Jorge Polanco hit a three-run home run to highlight a five-run first inning and help lead the visiting Minnesota Twins to a 7-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday afternoon.It was the 33rd home run of the season for Polanco, extending his club single-season record for a switch-hitter. Byron Buxton also homered and doubled and Luis Arraez went 3-for-4 with two runs for Minnesota (73-89), which finished in fifth place in the American League's Central Division.Nick Vincent (1-0), the third of five Twins pitchers, picked up the win with two hitless innings of relief while Jorge Alcala earned his first major league save, striking out three of the four batters he faced.Carlos Santana went 3-for-4 with an RBI and Michael A. Taylor added two hits and an RBI for Kansas City (74-88), which finished fourth in the AL Central.Jackson Kowar (0-6) suffered the loss, allowing five runs on five hits over four innings while striking out six. Kowar failed to record an out against the first six hitters of the game, allowing five hits and a walk, but rebounded to retire the last 12 batters he faced.The Twins jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first. Arraez led off with a bloop single to center, went to third on Buxton's line-drive double down the left field line and then scored on Polanco's 404-foot homer to right-center. Josh Donaldson followed with walk, went to third on a single by Max Kepler and then scored on a single by Miguel Sano. Kepler scored one out later on fielder's choice by Nick Gordon.

Griffin Jax had the first scoreless outing of his career as the visiting Minnesota Twins defeated the Kansas City Royals 4-0 Saturday night.Jake Cave, Miguel Sano and Luis Arraez each collected two hits for the Twins (72-89). Arraez had two RBIs.Jax (4-5), who came into the game with a 6.78 ERA, shut down the Royals' bats in his five innings. He allowed just one hit and walked two, striking out three. It was easily the best outing of his career in his 18th appearance and 14th start.Caleb Thielbar, Tyler Duffey and Alex Colome combined for four scoreless innings of relief.Royals (74-87) starter Kris Bubic (6-7) allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits in 6 2/3 innings. He struck out five and didn't walk a batter.Josh Donaldson hit a two-out solo home run in the first to put the Twins on the board.The Twins added an unearned run in the fourth. Sano ripped a one-out double down the left-field line. He advanced to third on an error by Nicky Lopez at short and scored on a sacrifice fly by Arraez.

Hunter Dozier had three hits, including a home run, as the Kansas City Royals pummeled the visiting Minnesota Twins 11-6 Friday night.Every Royal in the starting lineup had a hit except for major league home run leader Salvador Perez. Whit Merrifield led the team with three hits.Kansas City starter Jonathan Heasley (1-1) earned his first major league win in his third outing. He allowed four runs on six hits in 5 1/3 innings, with three of the runs coming in the sixth. He struck out one and walked one.The Royals (74-86) scored multiple runs in five of the first six innings.The Twins (71-89), the two-time reigning American League Central champion, assured themselves of a last-place finish with the loss.Merrifield led off the first with a single, and Nicky Lopez followed with a bunt single. Perez was hit by a pitch, loading the bases. A wild pitch scored Merrifield before a walk to Andrew Benintendi reloaded the bases. Carlos Santana got an RBI on a fielder's choice.The Royals added two more runs in the third on four consecutive two-out hits. Benintendi, Santana and Dozier all singled, with Dozier knocking in a run, before Adalberto Mondesi ripped a double to the wall for the fourth run.Josh Donaldson's two-out RBI double in the fourth gave the Twins their first run off Heasley. Byron Buxton pulled a one-out double down the left field line and scored on Donaldson's hit.

Bradley Zimmer recorded a double, two sacrifice flies and three RBIs as the visiting Cleveland Indians salvaged the final game of a three-game series with a 6-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday.The Royals' Salvador Perez, who leads the majors in home runs (48) and RBIs (121), was 1-for-4 with a double.Logan Allen (2-7) picked up the win in relief.The Indians spoiled the major league debut of Royals starter Angel Zerpa (0-1), but he hardly could have been any better. He allowed two unearned runs on three hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out four.Indians starter Shane Bieber, who was making his second start since spending more than three months on the injured list, lasted three innings. He allowed one run on four hits, with one strikeout.The Royals got on the board in the second inning. Andrew Benintendi led off with a double and scored on a single by Carlos Santana.The Indians responded with a pair of unearned runs in the third. Roberto Perez hit a ground ball to third baseman Adalberto Mondesi, whose throw was in the dirt. Perez scored on a double by Oscar Mercado, who then scored on Zimmer's sacrifice fly.

