Royals' Sixth-Inning Homer Not Enough as Rays Rally in Seventh at Tropicana Field

The Kansas City Royals, now standing at 34-20, faced off against the Tampa Bay Rays, who hold a 26-28 record. The game concluded with a final score of 4-1 in favor of the Rays.

The Royals struggled to find their rhythm early on, managing only one hit through the first five innings. In the sixth inning, however, they broke through when Bobby Witt Jr. launched a solo home run to give Kansas City their only run of the game. This homer was one of seven hits for the Royals throughout the contest.

Kansas City's pitching staff performed admirably for most of the game. The starting pitcher held Tampa Bay scoreless through six innings and allowed just three hits while striking out seven batters. However, things took a turn in the seventh inning when Tampa Bay's offense came alive.

The Rays managed four runs on four hits during that pivotal seventh inning. A combination of singles and doubles allowed them to capitalize on Kansas City's bullpen struggles. Despite allowing no errors throughout the game and maintaining solid fielding statistics with eight assists and 24 putouts, Kansas City's defense couldn't contain Tampa Bay's surge.

On offense, besides Witt Jr.'s home run, other notable performances included two-hit games from both Salvador Perez and Nicky Lopez. However, these efforts were not enough to overcome Tampa Bay’s late-game rally.

For Tampa Bay, Garrett Cleavinger earned his fourth win of the season while Pete Fairbanks secured his fifth save despite allowing two hits in his closing effort. Kevin Kelly also contributed with a hold during his appearance on the mound.

Kansas City's bullpen had difficulties containing Tampa Bay’s hitters late in the game; they gave up three runs over two innings pitched by relievers who collectively struck out just one batter while walking another.

Looking ahead for Kansas City fans: The Royals will play their next game against Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis on May 27th at 6:10 PM Central Time (7:10 PM Eastern Time). Fans can catch this matchup live on BSN network.