Royals Review - All Posts

Royals vs. Red Sox Monday gamethread

2025-08-04T16:43:36-04:00

Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

This is a big series!

Early game thread tonight due to the SB Nation transition, and unfortunately, we won’t be able to do a recap, so you’re on your own!

The Royals take on the Red Sox at Fenway for a big three-game series that features two of the best AL teams over the past month. Brayan Bello (7-5, 3.19 ERA) takes the ball for Boston in Game 1.

Got the Royals in town for 3. pic.twitter.com/k0hTy9aWKg
— Red Sox (@RedSox) August 4, 2025

Bailey Falters makes his Royals debut. He had a 3.73 ERA in 22 starts for the Pirates, with a low strikeout rate. Matt Chabot wrote up a scouting report of his stuff here.

New series starts tonight. pic.twitter.com/jAdvIbF3sJ
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) August 4, 2025

Game time is at 6:10 CT on FanDuel Sports Network Kansas City.

Royals Review and the SB Nation transition

2025-08-04T15:00:00-04:00

Photo by Peter L. Gould/Images Press/Getty Images

No recap tonight, here’s why!

Royals Review is moving to a new platform that will lead to a cleaner front page, less annoying ads, and more promotion of Fanposts. This will require a new login system tomorrow on Tuesday, August 5, but it will also require all sites to go “dark” during the transition period.

What does that mean? Well the site will still operate, and you can still post comments. However, we won’t be able to post new articles during the transition. That means that we will get an early gamethread up and you can comment on tonight’s Royals/Red Sox game all night, but there will be no recap posted tonight.

The Royals Rumblings morning news will also be late tomorrow morning until the transition is complete. If all goes well, it should be up by around 9 a.m. CT. You will need to log into the new system for the first time before commenting.

Any questions? Post ‘em here and I’ll try to answer as best I can (I’m on a need-to-know-basis!) We apologize for any inconvenience, but hopefully this will lead to a better user experience. We just ask for some patience as we make our transition.

Thanks again for helping to make this one of the best sports communities on the interwebs!

Red Sox series preview: Two of the hottest teams in the AL

2025-08-04T14:00:00-04:00

Photo by Brian Fluharty/Getty Images

Is this the most important series of the year?

The Royals are back to .500 and head to Boston before they have nine games in a row against teams with a losing record. The Red Sox are red hot right now, winning 20 of 27, the best record in the American League since the end of June (the Royals have the third-best record at 17-10). They’re coming off a home sweep of the Astros, and their 37-21 home record is fifth-best in baseball.

Kansas City Royals (56-56) vs. Boston Red Sox (62-51) at Fenway Park, Boston, MA

Royals: 3.67 runs scored/game (29th in MLB), 3.77 runs allowed/game (2nd)

Red Sox: 4.96 runs scored/game (5th), 4.27 runs allowed/game (15th)

The Red Sox have hit well this year, but have a gaping hole at first base that went unaddressed at the trade deadline, angering fans. Boston first basemen have combined to hit just .241/.302/.399 this year, with Triston Casas going down early in May with a season-ending knee injury.

The Red Sox also held onto outfielder Jarren Duran, despite trade rumors. He has been on fire this month, hitting .301/.398/.667 with six home runs in 26 games since June 30. Duran is hitting just .200/.241/.320 against lefties. Trevor Story has missed much of the last two seasons with injuries, but he has begun to heat up this summer, batting .315/.356/.581 with eight home runs in his last 36 games. He has the eighth-highest strikeout rate at 28.5 percent.

Boston has been helped by a great start by rookie Roman Anthony. He has the fourth-best on-base percentage for any player with at least 190 plate appearances. Romy Gonzalez is hitting .323/.355/.606 at home this year. Ceddanne Rafaela has the second-highest swing rate in baseball at 59.6 percent. Wilyer Abreu homered twice on July 20 against the Cubs, but is just 5-for-33 (.152) since then.

The Red Sox can swipe some bases with 95 steals, and they should reach 100+ steals for the third consecutive season, the first time that has happened in Boston since 1919. Rafaela spends some time at second, but he has been one of the best defensive centerfielders in baseball this year. Carlos Narváez has allowed 62 stolen bases, third-most in baseball, with a 28 percent caught stealing rate.