The Kansas City Royals and outfielder Michael A. Taylor agreed to a two-year, $9 million contract extension, multiple outlets reported Wednesday.He entered Wednesday batting .244 with 12 home runs, 52 RBIs and 14 stolen bases in 137 games in his first season with the Royals. He also leads all American League center fielders with 11 assists.Taylor, 30, signed a one-year, $1.75 million contract with Kansas City last November after being outrighted by the Washington Nationals.

Salvador Perez tied a club record with his 48th home run of the season as the host Kansas City Royals defeated the Cleveland Indians 10-5 on Wednesday.It was also the 200th home run of Perez's career. He leads the majors in home runs and also in RBIs, after driving in three runs to run his total to 121.But Perez wasn't around long. The Royals' broadcast team tweeted in the middle of the second inning that Perez was "helped out of the dugout during the commercial break towards the tunnel. He's hurt and out of the game."However, Perez came to bat in the bottom of the inning and struck out. He was replaced in the third by Cam Gallagher. It was announced later that Perez left with a right ankle sprain.With the game tied at 5-5, the Royals scored three runs in the seventh off losing pitcher Nick Wittgren (2-9). Hunter Dozier's two-run triple was the key blow, and the third run came across on a wild pitch.Kansas City added two more runs in the eighth on RBI hits by Hanser Alberto and Gallagher.Greg Holland (3-5) picked up the win with two perfect innings of relief.The Indians scored a run in the first. Myles Straw led off with a sharp single to right. He advanced on a ground out, stole third and scored on a sacrifice fly by Jose Ramirez. It was Ramirez's 100th RBI of the season, five off his career high from 2018.The lead didn't last long as Whit Merrifield led off the bottom of the inning with a hustle double to short left-center. It was Merrifield's 40th double of the season, giving him his second season with at least 40 doubles and 40 stolen bases. Nicky Lopez walked before Perez lined one 439 feet to center.

Salvador Perez hit his major-league-leading 47th home run to help the Kansas City Royals defeat the Cleveland Indians 6-4 Tuesday night.Perez, who went 2-for-3 with a walk and three runs, is now one home run shy of the Royals' single-season record set by Jorge Soler in 2019.Perez's solo shot put Kansas City on top 4-3 in the sixth inning. After the Indians tied it in the top of the eighth, Nicky Lopez drove in the decisive run with a triple in the bottom of the inning. Lopez then scored on a wild pitch.Josh Staumont (4-3) was the winning pitcher for the Royals (72-85) after retiring all four batters he faced. He was the seventh pitcher of the night for Kansas City.Blake Parker (2-1) took the loss for the Indians (77-80). Parker gave up one run on one hit in 1 1/3 innings.Royals starter Brady Singer yielded three runs on three hits in two-thirds of an inning before leaving due to upper right arm discomfort. After Singer delivered a pitch, second baseman Whit Merrifield raced in from short right and motioned to the dugout. Ervin Santana took over on the mound and delivered three scoreless innings.Franmil Reyes drove in the first two runs for the Indians in the first inning. Myles Straw led off with a double, Amed Rosario walked and Jose Ramirez singled to load the bases with no outs. Reyes singled to right, scoring Straw and Rosario. Ramirez scored on a double-play grounder.

Wednesday night's scheduled series finale in Cleveland between the Indians and Kansas City Royals has been postponed due to inclement weather.The game will be made up next Monday in Cleveland at 1:10 p.m. ET, a previously scheduled day off for both teams. The two teams are scheduled to play three games in Kansas City, beginning Tuesday.The Royals swept a doubleheader on Monday before the Indians responded with a 4-1 victory the following day.

