Why are the KC Royals struggling at home? On Tuesday, it came down to 2 areas
The Kansas City Royals are having issues at home. And they’ve been on display for visiting teams to see.
On Tuesday, the Royals fell 5-1 to the Tampa Bay Rays at Kauffman Stadium. The offense looked lifeless against Rays starter Taj Bradley. He entered Tuesday’s action with a 1.50 ERA in two career starts versus the Royals.
Bradley lowered those numbers across 6 ⅔ innings. He flirted with a perfect game as he retired 16 consecutive batters to begin his start. The Royals made contact but each time found an awaiting Rays defender.
“It’s frustrating because we play better on the road than at home,” third baseman Maikel Garcia said. “We have to figure out how to win at home.”
The Royals also made two costly errors in the field. Garcia threw wide of teammate Jonathan India covering second base in the fourth inning. Later, Kris Bubic failed to make an accurate toss to Vinnie Pasquantino in the fifth.
Tampa Bay (44-35) scored two unearned runs. Danny Jansen provided the rest of the damage as he finished with a home run and three RBIs.
“There were some frustrating moments,” Bubic said. “Obviously, the ones that stick out the most are the homer there. Falling behind in the count, just kind of grooving a fastball and then my error there kind of cost us.”
The Royals (38-41) have lost 15 of their last 18 at home. This season, the club has been outscored 140-110 by opposing teams. KC’s last home victory came on May 31 against the Detroit Tigers.
“We haven’t played well,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “We have been beaten each of these (home) games. So there is no one reason. If we knew what the one reason was, we would push the button and fix it. But we have to play better baseball if we are going to beat good teams.”
The eight consecutive home losses are the longest since April 4-May 2, 2023, when the Royals lost 10 games in a row at The K.
Royals offense struggles again
The Royals’ offensive issues continued Tuesday.
In the sixth inning, John Rave walked to represent the first baserunner and Jonathan India doubled to record the first hit. However, Bradley avoided trouble as Bobby Witt Jr. lined out to end the frame.
“I don’t know,” India said, asked about the home struggles. “Maybe we are trying to do too much and trying to hit the ball too far. It’s a big park. You know, we are trying to produce. Probably over-swinging (to) hit homers. And this park is not really made for homers.”
KC had four hits in the game. Vinnie Pasquantino added an RBI single in the ninth inning.
During the home losing streak, the Royals have scored two runs or fewer in six games.
“I’m doing it myself,” India continued. “You know, I’m over-swinging. It’s just part of it and we’ve got to figure it out.”
The Royals will host 11 of their next 18 games at Kauffman Stadium before the All-Star Break. The stretch includes games against the Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Mets.
“Any time we are playing from behind, it always makes it a little bit tougher,” Bubic said. “So, I think if we get out to a good lead early, you know, I think it will make it a lot easier for us going forward.”
What’s next: Right-hander Michael Wacha will start on Wednesday night against Rays hurler Drew Rasmussen at Kauffman Stadium. Wacha (4-6, 3.24 ERA) took a no-hit bid into the sixth inning in his last start against the Texas Rangers.
This story was originally published June 24, 2025 at 9:08 PM.
