After getting swept at home (again), Royals’ offense setting off major alarm bells
At some point, the Kansas City Royals have to score, right?
That’s the question many Royals fans are asking themselves. And with each debilitating loss, it’s becoming more of wishful thinking.
On Thursday, the Royals lost 4-0 to the Tampa Bay Rays. Royals starter Michael Lorenzen surrendered all four earned runs as Brandon Lowe and Junior Caminero tagged him with consecutive homers.
Lorenzen, who started the game with three consecutive strikeouts, was chased in the sixth inning. His outing was derailed and dearth of any run support.
Royals manager Matt Quatraro summed it up succinctly: “Things will change.”
The Royals (38-43) collected five hits Thursday. In the three-game series, KC was outscored 12-1 while being swept at home again.
“There’s a good chance for us to come out here tomorrow and compete and have something good happen,” Quatraro said. “We’re not going to put our tail between our legs. We are not going to curl up in a corner and cry about it. Nobody feels sorry for us. We can ask and answer all the same questions day in and day out.”
It was the same story as before. The Royals’ lackluster offense has become an unbearable weight that the pitching staff can’t make up for.
And things have somehow gotten worse.
In the first inning, the Royals had an early scoring chance. Jonathan India began the game with a leadoff double but was ultimately stranded at second base.
Bobby Witt Jr., who will join Team USA for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, flew out to center field. Next, Vinnie Pasquantino struck out and Maikel Garcia flew out to end the potential threat.
“Everybody is frustrated,” Garcia said. “We are frustrated losing games and we are trying to win the games that we can. We are trying to fight every single day.”
Rays starter Shane Baz tossed a career-high eight scoreless innings and recorded nine strikeouts. He retired 19 consecutive batters during a prolonged stretch.
“We got shut out by a good team and a really good pitcher,” Quatraro said. “Those guys don’t feel good about it. I don’t feel good about it. But we are not playing a blame game and asking for a new roster. This is our team that we believe in, that won a lot of games for us last year.”
The Royals have lost 10 consecutive games at home. During the streak, KC has been shut out five times and scored two runs or fewer in eight of those matchups.
The Rays (46-35) join the New York Yankees and Athletics as the third consecutive team to sweep the Royals at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals’ last home victory came on May 31 against the Detroit Tigers.
“Not good enough,” Pasquantino said. “And you know, we are continuing to have conversations about why, what can we do to fix it? We haven’t yet and that’s in the past. We’ve got a lot of belief in this group, in this locker room, and it’s currently not good enough.”
Things don’t get any easier this weekend. The Royals will begin a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers with three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani slated to pitch on Saturday afternoon.
“We are going to win games,” Quatraro said. It’s not happening right now but I can’t give you a timeline. Those guys are going to come out here tomorrow and fight like crazy to beat the Dodgers.”
What’s next: Royals left-handed rookie Noah Cameron (2-3, 2.08 ERA) will start against the Dodgers on Friday night. He will oppose right-hander Dustin May (4-5, 4.46 ERA).
This story was originally published June 26, 2025 at 3:46 PM.