Yu Chang hit a three-run triple and Cal Quantrill tossed 6 2/3 solid innings to propel the host Cleveland Indians to a 4-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday.Ernie Clement belted a solo homer among his two hits to help the Indians (74-76) rebound from dropping a doubleheader to the Royals on Monday. Cleveland had won 11 straight games against Kansas City prior to Monday's action.Hunter Dozier homered for the second time in as many days for the Royals (69-83).Kansas City's Whit Merrifield had two singles and Nicky Lopez added a double to extend his career-best on-base streak to 31 games.The Indians tacked on another run in the second inning when Clement deposited a 1-1 fastball from Lynch just above the 19-foot wall in left-center field. The homer was Clement's third of the season and first since he went deep twice on Aug. 13.Dozier cut into Kansas City's four-run deficit with two outs in the seventh inning. Dozier sent a 1-1 slider from Quantrill over the wall in left field for his 15th homer of the season.

Hunter Dozier capped a productive Monday by driving in a run as the visiting Kansas City Royals completed a sweep of a doubleheader with a 4-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians.Dozier's sacrifice fly in the first inning gave the Royals an early 2-0 lead. He also belted a two-run homer and added an RBI single in Kansas City's 7-2 victory over Cleveland in the first game of the twin bill.Former Indians player Carlos Santana worked a bases-loaded walk in the first inning of the nightcap. Hanser Alberto had an RBI single and joined Nicky Lopez by each recording two of the six hits for the Royals (69-82).Domingo Tapia (3-0) struck out four of the five batters he faced before Jake Brentz fanned two batters in a scoreless fifth inning. Josh Staumont bridged the gap to Scott Barlow, who worked around Bobby Bradley's 14th homer of the season to secure his 14th save of the season.Andres Gimenez belted a solo homer in the third inning for the Indians (73-76), who had won 11 straight games against Kansas City prior to Monday's action.Lopez ripped a one-out double in the first inning to extend his career-high, on-base streak to 30 games before the next two batters walked to load the bases. Santana worked a free pass off Nick Wittgren (2-8) before Dozier's sacrifice fly plated Salvador Perez to give Kansas City a 2-0 lead.

Salvador Perez set a major league record for homers in a season by a primary catcher after launching a two-run shot Monday as the visiting Kansas City Royals cruised to a 7-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians in the first game of a doubleheader.Perez's towering blast in the fifth inning was his 46th homer of the season, moving him past Hall of Famer Johnny Bench for the record. Bench had 45 homers in 1970.Hunter Dozier joined Andrew Benintendi by belting a two-run homer before adding an RBI single in the fourth inning as the Royals (68-82) emphatically snapped an 11-game losing skid in the season series against the Indians (73-75). Kansas City posted its only other previous victory versus Cleveland this season with a 3-0 triumph on April 5.Brady Singer (5-10) allowed two runs on six hits while pitching all seven innings in his return from a brief stint on the COVID-19 injured list.Jose Ramirez, who was named American League Player of the Week earlier on Monday, had a two-run single in the fifth inning for the Indians.Adalberto Mondesi singled to lead off the second inning before stealing both second and third base. He was able to trot home after Dozier deposited a 2-1 fastball from Triston McKenzie (5-7) into the bleachers in left field for his 14th homer of the season and third in his last seven games.Kansas City doubled its advantage in the third inning.Nicky Lopez singled to extend his career-best, on-base streak to 29 games games before Benintendi sent a first-pitch fastball from McKenzie over the wall in right-center field. Benintendi's homer was his 16th of the season and first since he went deep on two occasions in a 6-4 win over the Minnesota Twins on Sept. 10.

Kansas City Royals star Salvador Perez set a major league record for homers in a season by a team's primary catcher after belting a two-run shot in the first game of a doubleheader against the Cleveland Indians on Monday.Perez's towering blast in the fifth inning served as his 46th homer of the season, moving him past Hall of Famer Johnny Bench for the record. Bench had 45 homers in 1970.

