How a positive week for the Kansas City Royals ended on a sour (and familiar) note
In crossing the quarter pole of the season, the Royals have been trending in a positive direction lately. But a nagging habit continued Sunday.
They can’t close the deal on a series.
Sunday’s 6-3 loss to the Detroit Tigers pushed the Royals’ record this season to 3-10 in series-ending games. Last season, the Royals thrived in these situations with a 33-19 record that was the third-best in baseball.
“I wasn’t keeping track of that,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “We didn’t win today, so whether it’s first or third game in a series, I don’t really care about that.”
The Royals entered the day looking to complete a sweep. Instead, they fell behind early and after drawing even fell victim to Gage Workman’s first major league home run.
Workman, whose middle name is Tater, joined the Tigers from Triple-A on Sunday. He pinch hit in the sixth inning when he pulled Nick Mears’ 85 mph slider into the right field seats. The two-run shot gave the Tigers a 5-3 lead, and they were on their way to ending a five-game losing streak.
The Royals, led by the top of the order, had worked to overcome a 3-0 deficit. Leadoff hitter Maikel Garcia scored and drove in a run and delivered three hits for the second time this season. A seventh inning walk made it a perfect on-base night for Garcia.
“He used the whole field,” Quatraro said. “Really, really nice day at the plate.”
Bobby Witt Jr. added a pair of singles and scored on a Carter Jensen sacrifice fly in third.
Vinnie Pasquantino came up with an opposite-field RBI single, and Jac Caglianone opened the fourth inning with a double to the left-center wall. He came around on Garcia’s two-out single to make it 3-3.
The eighth inning provided a hopeful moment. Michael Massey, who blasted a three-run homer the previous night, stepped to the plate as a pinch-hitter.
Consecutive three-run bombs? No. Massey grounded into an inning-ending double play.
Royals starter Noah Cameron labored through his four innings, throwing 95 pitches. This was a bullpen game for the Tigers. It became one for the Royals, who used four relievers over the final five frames.
Cameron had skipped his last start with lower back tightness and thought he could have pitched more aggressively.
“I needed to attack more,” Cameron said. “Got behind in counts and was kind of back to nibbling. ... I’ve got to be better”
Still, the Royals turned in a winning week against division rivals, splitting four games with Cleveland and winning the series with Detroit.
“We played good baseball and won the series,” Garcia said. “Now, we’ll try to play good on the road.”
No Salvy on his birthday
Salvador Perez turned 36 on Sunday. He celebrated ... on the bench.
Perez didn’t start and didn’t appear in the game.
“Just a day off, and we combine it with tomorrow (off day), so he gets two,” Quatraro said.
Perez has been managing a sore hip and hasn’t started a game at catcher since May 1.
Up next: The Royals are off Monday before beginning a road series at the Chicago White Sox. The pitching matchups (Royals pitchers first): Tuesday, Stephen Kolek vs. Erick Fedde; Wednesday, Seth Lugo vs. Noah Schultz; Thursday, Kris Bubic vs. TBA. All games start at 6:40 p.m.
This story was originally published May 10, 2026 at 9:27 PM.