The Royals were defeated by the Guardians on Thursday.
The Kansas City Royals were defeated by the Cleveland Guardians on Thursday, losing by a final score of 8-5. It was a difficult ending to what began as a strong series for the Royals. Kansas City won the first two contests of the four-game series at home, but Cleveland bounced back with wins on Wednesday and Thursday. Royals starting pitcher Seth Lugo endured an up and down performance during Thursday's game.
Lugo turned in four innings of four-run baseball. He also allowed seven hits and four walks while striking out five hitters. The bullpen proceeded to surrender four more runs in the 8-5 defeat.
Overall, Lugo has still enjoyed a strong campaign. The Royals' right-hander now holds a 3.21 ERA across eight starts. He has struck out 42 batters in his 47.2 innings of work.
The Royals' starting pitching has been fairly inconsistent, but Lugo has been one of their more reliable hurlers despite his forgettable outing on Thursday.
Royals Lose to Guardians
As mentioned, the Royals' bullpen gave up four more runs after Lugo's start. It was a difficult overall game for Kansas City pitching. The Royals had quieted Cleveland's bats for the most part to begin the series, but the Guardians got things going on Thursday afternoon.
The Royals' lineup managed to still score five runs on 12 hits. Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino both hit home runs in the ball game. Witt was especially impressive, as he recorded four hits and a walk while scoring a run and recording an RBI in the game. He had an impressive series as well as he continues to remind the baseball world that he is one of the best players in the sport.
With that being said, Witt would have preferred to have led his team to a win on Thursday.
What's Next for the Royals?
The Royals fell to 17-21 with the defeat. They are currently in fourth place in the American League Central standings. Kansas City now trails the first place Guardians by 2.5 games in the division.
The Royals have another big series this weekend at home as they are set to play the Detroit Tigers. It should be a competitive clash between the AL Central rivals.
The first contest of the series is scheduled for Friday night in Kansas City at 7:40 PM EST as Kansas City looks to get back into the win column.