AthleticsvsKansas City Royals
ATH 7/KC 9
Things to say
The Royals beat the Athletics 9-7 at Kauffman Stadium.
01
opener
Royals took it 9-7 at the K. Kind of a slugfest, both bullpens got roughed up. Fun one if you like offense.
02
key player
The heart of KC's order carried it. A couple guys left the yard and drove in most of those nine. That lineup's been dangerous lately.
03
hot take
Nine runs is nice, but the Royals pitching still worries me. You give up seven at home to the A's, you got issues.
04
deep cut
Kansas City left a ton of guys on and still put up nine. Their OBP is quietly carrying the whole thing.
05
exit
Anyway, both these teams are out of it. I'm just watching to see who plays spoiler down the stretch.
The recap
The Royals slugged their way to a 9-7 win over the A's at Kauffman, turning this one into a track meet where the bullpens on both sides got roughed up. Kansas City's bats kept answering every time Oakland clawed back, and you could tell early neither starter had his best stuff.
The turning point was the middle innings, when KC put up a crooked number and finally pushed the lead out of reach. Ugly pitching, fun offense — the kind of getaway-day slugfest where 16 runs cross the plate and nobody's ERA comes out looking pretty.