The Kansas City Royals are being tested by MLB’s best team, the Yankees: Game 2 recap

The Kansas City Royals were reminded Tuesday that there are different levels within the American League.

And the New York Yankees are the highest difficulty in the game.

On Tuesday, the Royals lost 10-1 to the Yankees at Kauffman Stadium. KC failed to compute any offense against Yankees starter Marcus Stroman. He tossed 5 ⅔ scoreless innings while picking up his sixth win of the season.

“I think (he) just kind of mixed up his pitches and mixed up the velocity to (get) hitters off balance,” Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. said.

Meanwhile, New York blitzed Royals starter Brady Singer. The high-octane unit operated with well-timed precision all night. Singer, who relies heavily on his sinker and slider, was unable to counter their offensive strikes.

Singer paid a hefty price in the fourth inning. He left a 91.9-mph sinker over the plate against Yankees catcher Austin Wells. It was a costly mistake, as Wells deposited the baseball over the center-field wall.

Wells recorded his second home run of the season. The 417-foot blast was a massive blow and gave New York a 6-0 lead.

“I’d like to have the fourth inning back there,” Singer said. “Just left a ball over the middle of the plate to Wells there and, you know, three-run homer. I would like to have that inning back.”

Singer powered through five innings and took the loss. He allowed seven runs and wasn’t effective despite striking out six batters.

“It was a struggle right out of the get-go just to get consistency in the zone,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “I think his stuff looked good. He threw some pretty good breaking balls and located some pretty good fastballs. Just not enough consistently early to keep them off the board.”

The Royals offense remained stagnant. KC scattered the five hits despite outfielder Drew Waters making his 2024 debut. He went 0-for-4 after being recalled from Triple-A Omaha.

Witt recorded two hits — a double and a single — to extend his hitting streak to 12 games.

However, the offensive woes were costly. In the sixth inning, the Royals left the bases loaded as Yankees reliever Ron Marinaccio escaped a late jam. He struck out Waters to end the offensive threat.

Pitching, Tuesday, made a real difference.

“He really locates and keeps the ball down,” Quatraro said of Stroman. “He gets a ton of ground balls.”

The Royals dropped to 39-29.

Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton sealed the victory. They launched two massive home runs as the Yankees improved to 48-21. They have the most wins of any team in MLB so far this year.

Missed previous Royals coverage?

Game 1: Seth Lugo hit with barrage of singles as Royals fall 4-2 to Yankees

Roster Moves: Royals promote Drew Waters, Nick Pratto from Triple-A Omaha

Here are more notables from Tuesday’s game:

Royals extend extra-base hit streak

It didn’t take long for the Royals to collect their first hit.

In the first inning, Witt picked up his 18th double as he hustled into second base to spark an early scoring chance.

And the double was important. It represented another extra-base hit as the Royals extended their streak to 68 games this season. As in — all of them.

Before this year, KC’s longest such streak to begin a season was 51 games in 1978.

Dating back to last season, the Royals have an extra-base hit in 96 consecutive games. It’s the second longest streak in club history behind a 116-game record set from July 19, 2006-May 23, 2007.

Freddy Fermin homers, Nick Pratto pitches 9th

Freddy Fermin ensured Royals fans wouldn’t witness a shutout on Tuesday.

In the eighth inning, Fermin hit a solo home run into the left-field seats off Marinaccio. He connected on a 83.4-mph sweeper left over the plate.

Fermin made the most of his opportunity. Additionally, the Royals also turned to infielder Nick Pratto to pitch the ninth inning.

Pratto retired the Yankees on 15 pitches (10 strikes). He is the second position player to pitch this season as he followed Nick Loftin earlier this year.

What’s next on the KC Royals’ schedule?

The Royals search for their first victory against the Yankees. On Wednesday, KC will utilize an opener in the third game of the series.

Royals reliever Dan Altavilla will serve as Wednesday’s opener. Then, KC southpaw Daniel Lynch IV will operate in the “bulk” role afterward. Lynch owns a 5.63 ERA in four appearances (three starts) this season.

New York will start right-hander Cody Poteet. He is 2-0 with a 1.72 ERA in 15 ⅔ innings pitched.