Field Level Media
Sep 13, 2018
Salvador Perez and Jorge Bonifacio hit back-to-back homers to highlight a four-run sixth inning as the Kansas City Royals rallied for a 6-4 victory over the visiting Minnesota Twins on Thursday night at Kauffman Stadium.
Perez also doubled, and Rosell Herrera had two hits and scored a run for Kansas City (50-96). Alex Gordon reached base three times, walking twice and also getting hit by a pitch, and also drove in a run for the Royals.
Heath Fillmyer (3-1) gave up four runs on five hits over 7 1/3 innings, walking one and striking out six, to pick up the victory. Wily Peralta pitched a hitless ninth to earn his 11th save.
Alan Busenitz (4-1) gave up both homers and allowed three runs without retiring a batter to suffer his first loss of the season. Jake Cave homered and had two hits for Minnesota (67-79), which lost its sixth consecutive game at Kauffman Stadium.
The Twins took a 2-0 lead in the second inning when Robbie Grossman led off with a double to right and then scored on Cave's 11th homer of the season, a 424-drive to right-center.
Kansas City cut it to 2-1 in the fifth when Whit Merrifield walked with two outs and then came around to score when shortstop Jorge Polanco muffed Adalberto Mondesi's grounder for an error.
The Royals received five walks over the first five innings but didn't get their first hit until the four-run sixth.
Hunter Dozier led off with a double to left off Busenitz. Perez then hit his 25th homer to left-center to put Kansas City in front 3-2, and Bonifacio followed eight pitches later with his third home run of the season, smacking a hanging 3-2 curveball over the left field fence.
Mondesi added an RBI single later in the inning, driving in Whit Merrifield, who had walked, as he Royals sent 10 men to the plate.
The Twins cut it to 5-4 in the eighth with four consecutive hits, including an RBI single by Eddie Rosario that drove Chris Gimenez, who had doubled. Grossman added a sacrifice fly, driving in Polanco, who had singled.
Kansas City added an insurance run in the eighth when Merrifield singled, stole his 36th base of the season, advanced to third on a throwing error by Gimenez and scored on a fielder's choice by Gordon.
--Field Level Media