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Royals 6, Brewers 4: No magic this time as Milwaukee drops series

todd rosiak, milwaukee journal sentinel
·4 min read

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – There were no final-inning miracles in this one.

Instead, more frustration and bad luck as the Milwaukee Brewers dropped a 6-4 decision – and the series – to the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on Wednesday afternoon.

Unable to carry over the momentum from Willy Adames's game-winning homer the previous night, they trailed from the bottom of the first inning on. Blake Perkins slipped trying to make a routine catch in center field two batters in, and that set the tone for what was a tremendously frustrating day for Milwaukee.

Box score: Royals 6, Brewers 4

Starter Joe Ross pitched better than his line looked (five innings, three hits, three runs, two walks, two strikeouts) while Gary Sánchez went deep for one of the only highlights on another quiet offensive afternoon.

Milwaukee finished 3 for 13 with runners in scoring position while Christian Yelich went 0 for 5 in his return from the injured list.

The Brewers (21-15) concluded their road trip with a 2-4 record.

Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. doubles in the first inning against the Brewers on Wednesday.
Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. doubles in the first inning against the Brewers on Wednesday.

Bobby Witt Jr. has been a pain

The young Royals shortstop greeted Joel Payamps with a leadoff homer in the bottom of the eighth, putting the Brewers into a two-run hole.

The floodgates opened from there, with five of the ensuing six batters reaching base as the deficit stretched to 6-2. The final two hitters in that spell weren't the fault of Payamps; in both cases shaky defense let him down.

Things got interesting in the ninth when dual walks to start the frame were followed up by Brice Turang's third double of the game. A William Contreras grounder plated another run to make it 6-4 to bring Yelich to the plate as the potential tying run.

But he beats a ball into the grass in front of the mound, and Milwaukee falls.

Gary Sánchez draws Milwaukee closer

Sánchez, who made a terrific defensive play to save a run in the fifth inning, produced one of his own when he homered to right-center to open the seventh and brought the Brewers to within 3-2.

Oliver Dunn followed with a walk and moved up to second on a groundout. Turang then doubled to left only to have Dunn thrown out on a close play at the plate. It's unusual to see a player not score in that situation, so Dunn's jump must not have been a good one.

Brewers starter Joe Ross went five innings with three hits, three runs, two walks and two strikeouts Wednesday against the Royals.
Brewers starter Joe Ross went five innings with three hits, three runs, two walks and two strikeouts Wednesday against the Royals.

A pitcher's duel breaks out

Starter Brady Singer had traffic on the bases against him in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings but the Brewers were unable to break through with any more runs. Will Smith Singer after a sixth-inning single by Willy Adames and finished out the frame.

Ross, meanwhile, allowed only three baserunners in his five innings. But the last one was big as Witt drew a one-out walk in the sixth, motored from first to third on a single to center off Bryan Hudson and then scored on yet another sacrifice fly to make it 3-1.

Ross threw 67 pitches on the day.

Doubles aplenty in the first inning

Brice Turang and William Contreras doubled to start the game against Singer, giving Milwaukee a quick 1-0 lead.

Kansas City quickly regained the lead though as its first two batters also doubled, with the second, Witt, catching a lucky break when centerfielder Blake Perkins slipped and fell on what would have been a routine out.

Two straight sacrifice flies then gave the Royals the 2-1 lead.

Brewers lineup

  • Brice Turang 2B

  • William Contreras C

  • Christian Yelich DH

  • Willy Adames SS

  • Jake Bauers LF

  • Sal Frelick RF

  • Gary Sánchez 1B

  • Oliver Dunn 3B

  • Blake Perkins CF

Royals lineup

  • Maikel Garcia 3B

  • Bobby Witt Jr. SS

  • Vinnie Pasquantino 1B

  • Michael Massey DH

  • Hunter Renfroe RF

  • Adam Frazier 2B

  • MJ Melendez LF

  • Freddy Fermin C

  • Kyle Isbel CF

Brewers schedule

Brewers vs. Cardinals, Thursday 6:40 p.m. Milwaukee RHP Tobias Myers (0-2, 6.23) vs. St. Louis RHP Sonny Gray (4-1, 0.89). Broadcasts: TV – Bally Sports Wisconsin. Radio – AM-620.

Brewers vs. Cardinals, Friday 7:10 p.m. Milwaukee TBA vs. St. Louis TBA. Broadcasts: TV – Bally Sports Wisconsin. Radio – AM-620.

Brewers vs. Cardinals, Saturday 6:15 p.m. Milwaukee RHP Freddy Peralta (3-1, 3.49) vs. St. Louis TBA. TV – FOX. Radio – AM-620.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brewers drop series to Royals with 6-4 loss in finale in Kansas City