How the Royals’ bullpen imploded again in Tuesday’s loss to Washington Nationals
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- Lynch entered the seventh with a 1.80 ERA and was charged with three runs.
- Foster Griffin, drafted in 2014, allowed one run across six innings.
- Maikel Garcia left in the sixth with left-hand soreness after a 0-for-1 and a walk.
Left-handed Kansas City Royals pitcher Daniel Lynch IV has been a breakout star this season.
Entering Tuesday’s game against the Washington Nationals, he had an impressive 1.80 ERA in 30 relief appearances. He had limited opponents to a .167 batting average and just one hit in his last five outings.
In the seventh inning of Tuesday night’s road game against the Washington Nationals, Lynch got the call out of the bullpen. With the game tied 3-3, he was tasked with throwing a scoreless inning.
He didn’t get the job done this time. Washington rallied for three runs en route to a 6-4 win at Nationals Park.
Lynch didn’t have his best command. He walked two batters before Nationals infielder Curtis Mead belted a three-run homer. Mead hit an 88 mph slider for his 11th home run of the year.
KC (29-45) dropped its 15th series this season. The Royals have lost six of their last seven games. The Nationals improved to 39-35.
The Royals will look to salvage a win in this series in Wednesday’s afternoon matinee.
Royals face familiar foe
Twelve years ago, the Royals selected left-handed pitcher Foster Griffin in the first round of the 2014 MLB Draft.
Griffin played two seasons with the Royals before heading to Japan. He honed his craft with the Yomiuri Giants in the Japan Central League and returned stateside this season with the Nationals.
Now 30 years old, Griffin faced his former team on Tuesday night. And he pitched a quality start, limiting the Royals to one run across six innings. He allowed six hits and two walks and struck out six.
The Nationals jumped to a two-run lead in the third inning. Catcher Drew Millas got aboard with a leadoff single and second baseman Nasim Nuñez drove him home with an RBI triple.
Washington later doubled its lead when All-Star outfielder James Wood hit a sacrifice fly for his 47th RBI of the season.
Nuñez was an offensive threat all night. In the fifth inning, belted a second triple off the outfield wall in right. Wood drove him home again, this time with a single off Royals starter Michael Wacha.
Wacha allowed three earned runs in six innings. He walked one batter and struck out three men in posting his first quality start since May 31. This season, 67% of his outings have been quality starts.
The Royals battled back in the seventh inning. Isaac Collins, who entered the game in place of third baseman Maikel Garcia, hit a two-run single off Nationals left-handed reliever — and former Royal — Richard Lovelady.
Collins drove home Lane Thomas and Bobby Witt Jr. that inning. Both had reached o start the seventh-inning rally. KC also got a key at-bat from Jac Caglianone, who moved the runners into scoring position.
Wacha settled for a no-decision. The Royals’ bullpen handled the late innings; Lynch IV was charged with three runs and the loss.
Maikel Garcia exits game
The Royals were hit with another injury when Garcia was removed with a sore left hand in the sixth inning.
Earlier, Garcia had appeared to take some uncomfortable swings. He has dealt with the left-hand pain for some time and continued to play through it.
Garcia finished 0-for-1 Tuesday. He drew a walk in the first inning and grounded into a double play in the fourth.
He has played in 67 games this year. He is batting .266 with three homers and 30 RBIs with a .704 OPS (on-base plus slugging).
What’s next: Royals right-hander Luinder Avila (1-3, 6.19 ERA) will start Wednesday’s series finale against the Nationals. He will oppose right-hander Zack Littell (6-5, 5.32 ERA), with first pitch set for 12:05 p.m. Central Time.
This story was originally published June 16, 2026 at 8:44 PM.