Both teams will be getting debuts from new pitching acquisitions this series. The Royals start Bailey Falter, who began this year with the Pirates. He faces Brayan Bello, who has not given up more than three earned runs in a start since May 18 with a 2.86 ERA over his last 13 starts. Bello relies heavily on a sinker/sweeper combo, occasionally mixing in a four-seamer and changeup for a groundball rate of 50 percent.

Ryan Bergert will make his Royals debut on Tuesday, with a tough assignment in Cy Young contender Garrett Crochet. Crochet has the third-lowest ERA and FIP in baseball, the third-best strikeout rate at 31 percent, and the tenth-best groundball rate at 48 percent. He has a 1.62 ERA in 16 ²⁄₃ career innings against the Royals, although that includes six relief appearances. He gave up one run in seven innings in a win over the Royals back in May. He has fared slightly better against righties than lefties, although neither are hitting well against him. He has one of the best fastballs for a starter, clocking in at 96 mph, with a whiff rate of 31.7 percent.

Dustin May will make his Boston debut after five and a half seasons with the Dodgers. He has battled injuries his whole career, but has made a career-high 18 starts this year. May has a 5.95 ERA over his last seven starts. Lefties are hitting .253/.346/.472 against him this season. He throws a sweeper 41 percent of the time with a 28 percent whiff rate, and opponents are hitting just .111 against his 95 mph four-seamer.

Red Sox relievers have a 3.28 ERA, second-best in baseball, but they have the second-most blown saves. Former Royals pitcher Aroldis Chapman has the second-lowest ERA and FIP among qualified relievers, with a strikeout rate of 38.8 percent, tops among relievers. He has converted 20 of 22 save opportunities, but his setup man, Greg Weissert, has six blown saves already. Jorge Alcalá has a 1.69 ERA in 18 games since joining the Red Sox. Lefties are hitting .125/.206/.143 against Justin Wilson.

Boston is a hot team playing well, but so were the Toronto Blue Jays when the Royals took two out of three on the road. The Red Sox took two of three from the Royals in Kansas City back in May, but the Royals have a chance to extract some revenge and vault their playoff chances.

Scouting report: Bailey Falter

2025-08-04T12:00:00-04:00

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

A breakout year and a reunion with an old coach make for a great late-rotation starter

Just before the end of the trade deadline, the Royals made a final trade with the Pirates to acquire starting pitcher Bailey Falter. The 28-year-old southpaw is having the best season of his career, posting a 3.73 ERA over 113.1 innings in 22 games, and could be a big pickup for the Royals down the stretch.

Bailey Falter was a top high school pitcher at Chino Hills High School, where he went to school with several top basketball players, including Lonzo and Lamelo Ball. In 2015, he was selected in the fifth round by the Phillies, and he spent the first seven years of his career in their organization. It was here that he worked with (now Royals pitching coach) Brian Sweeney, a relationship that likely played a significant role in the Royals making an aggressive last-minute trade for him.

When Falter was called up, he was known as a true strike-thrower, with an over-the-top delivery and great extension off the mound. Falter’s calling card was his long delivery and deception from the mound to make hitters uncomfortable in the box. He never really blew scouts away with his spin or his power on the mound, but the extension allows all of his offerings to play better than the metrics would suggest.

Falter started his career with a two-seam fastball as his primary pitch, with over 60% usage when he first appeared in the major leagues. His over-the-top delivery limited the horizontal movement on the pitch that you may expect, but he made up for it with great carry and a unique delivery. His primary second offering is a slider that will not catch many eyes for its spin, but plays well off the fastball. Falter also has a spiked curveball grip, a circle changeup grip, and a four-seam fastball, but they were rarely used when he first got to the majors.

Bailey Falter, 93mph Paint. ️ pic.twitter.com/c5awIMOeLS
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 3, 2025

As his professional career has gone on, Falter has stuck with his awkward delivery and continued to rely on his extension to get outs. Between his time with the Phillies and the Pirates, most of the focus has been on the pitch mix and adjusting his grips, something that will be interesting to monitor as his career continues in Kansas City.

Over the last several years, Falter has greatly increased the usage of his four-seam fastball, looking to get even more carry through the zone. He has also tinkered with the use of his curveball and slider, trying to find a good balance on the usage of his breaking balls that don’t have as much movement as you would hope.

Bailey Falter, Nasty 86mph Slider.

