Royals suffer sweep against Athletics, lose sixth straight game
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
Kansas City's early summer slump has stretched into mid-June.
The Royals (34-38) fell victim to their second straight sweep, falling 3-2 to the Athletics (29-44) at Kauffman Stadium. With Sunday's loss, manager Matt Quatraro's team has lost eight of its last nine contests, including five matchups to a pair of clubs whose records are more than 15 games below the .500-mark.
Kansas City put itself in position to snap its five-game losing streak with a two-run third inning and five shutout frames from Noah Cameron. Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino tallied an RBI double and single respectively, generating all of the team's offense. Cameron, who's thriving in his rookie season, giving up just four hits and zero runs with seven strikeouts on the mound to lower his season ERA (1.91).
However, the bullpen was mostly lackluster in this contest. John Schreiber surrendered a game-tying, two-run home run to Austin Wynns in the sixth inning, and then, Carlos Estevez allowed a go-ahead solo shot to Nick Kurtz, which decided the game. Collectively, the Royals' relievers pitched four innings and were charged with three runs on five hits and two walks.
The Royals posted nine hits on Sunday afternoon, guided by multi-hit performances from Pasquantino, Witt Jr. and Freddy Fermin.
Up next - The Royals will strive to improve the MLB's second-worst record this month (3-10) with a road trip to Globe Life Field. Kansas City opens a three-game series with Texas, starting on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m.
