KANSAS CITY, Mo. — They don’t all get to be fairy tales.
Lefty Andrew Sears’ big-league debut was spoiled by a couple of mislocated sliders in a four-run inning fifth inning that propelled the Kansas City Royals to an 11-7 win Sunday Aug. 23, completing a three-game sweep of the Tigers at Kauffman Stadium.
It was the Royals’ eighth straight win. For the fading Tigers, that’s five straight losses, eight in the last nine.
The Tigers had erased a 5-1 deficit with four runs in the top of the fifth off right-handed reliever Mason Black.
Max Clark walked against starter Daniel Lynch IV, went to third on a double by Javier Báez and scored on a ground out by Gleyber Torres. Báez scored on a two-out single by Hao-Yu Lee and Kevin McGonigle followed with his 14th homer, slugging a curveball 392 feet into the seats in right-center.
That good momentum lasted three hitters.
Sears, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Toledo before the game, entered in the bottom of the fourth after the Royals built a 5-1 lead off opener Jacob Waguespack and reliever Ty Madden.
His outing started well, with a clean 12-pitch fourth. And after walking Nick Loftin to start the fifth, he earned his first big-league strikeout, punching out All-Star Bobby Witt Jr. with a nasty slider.
BOX SCORE: Royals 11, Tigers 7
The slider let him down after that. He left one in the middle of the plate to lefty-swinging Vinnie Pasquantino, who doubled to the gap to score Loftin. Salvador Perez, the 36-year-old Kansas City icon who had stolen his first base since 2021 in a five-run second inning, doubled home Pasquantino.
Then light-hitting lefty John Rave gladly accepted another hanging slider from Sears and slugged into the Royals’ bullpen in right field.
Sears righted himself, though, putting up zeroes in the sixth and seventh innings before exiting after Rave singled to start the eighth. The run came around to score after Rave stole second and third off reliever Kyle Finnegan and scored on a single by Kyle Isbel.
But Sears will be able to tell his kids one day that he struck out Witt Jr. twice in his big-league debut.
His final line will show five runs and six hits with three strikeouts and a walk in four innings. The Royals put 14 balls in play against him with a robust average exit velocity of 94.6 mph.
The Royals stole a season-high five bases off Tigers pitchers and rookie catcher Eduardo Valencia. Loftin, who had a two-run homer off Madden in the second, had three hits and a walk with four RBIs.
The Tigers’ playoff hopes are fading, but there is still some fight in the dog.
They added an unearned run in the sixth to make it 9-6, though they left two runners on. They loaded the bases with no outs in the seventh against reliever Jose Cuas but only squeezed one run out of it, on a two-out bases-loaded walk to Ben Malgeri.
Lee, who continues to swing a hot bat, doubled to start the inning and scored the run. On this 1-5 road trip, he went 8-for-17 with two home runs and four RBIs.
McGonigle had another big day with a double, homer, walk and three RBIs. He also made a heady play in the play to end the bottom of the seventh when Sears gave up a two-out single to Isaac Collins.
Right fielder Zach McKinstry cut the ball off in the gap and Collins tried to stretch it to a double. McKinstry slipped and his throw was hurried. McGonigle smartly came off the bag to get the throw and then quickly lunged back to make the tag.
This is where we are now, looking for pockets of light in a season that’s gone suddenly dark.
This story will be updated.
chris.mccosky@detroitnews.com
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Tigers’ tailspin continues as last-place Royals complete sweep
Reporting by Chris McCosky, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Chris McCosky, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