Kansas City Royals right-hander Wade Davis was moved to the 60-day disabled list on Monday, effectively ending his 2021 season.In an expected move, the Royals also placed right-hander Brad Keller to the 60-day IL. Last week, the team revealed that Keller would not pitch again this season.Davis, 36, was placed on the 10-day IL last week with shoulder inflammation. He went 0-3 with a 6.75 ERA this season in his return to the Royals after spending the previous four seasons in the National League. Davis was a postseason hero when the Royals won the 2015 World Series.

Kris Bubic allowed one run on two hits over 6 1/3 innings as the Kansas City Royals defeated the Seattle Mariners 8-1 Saturday night in the middle game of a three-game series. The Mariners' dwindling playoff chances took a hit, as they managed only three hits.Bubic (5-6) earned his first win in his last five starts. It was his best outing since allowing two runs on just one hit against the Cubs in Wrigley Field on Aug. 21. He struck out two batters and walked four.Yusei Kikuchi (7-9) lasted only three innings for the Mariners (79-69). He allowed three runs on eight hits, throwing 86 pitches.Salvador Perez, who came into the game leading the majors with 112 RBIs, was 1-for-5 with an RBI. He remains tied with Johnny Bench for the most home runs by a player who played at least 75 percent of his team's games as a catcher.The Royals (67-81) got their first run in the first with a little assistance from Kikuchi. After Whit Merrifield beat out an infield single, he advanced to second, third and home on wild pitches. Then, with two outs, the Royals strung together three straight singles, with Adalberto Mondesi's knock up the middle driving in Andrew Benintendi with the second run.The Royals had a chance to extend the lead in the second, with runners on second and third and one out, but they couldn't score. But back-to-back two-out doubles by Mondesi and Michael A. Taylor gave the Royals their third run in the bottom of the third. The Royals stranded seven runners in the first four innings.

Jarred Kelenic homered and drove in three runs and fellow rookie Logan Gilbert pitched seven strong innings as the Seattle Mariners recorded a 7-1 win over the host Kansas City Royals on Sunday.Jake Bauers and Mitch Haniger also homered for the Mariners (80-69), who took two of three games in the series against the Royals (67-82).Seattle, however, remained four games behind Toronto in the race for the American League's second and final wild-card playoff berth.Gilbert (6-5) allowed one run on three hits. The right-hander walked one and struck out five.The Mariners built a 5-0 lead through three innings against Royals right-hander Jackson Kowar (0-4).With one out in the first inning, Ty France doubled to right field and Abraham Toro and Haniger walked to load the bases. Kelenic lined a 2-2 pitch to right for a two-run double.The Mariners made it 3-0 in the second inning. Dylan Moore led off with a walk, stole second, moved to third on a one-out single by J.P. Crawford and scored on France's single to center field.Kelenic led off the third with a home run to center field. One out later, Bauers went deep to right-center to give Seattle a 5-0 advantage.

Jarred Kelenic hit a pair of two-run home runs as the Seattle Mariners defeated the host Kansas City Royals 6-2 Friday night in the opening game of a three-game series.The Mariners spoiled the major league debut of Royals pitcher Jon Heasley.The Mariners (79-68) kept pace with Boston and the New York Yankees, who each won Friday night, trailing them by four and 3 1/2 games respectively in the American League wild-card race. Seattle gained a game on Toronto, which lost to Minnesota and dropped one-half game behind the Yankees. Oakland, which played later Friday in Anaheim, Calif., was three games behind the Yankees.Chris Flexen (12-6) worked 5 2/3 strong innings for the Mariners. He allowed one run on six hits, with two walks and three strikeouts.Heasley (0-1) allowed four runs, all coming on home runs by Kelenic, on six hits in four innings.Nicky Lopez extended his on-base streak to a career-best 26 games in the first inning with an opposite-field single to left. Salvador Perez, began the day tied for the major league lead in home runs and tops in RBIs, finished 0-for-4 with a walk.Heasley ran into trouble in the second. He gave up a lead-off single to Ty France, and with one out, the right-hander surrendered the first home run to Kelenic, his 11th of the season.