6th K pic.twitter.com/a3G7VuxxRx
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 6, 2024

Developing an effective off-speed pitch has appeared to be the biggest challenge of his career so far. Falter started with a circle changeup grip, but it got hammered in 2022, and he started experimenting with a new split-finger offering. He completely abandoned the changeup in 2024, and this year has thrown the splitter for 8% of his offerings.

The next steps for Falter are hard to know, but getting some consistency with his split-finger/offspeed pitch is likely priority one. He will look to stick in the rotation, and with his high-quality fastball(s), a quality off-speed pitch would be a game-changer.

Also, trying to get a different movement profile between on two-seam fastball compared to the four-seam fastball could help force more soft contact going forward. Falter has a quality pitch mix, but finding more consistency in location and movement will be what makes him even more successful in Kansas City.

Right now, Falter brings starting experience to a beat-up Royals rotation in desperate need of depth. He is not the type of guy you can expect to come up and dominate hitters with tons of velocity and spin, and while the underlying metrics may not look great, he’s effective. At the end of the day, that is what matters in the major leagues, and this year, Falter has been able to get the job done.

Falter will likely take the Royals' fifth starter spot the second he arrives in Kansas City, a role he has been effective in for the Pirates this year. He is also reunited with his old minor league pitching coach in Brian Sweeney, someone who helped him move through the Phillies organization and into the majors. Falter is having the best year of his career and is under control through 2028. Now he will be in one of the most pitcher-friendly ballparks in baseball for 50% of his games with one of the best defenses in baseball behind him.

Royally Hot: Series Wins, One Franchise Legend, and Boston in the Crosshairs

2025-08-04T11:00:00-04:00

In this episode of the Royals Rundown Podcast, host Jacob Milham breaks down the Kansas City Royals’ hot streak—including a four-series winning run—and a historic milestone from Salvador Perez, who just notched his ninth 20-homer season, a new franchise record.

Jacob dives into improved bullpen performances, updates on key injuries, and how recent acquisitions could push the Royals from .500 to playoff-bound. With a crucial series against the Boston Red Sox looming, this episode explores what the team needs to do to stay in the hunt and why Royals fans should feel energized. Plus, a shoutout to the passionate Kansas City baseball community that keeps this team’s spirit alive.

Email Jacob directly at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠jm17971047@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Need your Royals fix? Head to⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ royalsreview.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for news, analysis, and engage with Royals fans all over the world!

-----

Kansas City Royals, Royals podcast, Salvador Perez record, Royals win streak, Royals playoff hopes, Royals bullpen, Royals vs Red Sox, Royals injury updates, KC baseball podcast, MLB 2025 season, Royals recap, Royals community, baseball analysis podcast

The Royals successfully took advantage of a buyer's market

2025-08-04T10:00:00-04:00

Take a victory lap, everybody! Then get back to work. | Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images

The Royals made smart, aggressive moves that may not be enough but didn't do any harm.

Two weeks ago, I came to you and insisted the Royals should be buyers at the trade deadline despite their abysmal record. The biggest reason I made that argument was because, despite the general assertion that baseball has operated as a “seller’s market” since it modified the playoff schedule to send 12 of its 30 teams to the postseason every year, buyers simply didn’t exist in the numbers people assumed they would.

That’s exactly how it played out. In the American League, there were 11 teams within five games of a playoff spot come deadline day. Only seven bought. In the National League, there were nine teams within six games of a playoff spot. Only four bought. That means A total of 11 of the 30 teams in MLB attempted to make their teams better at the deadline, despite the fact that 12 of them will be reaching the postseason.

And, in the end, even the biggest deals seem unlikely to be of much impact to the sellers. Eugenio Suárez was probably the most valuable bat available at the deadline. He returned a 40+ FV first baseman and a pair of 40 FV pitching prospects, per FanGraphs. FanGraphs’ outcome probability calculator doesn’t bother to go as low as those values. That said, a 45 FV position player carries only a 24% chance of becoming a big league regular. Two 45 FV pitchers would have a 29.4% chance of yielding one regular starter. Since none of these players are rated that highly, estimate down from there.

Or, to put it another way, the Seattle Mariners traded roughly the equivalent of Gavin Cross, Chandler Champlain, and Andrew Hoffmann to get the most coveted bat on the market.

