Late insurance carried the Kansas City Royals past the Houston Astros, as the Royals turned an early advantage into a controlled finish.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| HOU | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Daniel Lynch anchored Kansas City’s pitching with a scoreless start, while the bullpen held the lead through the final innings. Michael Massey provided support with a home run and a productive night at the plate.
John Rave’s home run brought Michael Massey home and put Kansas City in front in the fourth. Massey later homered to extend the lead, and Carter Jensen’s double brought Josh Rojas and Isaac Collins across the plate in the eighth, with a throwing error by Jorge Barrosa also part of the play.
Houston answered with Isaac Paredes’ sacrifice fly, which brought Jorge Barrosa home, and Yainer Diaz homered in the ninth. The Astros could not erase the gap, however, while the Royals’ relief corps protected the advantage.
Kansas City extended its winning streak, while Houston’s losing streak continued. The game belonged to late insurance: the Royals created separation, then made it stand.
Kansas City Royals defeated Houston Astros, 5-2.
- Michael Massey went 3-for-5 with 1 home run, 1 RBI and 2 runs scored (batting .282 on the season).
- John Rave went 1-for-4 with 1 home run, 2 RBIs and 1 run scored (batting .219 on the season).
- Yainer Diaz went 2-for-4 with 1 home run, 1 RBI and 1 run scored (batting .277 on the season).
- Cristian Javier allowed 2 runs on 5 hits over 5.1 innings, striking out 2, and took the loss (2-6) (5.31 ERA).
- Daniel Lynch allowed 0 runs on 2 hits over 5.0 innings, striking out 3, to earn the win (6-5) (3.29 ERA).
- Craig Kimbrel allowed 0 runs on 1 hit over 1.0 inning (4.50 ERA).
Houston Astros fell to 76-76; Kansas City Royals improved to 67-85.