Chad Pinder's two-run single capped a four-run third as the visiting Oakland A's defeated the Kansas City Royals 7-2 on Thursday afternoon.The A's (79-67) claimed the three-game series.The A's scored three unearned runs in the third. They had seven runners reach base on only two hits. They also scored three runs in the ninth on just one hit.The Royals (66-80) had the tying runs on base with less than two outs twice in the final four innings but didn't score.A's starter Paul Blackburn (1-2) earned the win. He gave up two runs on six hits in five innings.Royals starter Daniel Lynch (4-5) took the loss. He left the game in the third inning with left calf tightness with the bases loaded and a full count. He gave up three runs (one earned) on two hits in 2-plus innings.Salvador Perez homered in the first to give the Royals the early lead. He drove in Nicky Lopez, who reached with a walk to extend his streak to 25 games reaching base successfully.

The Kansas City Royals placed left-hander Mike Minor on the 10-day injured list Wednesday due to a shoulder injury and recalled right-hander Scott Blewett from Triple-A Omaha.Minor, 33, was diagnosed with a left shoulder impingement and the injury could mark the end of his season. Minor is 8-12 with a 5.05 ERA this season in 28 starts and is 79-78 over 10 career seasons with a 4.11 ERA for the Atlanta Braves (2010-14), Royals (2017, 2021), Texas Rangers (2018-20) and Oakland Athletics (2020).

Elvis Andrus went 4-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs as the Oakland A's amassed a season-high 18 hits while defeating the Kansas City Royals 12-10 on Wednesday night.The Royals, who were down by seven heading into the bottom of the seventh, had the tying run on second with one out in the bottom of the ninth.Kansas City's Andrew Benintendi tied a career high with five hits and added four RBIs.Oakland's Sean Manaea (10-9) survived a shaky start to pick up the win. He allowed five runs on nine hits in five innings with one walk and three strikeouts. Carlos Hernandez (6-2) took the loss, allowing seven runs on nine hits and four walks in four-plus innings. He fanned three.Andrew Chafin yielded a run in 1 1/3 innings but still emerged with his fourth save.The A's (78-67) remained 3 1/2 games behind the three teams tied for the two American League wild-card spots, the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox.Oakland and Kansas City will play the rubber game of the three-game series on Thursday.The Royals (66-79), who finished with 17 hits, grabbed the lead in the first on an RBI single by Benintendi.The A's responded in the second with a two-out, two-run single by Andrus. The Oakland shortstop has 11 hits and seven of his 36 RBIs in six games against the Royals this season.Matt Olson walked leading off the third and eventually scored on a single by Mark Canha.The A's added two more runs in the fourth on a home run by Olson, giving him 101 RBIs for the season. It's the first time in his career he reached the century mark in RBIs.

Salvador Perez's three-run home run capped a furious Kansas City rally as the Royals defeated the visiting Oakland A's 10-7 Tuesday night in the opener of a three-game series.The Royals trailed 6-0 going into the bottom of the third inning.Perez now has 109 RBIs, which leads the majors. Whit Merrifield, Nicky Lopez and Kyle Isbel each had three hits for the Royals, who earned their fourth win in five games.Jake Brentz (5-2) picked up the win after throwing one perfect inning in relief, and Scott Barlow worked around two walks in the ninth for his 13th save.Yusmeiro Petit (8-2) took the loss out of the Oakland bullpen, yielding four runs on four hits in one-third of an inning. The A's (77-67) dropped their third consecutive game and fell 3 1/2 games behind the two American League wild-card leaders, the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees.Neither starter was effective. Oakland's Frankie Montas allowed four runs on eight hits in 3 1/3 innings. Jackson Kowar gave up five runs on three hits and four walks in one-plus inning.The A's scored twice in the first. Josh Harrison drew a leadoff walk, and Starling Marte doubled. Matt Olson and Jed Lowrie followed with sacrifice flies.Oakland added three more runs in the second off Kowar, but they could have had more. Kowar walked the first three batters of the inning and then gave up an RBI single to Elvis Andrus and a two-run single to Harrison.Ervin Santana replaced Kowar with runners on second and third and no outs, but he wiggled out of the jam without surrendering another run.