Prospects will break your heart

Much was made during the deadline flurry that happened from July 30-July 31st of how pitchers were bringing back pretty good hauls. Some wondered if the Royals should have dealt Seth Lugo and Carlos Estévez in order to take advantage of it. However, to drive home the point that it was actually a buyer’s market the whole time, let’s look at a couple of those deals.

Mets acquire Ryan Helsley for SS prospect Jesus Baez, SP prospect Nate Dohm and RP prospect Frank Elissalt

This is probably the best comp for Estévez that was available. Helsley brought back a 40+ FV infielder and a pair of 35+ FV pitchers. The odds are very high that the Cardinals don’t get a single useful player out of the bunch. Something is better than nothing when you’re going nowhere, but the Royals aren’t necessarily going nowhere. We’ll talk more about that in a bit. Considering that the options for KC weren’t “this” or “nothing” in the same way they were for the Cardinals, it simply wouldn’t have made sense for the Royals to weaken their MLB team for a return like this.

And, of course, Estévez probably wouldn’t have even brought back this much. Helsley is a rental while Carlos has an extra year of control, but Helsley has a stronger history and comes with less risk.

Rangers acquire SP Merrill Kelly for SP prospect Mitch Bratt, SP prospect Kohl Drake and SP prospect David Hagaman

This was similarly the most comparable deal to what the Royals might have expected for Seth Lugo. A trio at 45+, 45, and 40+ FV. There’s something less than even odds that even one of these pitchers becomes a regular starter. Is it any wonder the Royals looked at trade offers like this one and decided to give Lugo a pay bump and tack on one more guaranteed year while setting themselves up to take advantage of his future success rather than give him up for a 40% chance they can get someone who isn’t quite as good as he is?

The big shocker, of course, was the Mason Miller-Leo De Vries deal the Padres and Athletics managed to swing. The Padres gave up the MLB Pipeline number three prospect, along with some others, for Mason Miller and JP Sears. Remembering that Miller is MILES ahead of Estévez in value, what if I told you that the 19-year-old De Vries is only a 50 FV currently in FanGraphs’ system? They have him ranked as the 21st-best prospect in baseball. Sure, those are better than even odds he becomes at least a regular, but that was the apple of the deadline, something the Royals were never close to getting. He looks very, very good for sure, but he’s also miles away from the big leagues and all kinds of things can happen between now and then.

Meanwhile, the Royals probably got one of the best steals of the deadline in a move that might be classified as a “buy” deal for both teams when they sent fan favorite Freddy Fermin to a desperate San Diego for Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek. Bergert is a rookie, but had a 45 FV before he graduated. Kolek is a sophomore who carried a 40 FV when he graduated last year. Neither are true prospects anymore, but both still have tons of cheap team control left. JJ Picollo managed to flip his soon-to-be-extraneous backup catcher for something approaching two-thirds the value the Diamondbacks got for the best starting pitcher traded at the deadline.

Supply and demand is still king

At the MLB trade deadline every year, there are three kinds of teams. There are teams that are losing and would like to spend less on losing, so they’re somewhat desperate to give up their veterans who are costing a pretty chunk of change, on expiring deals, or both. Then there are teams that are winning and who are happy about that, but also see little reason to take on salary or give up prospects they think might actually be good someday for that privilege. And then there are teams that are willing to do whatever it takes to make their team win because they think this year is the year for whatever reason.

That means there’s a reasonable supply of available players - this year there were seven true sellers plus the bargain teams willing to sell at least some pieces - but almost no demand - only three teams stood out as true buyers who were willing to pay a premium to make sure they get their guy.

As long as teams are not financially penalized for losing - they still get their TV deal and revenue sharing money no matter their record, both making up much more than gate and merchandise revenue - this is how things will be. It’s not about salary caps or teams spending ungodly amounts of money; it’s about there being too little incentive to win and teams becoming comfortable in that paradigm.

The Royals don’t care about that

In the meantime, the Royals have established themselves as a team that was willing to buck the trend. As I argued a few weeks ago, and as Matthew LaMar praised the team on Friday, the Royals have recognized that there is simply no demand for small upgrades. They took advantage of the market by brilliantly selling from a position of depth to one of the buyers and then bought on the margins from other teams who wished to dump some excess salary. It was, as Matthew and I have both described it, very Moneyball of them.

