivotal series victory.

“Every series I think is important,” Royals captain Salvador Perez said. “... To win a series against a team like Cleveland, you guys know how good they are, it’s pretty good for us.”

The Royals improved to 47-39 after winning three of their four games against Cleveland. Additionally, KC shaved a few games off the Guardians’ divisional lead: Cleveland now leads Royals by seven games in the AL Central.

Royals starter Seth Lugo set the tone Sunday. He pitched six scoreless innings and struck out 10. The Guardians managed just four hits against Lugo and had just one baserunner reach second while he was in the game.

“I was able to keep them off-balance, you know, especially after taking that liner in the first (inning),” Lugo said. “I was able to stay focused to keep making pitches.”

Lugo leaned on his wealth of secondary pitches. He turned to his curveball, changeup and slurve to help balance his fastball. He neutralized the Guardians’ lineup by pounding the strike zone aggressively.

“I actually feel like the curveball could have been a little better,” Lugo said. “I wasn’t really locating it as well, but it had the good movement, so I will take that.

“The changeup, it’s turning into a really good pitch for me. I’m really starting to trust it and decided to throw it a lot more today.”

Lugo threw 66 of 93 pitches for strikes. And the Royals made sure to support him with ample runs.

Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. hit an RBI triple in the fifth inning. Later, first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, who finished 3-for-4, added an RBI single of his own.

From there, Perez put the icing on the cake. He blasted a two-run homer over the left-field wall against Guardians reliever Pedro Avila.

“It’s huge,” Witt said of the victory. “Seth did a great job out there. The crowd was electric, and yeah, that was a great series win.”

Lugo picked up his MLB-leading 11th victory of the year. And his 2.17 ERA leads the major leagues.

The Guardians fell to 52-30. KC has won four of six head-to-head matchups against them this season.

Missed previous games of the series?

Game 1: Royals stellar bullpen effort helps secure 2-1 victory over Guardians

Game 2: KC offense comes alive in big home win vs. Guardians

Game 3: Guardians earn 7-2 victory behind controversial home run call

Here are more notable aspects of Sunday’s game:

Vinnie Pasquantino extends RBI streak

There is something to be said for a little bit of home cooking … and Pasquantino has found himself getting pretty full.

Pasquantino continued his home RBI streak against the Guardians on Sunday. He now has nine consecutive games with at least one RBI at Kauffman Stadium.

In the fifth inning, Pasquantino hit an RBI single against Guardians reliever Eli Morgan. He swatted the base hit into right field and Witt scored from third.

It was Pasquantino’s 42nd home RBI this season, and his nine-game home-RBIs streak is tied for the third-longest in franchise history. Only Mike Sweeney (10 games) and Eric Hosmer (12) have had longer ones.

Sunday Funday at The K!

The Royals had a packed house for Sunday’s series finale. The club announced that 27,691 fans were in attendance.

That registered as the third-largest crowd at Kauffman Stadium this season. The only crowds that were larger: opening day (38,775) and Big Slick on May 31 (30,006).

“This was a good crowd today,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “You know, it was a big crowd. I think they understand that division games are important.”

Perez agreed. He thanked the fans for showing up Sunday afternoon.

“Thank you for the crowd, thank you for the people of Kansas City and thank you for the support,” Perez said.

What’s next on the KC Royals’ schedule?

The Royals are off Monday before beginning a three-game home series against the Tampa Bay Rays Tuesday night.

KC will send right-hander Brady Singer to the mound. Singer owns a 3.12 ERA and has allowed one earned run or fewer in 10 of his 16 starts this season.

The Rays are scheduled to start right-handed pitcher Zack Littell in the series opener.