Nick Loftin and John Rave hit home runs as the host Kansas City Royals outlasted the Detroit Tigers 11-7 in a high-scoring affair on Sunday afternoon.
Loftin was 3-for-4 with four RBIs out of the leadoff spot for the Royals, who swept Detroit and finished off a perfect 7-0 homestand, part of an eight-game winning streak.
The long ball by Loftin was the highlight of a five-run second for Kansas City. After the Tigers scored four in the fifth to tie the game at 5-5, the Royals added on four more in the bottom of the inning to take the lead for good.
Rave had the big hit in the fifth, a 407-foot two-run homer, after RBI doubles by Vinnie Pasquantino and Salvador Perez. All four runs were charged to left-hander Andrew Sears, who was making his MLB debut.
John Schreiber (1-3) got the Royals’ last two outs of the sixth to earn the wing. Sears (0-1) was the bulk pitcher on a bullpen day for Detroit, allowing four runs in four-plus innings.
Jacob Waguespack served as the Tigers’ opener, tossing 1 1/3 innings and giving up two runs.
Max Clark had an RBI fielder’s choice in the sixth and Ben Malgeri worked a walk with the bases juiced in the seventh. Detroit loaded the bases in both innings but only managed to trim the deficit in half to 9-7.
Kansas City got those runs back with RBI singles by Kyle Isbel and Loftin in the eighth.
Royals starter Daniel Lynch IV went 4 1/3 innings, allowing two runs, four hits and one walk and striking out two.
The Tigers took their first lead of the weekend on Kevin McGonigle’s first-inning RBI double. McGonigle went on to add a fifth-inning homer and totaled three RBIs in the loss.
Isbel’s two-run single off Ty Madden in the second put Kansas City on top. Loftin did further damage with his sixth homer of the season, a 379-foot, three-run shot to left-center.
Clark drew a walk to end Lynch’s day with one out in the fifth. Mason Black stepped in struggled against the top of the Detroit order.
Javier Baez greeted him with a double, Gleyber Torres scored Clark on an RBI groundout and Hao-Yu Lee added a run-scoring single before McGonigle tied the game with a 392-foot blast to right-center.
Kansas City right fielder Jac Caglianone was a late scratch from the starting lineup with ankle soreness.