I’m still absolutely giddy over how well the Royals recognized the things I have been trying to point out for weeks and took advantage of a market that wouldn’t have benefited them if they had followed the common-sense path and sold. They’re a better team in 2025 but even if they’re not better enough, they also made themselves a better team in 2026 and beyond, too, with opportunities to improve even more during the offseason.

I’ve had a lot of issues with John Sherman as an owner, particularly in the way he’s dealt with labor, local government, and the community. But there can be no argument at this point. Unlike so many other owners in baseball, he has hired terrific talent to run his team and empowered them to do their jobs effectively. The Royals couldn’t have had a third excellent deadline in a row without an owner and general manager who are on the same page about what the team is and where it should be going.

Things may never be perfect, but it’s a great time to be a Royals fan.

Some addendums

Originally, I was going to try to go through every single trade and evaluate them through the lens of BaseballTradeValues.com because it has a reputation of being an awful way to try to invent trades, but it's a tool I've really grown to love. Then I discovered they'd already done the work for me.

Starting with the Josh Naylor trade, here’s the scorecard:

Number of trades: 64

Number accepted by the model: 57

Acceptance rate: 88%

Average value variance per deal: 3.5

We’re pretty happy with that. The trade market is inherently inefficient, and there are multiple variables involved, so to go 57-7 feels good.

And yeah, that's pretty good. And they make a good point about how the trade market is inherently inefficient. Especially at the trade deadline. Because "buyers” aren't trying to get equal value, they're trying to improve their immediate team. Just like in real life, you pay for convenience and timeliness. If you want two wins now, you're probably going to have to give up more than two future wins. One great example of this was the Shane Bieber trade. The Blue Jays wanted what they hope is a front-line starter to help them to first reach and then advance in the postseason. They got -2.1 estimated median surplus value and gave up Khal Stephen with an estimated median surplus value of 9.8. That's wildly imbalanced. However, Bieber is projected to be worth $5.1 million in value this year - a bit more than half a win above replacement on FanGraphs - but Stephen wasn't going to provide any value for this season.

Notably, for me anyway, the Grichuk and Yastrzemski trades were considered fair deals, and they were remarkably similar to the ones I proposed a couple of weeks ago in the piece linked at the top.

BTV isn't perfect, and it can absolutely be misused if you try to just group together a bunch of bad players to get one good one, because whatever the values are, trades don't work like that. It's still a perfectly valid tool to use for dreaming up trades if you keep in mind to restrictions.

Finally, it's worth noting that, as positive as most of the reviews of the Royals’ deadline have been, ZiPS still thinks their playoff odds went down because some of the teams ahead of them got betterer than they did. The Royals did great work to better the team without giving up much, but they're still going to need some improvement from players already on the roster to finish this thing off.

Royals Rumblings - News for August 4, 2025

2025-08-04T08:00:00-04:00

Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images

The boys are playing some ball.

Jaylon Thompson writes about the Royals taking a series on the road in Toronto.

“It was a really good ballgame,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said in his postgame news conference on FanDuel Sports Kansas City. “Both pitchers were battling and neither one of them had their best command, I don’t think. It was kind of dragging through there, but minimizing damage and our bullpen was outstanding to keep us where they were.”

Anne Rogers also writes about the big win.

“Any time you can beat a team in front of you, just to prove it against the best in their ballpark is a nice thing,” Vinnie Pasquantino said. “And we got another series ahead of us with similar things. We’re at .500 right now, but we’ve still got a lot of work to do.

“I feel like we’re ready for it.”

Michael Rosen at Fangraphs likes what the Royals did at the trade deadline.

Pre-deadline, the Royals’ outfield was a group is among the worst in the league. Both corners merited inclusion in Jay Jaffe’s Replacement-Level Killer series. Collectively, their outfielders are posting a 61 wRC+ this season, good for -2.6 WAR. Even a replacement-level outfielder would give the club a serious boost; Yastrzemski is decidedly above that level, particularly if he’s shielded from lefties (81 career wRC+ against same-handed pitching, 10 wRC+ this season.)

Because of the Randal Grichuk acquisition from a few days ago, that should be eminently possible. I’d be surprised if Yastrzemski faced a single left-hander pitcher with Grichuk now in the fold; together, they ought to form something like a 115ish wRC+ platoon while doing a respectable job in right field. Given what Kansas City has gotten from that spot so far, it is an incredible upgrade, up there with the most impactful of the entire deadline, though that’s perhaps more of a comment on who Yastrzemski is replacing than Yastrzemski himself.

