The Royals were one pitch away from turning a tense bullpen game into a late escape, and then Craig Kimbrel got hit with a flood.
Kansas City entered the 10th inning locked in a 0-0 tie with the Diamondbacks, but Kimbrel couldn’t navigate the extra frame. He surrendered five singles and five runs, beginning with Ildemaro Vargas sneaking a bunt under his dive before a sacrifice fly put Arizona on the board.
After that, the inning unraveled fast. Singles kept coming, the runs kept piling up, and even a right-field misplay by Rave only added to the mess.
And yet the Royals still had a pulse.
Down 5-0 in the bottom of the 10th, the offense finally showed up. Kyle Isbel opened the inning with a walk, Carter Jensen followed with a double to get Kansas City on the board, and after Witt was hit by a pitch, Perez doubled to clear the bases.
Michael Massey then lifted a deep fly ball that moved pinch-runner Tyler Tolbert to third, setting up the tying run on third with two outs and Nick Loftin at the plate. Loftin ended up taking strike three to finish the game, after working through a plate appearance where he let a questionable first-pitch strike go and later used the final challenge on a more obvious strike call.
The ending stung because Noah Cameron had given Kansas City exactly what it needed. He was sharp from the start, mixing pitches and keeping Arizona off balance with swings that came up empty and takes that never looked comfortable.
Cameron struck out the side in the third, didn’t issue his first walk until the fourth, and was already up to five strikeouts by then. He finished with six scoreless innings, allowing three hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts.
He never let a runner get to second base, and only two batted balls came off him at over 100 mph. Nate Pearson followed with two dominant innings of relief.
There was even a bizarre defensive highlight along the way. Both teams turned unassisted double plays with a corner defender snagging a liner and tagging the base.
For the Royals, it came in a huge spot in the ninth: with no outs and runners on the corners, Nick Loftin caught Nolan Arenado’s line drive and dove to the bag to tag it with his glove, forcing out Ketel Marte. That turned a first-and-third, no-out jam into two outs and a runner on first, and Steven Cruz finished the inning by striking out Corbin Carroll.
But the tie didn’t last.
Kansas City had chances before extras, too, and couldn’t cash them in. In the fourth, a walk and a single put runners on first and second, only for Michael Massey to strike out.
In the fifth, John Rave doubled with one out, Matthew Lugo followed with a ground-ball single through the left side, and Rave had to stay put until the ball got through. He reached third, but that was as far as it went.
Kyle Isbel then tried a squeeze bunt, but popped it up too far, allowing Ildemaro Vargas to slide in and make the catch. Carter Jensen later walked to load the bases for Bobby Witt Jr., but Witt’s fly ball to right-center was tracked down by Tim Tawa on the warning track.
In the end, the bullpen couldn’t hold, and the comeback came up short. The Royals are still living through the same problem, and it’s getting harder to watch.
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Around the league, the pitching headlines have been just as loud. Phillies left-hander Jesus Luzardo authored a complete-game shutout with 12 strikeouts to help Philadelphia split its series with the Braves, while Aaron Judge was activated from the 60-day injured list and is expected to play for the Yankees against the Rockies after working back from a rib injury. For the Royals, it is another reminder that every night can bring a different kind of challenge, from elite arms returning to the mound to star hitters rejoining the mix. [Read more 🡒]