Royals trailed 6-0 before making things interesting in Memorial Day loss to Reds
The late broadcaster Harry Caray used to like saying, “You can’t beat fun at the old ballpark.”
That adage was put to the test for much of Monday’s game at Kauffman Stadium, where the Royals lost 7-4 to the Reds.
The Royals (29-26) fell behind 6-0 as starter Michael Lorenzen labored through five innings. And the game was played in a near steady rain. While there wasn’t a downpour at any point, the announced crowd of 18,002 spent most of the game wearing ponchos.
The Royals mounted a bit of a comeback in the seventh inning, when first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino singled and catcher Salvador Perez followed with a home run to left field.
After a dreadful stretch at the plate earlier this month (.091 average in eight games), Perez has two home runs and five RBIs in his last five — a stretch in which he’s batted .375.
Cincinnati got one of those runs back in the eighth inning. The Royals loaded the bases in the ninth inning and got a run when Emilio Pagán balked with two outs.
A “Let’s Go Royals!” chant broke out, but the rally ended with Michael Massey flying to center. Still, the fans had some fun, so maybe Caray was right.
It was another tough day for the Royals’ offense, which has scored four runs or fewer in 11 of KC’s last 12 games.
“We’ve talked a lot about it before,” Perez said. “We compete every day. We don’t want to hit like that every night as a group. But we prepare ourselves every night and we go out there and compete. ...
“I know, even myself, I need to get better swings, try to help my team to win. I think it’s going to come. The pitchers are doing a pretty good job. If they continue to do that, and that combination comes, we’re going to win a lot of games.”
Michael Lorenzen’s struggles
Lorenzen allowed six runs on 11 hits and three walks with just two strikeouts. He threw 102 pitches; just 56 were for strikes.
“Just unacceptable, from my part today,” he said. “Stuff wasn’t didn’t have any life to it, similar that Detroit start (in April), just no life at all.
“So yeah, I mean, their swings showed me that they were pretty comfortable. And looking at my stuff, I would be pretty comfortable, too, if I was in the box against that. So I figure it out and clean it up, and I will.”
Still streaking
Third baseman Maikel Garcia doubled in the seventh inning and extended his hitting streak to 11 games.
Pasquantino collected three singles and has a 10-game hitting streak, but he echoed Perez in regards to the team’s hitting overall.
“We’ve gotta hit. That’s what we’re here for,” Pasquantino said. “Today was a frustrating day.”
I know you
Monday’s game was the first regular-season meeting between the Royals and Reds since their trade after last season.
The Royals sent right-handed starting pitcher Brady Singer to Cincinnati for infielder Jonathan India. Singer is set to pitch Tuesday, while India was the designated hitter in Monday’s game.
“It’s definitely kind of weird seeing them on the other side,” said India, who was drafted by the Reds in 2018 and played four seasons in Cincinnati. “But it’s reality. It’s the business we’re in.
“But yeah, it’s settled in today for sure. I’ve seen the team I was with for five years over there. It’s good though. This is good for me: I’m a Royal.”
India was 1 for 4 in Monday’s game. His hit in the bottom of the fourth was the Royals’ first of the afternoon.
What’s next
The Royals will play host to the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday in the second of three games at Kauffman Stadium. Singer (RHP) will start for the Reds, while the Royals will go with Daniel Lynch IV in what should be a bullpen game. First pitch is set for 6:40 p.m.
This story was originally published May 26, 2025 at 5:56 PM.