Anne Rogers writes that Michael Massey has suffered a setback in his rehab.

Massey’s back flared up on him again a couple of days ago, manager Matt Quatraro said Saturday, leading the Royals to return the 27-year-old from his rehab assignment with Triple-A Omaha. Massey will head to Kansas City and be evaluated by team doctors there to determine the next steps and a timeline to get back on the field.

“Some days, it just flips, and he’s fine to go and power through it like he’s done most of his career,” Quatraro said. “And other times, it takes a little bit longer. So we won’t have any idea until he gets seen and gets a day or two off.”

Caleb Moody at Kings of Kauffman writes about who deseves a promotion with the Royals.

Atlanta’s Eli White homers twice at Bristol Motor Speedway, and the game sets an MLB attendance record.

But rain on Saturday postponed the game, causing headaches for fans.

Benches clear between the Astros and Red Sox after an intentional balk.

The Dodgers break an 18-inning scoreless streak to beat the Rays.

Boston’s Tanner Houck will undergo Tommy John surgery.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. is picked off on a pop up for another baserunning gaffe.

The Marlins become the first team to go from 16 games under .500 to the .500 mark since 2014.

Julio Rodriguez becomes the first player to hit 20 home runs and steal 20 bases in each of his first four seasons.

Brewers rookie phenom Jacob Misiorowski goes on the Injured List with a tibia contusion.

First baseman Christian Walker was reportedly discussed in the Astros/Twins Carlos Correa deal.

How the Twins fire sale shook up baseball.

A look back at the minor league towns this year’s Hall of Fame class once played for.

Investors buy the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun with plans to move the team to Boston in 2027.

It is transfer season in soccer, here are the latest rumors.

Age verification is coming to the internet.

What do TSA bag scanners actually see?

The best Adam Sandler movies, ranked.

Your song of the day is The Dandy Warhols with Get Off.

Royals take the series in Toronto with extra inning 7-4 win

2025-08-03T16:53:56-04:00

Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images

A huge series win to start the biggest road trip of the season

The Blue Jays were giving the Royals every chance to take the game early, but despite all the free passes the Royals couldn’t do anything with them. They didn’t even get a hit until the 5th inning, despite scoring a run in the 4th.

Seth Lugo didn’t have his best stuff or control but battled against a tough offense. The two runs he surrendered reached via a walk and came around to score on two out singles.

Lugo’s final line was 4 ²⁄₃ innings pitched, 4 hits, 2 runs, both earned, walked four and struck out three.

Two quick outs in the top of the 8th and the Royals trailing 2-1, things looked over, but Bobby Witt Jr. laced a 113-mph double to left, his league leading 37th on the season, on the next pitch Vinnie Pasquantino muscled one out to center to tie the game at 2.

Vinnie comes through to tie things up! pic.twitter.com/lKHGrtnSbZ
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) August 3, 2025

In the top of the 10th, the Royals had Randal Grichuk start on second base, with Kyle Isbel, Jonathan India and Witt coming up. With the corners in, expecting Isbel to bunt, Kyle would get a grounder between the bag and first baseman for a go-ahead RBI double. India would get hit by a pitch, Witt walked, leading to pinch runner in the 8th, Tyler Tolbert to the plate. Tolbert would lace a single into the right center field gap, scoring 2, putting the Royals up 5-2.

Big hits, boys! pic.twitter.com/zi7VYohiLk
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) August 3, 2025

After a throwing error, which allowed Witt to score, Maikel Garcia would hit an RBI sacrifice fly to give the Royals a 7-2 advantage.

Carlos Estevez would get the 10th, he would give up an RBI single, before getting a strikeout and foulout. But with two outs, a 4 pitch walk and RBI single made it a 7-4 game with the tying run coming to the plate. But a grounder to shortstop ended the threat and the Royals comeback was complete.

The Royals have won 4 straight series now, and it might’ve been the biggest series win of the year so far, beating the hottest team in baseball in their own building 2 of 3. They are 56-56 on the season now, and off the Boston, a team ahead of them in the wild card race. They sit 3 games out of the final wild card spot. Hunter Harvey got the win, his first as a Royal.