Kansas City Royals’ losses mount in Reds finale: 9th straight defeat, 3rd series sweep
The Kansas City Royals can’t catch a break.
Things have gone downhill with a rash of injuries and bad baseball being played on a nightly basis. The Royals are in a rut and are now the owners of Major League Baseball’s worst record: 18-50.
On Wednesday, they squandered another chance at victory. The Reds cruised to a 7-4 victory and swept the Royals in a three-game set for the first time since the 1999 season.
“It’s hard to just, before the game, look at the scoreboard and see we are in last place,” Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. said. “It’s tough being, I guess, the worst team in baseball.”
KC collected 15 hits but left 14 men on base. It was the Royals’ ninth straight loss and third straight series sweep. They lost series at Miami and Baltimore before being shut down by the Reds in three games at Kauffman Stadium.
Royals manager Matt Quatraro wants to see the team string together quality at-bats. He hopes to capitalize on scoring chances without changing his players’ approach at the plate.
“We got a fair number of hits and we had chances to drive guys in,” Quatraro said. “It’s one of those things with runners in scoring position, the randomness of it and ability of it comes and goes. Lately, it has not been there for us and we are not backing down from that.”
The Reds took advantage of their chances. Cincinnati mashed four home runs, including back-to-back blasts, against Royals starter Daniel Lynch. In the third inning, the Reds sent eight batters to the plate and scored five runs.
It was more than enough offense. Lynch pitched seven innings and allowed seven runs. He issued four walks and struck out three batters.
“I really didn’t give us a chance,” Lynch said. “The big inning and I think things just sped up and a lot happened in a small amount of pitches. I just didn’t give myself a chance to get out of there.”
Lynch said he made some mistakes with his pitch sequence. He left a fastball over the plate to Reds second baseman Matt McLain. He also threw a slider to designated hitter Jonathan India. Both players connected with home runs in the fifth inning.
“That’s just mental stuff that can probably be avoided,” Lynch said.
The Royals found a spark from Edward Olivares. He went 4-for-5. Meanwhile, Dairon Blanco continued to impress with a double and a triple.
The Royals will welcome the Los Angeles Angels to Kauffman Stadium on Friday night.
“We are just going to keep taking it day by day,” Witt said. “Just try to think of the positives.”
Missed previous games of the series?
Game 1: Royals drop dramatic series opener on Chiefs Night
Game 2: Royals can’t overcome early deficit in 5-4 loss to Reds
Injury update: Vinnie Pasquantino ruled out for season with torn labrum in right shoulder
Here are more notables from today’s game:
Salvador Perez exits game after hit-by-pitch
Salvador Perez exited Wednesday’s game with a left-hand contusion. In the third inning, Perez was hit by a pitch from Reds starter Ben Lively. The baseball ran in on Perez and hit his hand.
The Royals training staff came out to check on Perez. He left the game and headed to the clubhouse for further evaluation. Maikel Garcia took Perez’s place as KC’s designated hitter.
“It was a negative X-ray and day-to-day,” Quatraro said after the game. “We got pretty lucky.”
Perez is hitting .274 this season with 14 home runs and 37 RBIs.
MORE: Salvador Perez exits Royals game with hand injury. Here are the details.
Dairon Blanco puts on show at plate
The Royals added a speed element to their lineup this week. Dairon Blanco was called up from Triple-A Omaha to get an extended look with the major-league club.
On Wednesday, Blanco drove in his first run. He hit a double down the left-field line to score Edward Olivares in the sixth inning.
It was first double of Blanco’s MLB career. In the eighth inning, he hit a triple. It was his fourth hit since his promotion this week.
What’s next: The Royals are off Thursday. Brady Singer will start Friday’s series opener against the Los Angeles Angels at The K.
This story was originally published June 14, 2023 at 10:06 PM.
