Royals miss chance at sweep with eighth-inning meltdown in 7-4 loss to Tigers

The entire thing — a tidy evening, a potential sweep of the Tigers and the sixth victory in a row for the Royals — unraveled in the eighth inning of a 7-4 loss to Detroit on Wednesday.

Manager Ned Yost stuck with starter Edinson Volquez after he loaded the bases with none out. A two-run lead vanished when Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler roped a game-tying double. Kelvin Herrera could not stop the bleeding either: Two more runs scored after he replaced Volquez.

“That’s my fault,” Yost said. “I’ve got a pretty hard and fast rule that I don’t let my starter get beat in the eighth inning. And I did it there. It cost Eddie a win. It cost us a win.”

Yost has sought to conserve his relief corps in recent days. Wade Davis remained unavailable as he rested his stiff back. Yost hopes he can be available by Thursday, when the Royals, 68-45, begin a four-game series with the Angels.

After Herrera entered, outfielder J.D. Martinez brought Detroit the lead with a single that ticked off the glove of shortstop Alcides Escobar. The sixth run scored when outfielder Tyler Collins hit a grounder to first baseman Eric Hosmer. Hosmer tried to throw Kinsler out at the plate, but Kinsler slid in safe.

The inning erased an otherwise pleasant night for the Royals. Heading into the seventh, Volquez had retired 13 batters in a row. The Tigers scored two runs in the first two innings, but Volquez found his rhythm soon after.

The Royals tied the game in the third. Alex Rios recorded his team’s first hit with a double. Three batters later, Escobar raked a triple. Rios scored easily, and a wayward relay throw by Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias allowed Escobar to score, too.

Lorenzo Cain and Hosmer pushed their team in front in the next inning. Cain led off with a double. He stole third, which proved unnecessary: Hosmer doubled him home. Hosmer eventually scored on a sacrifice fly by Omar Infante.

This story was originally published August 12, 2015 at 10:20 PM with the headline "Royals miss chance at sweep with eighth-inning meltdown in 7-4 loss to Tigers."