KC Royals snapped 5-game streak of road losses at Colorado Rockies. Here’s how

The Kansas City Royals needed their offense to show up at Coors Field. The hitters’ paradise hadn’t been too kind to the Midwestern visitors over the weekend weekend.

And the Royals knew it.

Outfielder Hunter Renfroe said the Royals needed to punch first in Sunday afternoon’s series finale. And the Royals did exactly that in beating the Colorado Rockies 10-1.

The Royals (49-43) clubbed three home runs. Third baseman Maikel Garcia delivered the big blow with a three-run shot in the second inning. It was his sixth homer of the season and his first since May 17 against the Oakland Athletics.

“I was trying to see the ball and put the ball in play,” Garcia said. “He missed that changeup and I hit the ball well.”

Garcia finished 2-for-3 with a walk and has now hit safely in six of his last 10 games.

The Royals continued to attack the Colorado pitching staff. Rockies starter Tanner Gordon made his major-league debut for the Rockies (32-58) on Sunday, allowing five earned runs in 6 1/3 innings.

The Royals added key insurance runs in the seventh and eighth innings. Outfielder MJ Melendez hit a solo homer over the right-field wall and second baseman Michael Massey added an RBI single.

“We know the struggles we’ve had on the road this season as a team,” Melendez said. “We are trying to do a better job of that.”

Superstar Bobby Witt Jr. punctuated the win by blasting his 15th home run of the season, a three-run shot, in the top of the ninth.

“That just shows what our offense can do,” Witt said. “I still think we can even do more. So, it’s a lot of fun.”

All of that run support was enough for Royals starting pitcher Brady Singer. He was dominant across seven innings and picked up his fifth victory.

Royals left-handed reliever Kris Bubic made his season debut after returning from Tommy John surgery. He struck out two in a hitless bottom of the ninth.

“I’m sure he had some extra adrenaline getting back her after that long rehab,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said.

After an off-day Monday, the Royals begin a two-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday night.

Missed previous games of the series?

Game 1: Royals fall 4-2 to Rockies in series opener at Coors Field

Game 2: Royals offense struggles in 3-1 loss to Rockies

Here are more notable aspects of Sunday’s game:

Brady Singer shines against Rockies

Singer has proven to be a model of consistency this season. He continued his stellar stretch with a shutout effort against the Rockies.

He was effective by pitching to contact. Singer allowed four hits and received two crucial double plays in the middle innings. The Rockies were turned away as Singer erased a potential rally with runners on the corners.

“It was good as I was glad with the outcome,” Singer said. “But I was glad with how the pitches worked, too, as I didn’t really know my first time pitching at Coors Field in this air. I didn’t know how the ball would move and whether the sinker would work as well as it has been.”

Singer worked around a leadoff walk in the fifth inning. From there, he cruised to the finish line with a comfortable five-run lead.

Singer got 27 swings and 12 whiffs on his slider, per Baseball Savant. He induced weak contact with the pitch, which resulted in quick and efficient innings to aid the Royals’ struggling offense.

“I was able to use it and I think it worked pretty well,” Singer said. “The slider was a huge pitch today and the four-seam was up in the zone. I felt the pitches were good.”

Entering Sunday’s game, Singer was 4-1 with a 2.15 ERA in nine daytime starts. He lowered those numbers as the Royals avoided their second sweep of the 2024 campaign.

The Captain reaches new benchmark

The Royals broke out of their funk early against the Rockies. In the second inning, team captain Salvador Perez hit a leadoff single off Gordon.

It was a special moment, too.

Perez became the seventh player in Royals history with 1,500 career hits. He is the 24th active player and only primary catcher to reach the milestone.

“It’s nice to for Salvy to get his 1,500th right there and no waiting around,” Quatraro said.

Later in the game, Perez collected his 1501st career hit. He and George Brett are the only two Royals all-time with more than 1,500 hits and 250 home runs.

This season, Perez has garnered a lot of historic moments. In April, Perez hit his 250th career home run against the New York Mets.

What’s next on the KC Royals’ schedule?

The Royals are off Monday before beginning a two-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. It will be the first I-70 matchup of the 2024 campaign.

Royals right-handed pitcher Michael Wacha will start on Tuesday night. He is 5-6 with a 3.74 ERA and will face his former team. The Cardinals selected Wacha in the first round of the 2012 MLB Draft and he spent seven years with the organization.

The Cardinals will start right-hander Andre Pallante. He is 4-3 with a 4.00 ERA in seven starts this season.