The Royals will start RHP Ian Kennedy Monday at Minnesota for the first contest of a six-game trip.
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Justin Upton hit a two-run homer with two out in the eighth inning, sending the Detroit Tigers to a 6-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday.
CUBS 2, GIANTS 1 Jon Lester pitched 7 2/3 innings of no-hit ball and settled for his second complete game of the season, helping sizzling Chicago beat visiting San Francisco to move a season-high 40 games over.500.
The Royals batted around in a four-run seventh to take a one-run lead.
After a beaut of a home run by J.D. Martinez in the fourth and a pair of two-out hits in the seventh, the Tigers led 4-1.
Alcides Escobar led off the ninth with a double them moved to third on a Jarrod Dyson groundout. Later, he would move Escobar to third on a ground out.
The World Series champions are four games back of Baltimore and Detroit for the second wild card. Daniel Norris was on the mound, pitching his best game of the year with just three hits allowed and only a solo home run given up.
Ventura allowed six walks, matching his career high, and six hits, but held the Tigers to one run over six innings.
Royals right-hander Edinson Volquez, who starts Sunday, is 2-0 with a 3.38 ERA in two starts against Detroit this season. Manager Ned Yost tipped his hat to Upton.
Tigers: RHP Justin Verlander, who was selected the AL pitcher of the month for August after going 4-0 with a 1.69 ERA, and White Sox LHP Chris Sale are scheduled to start on Monday at U.S. Cellular Field.
Tigers: OF Cameron Maybin (left thumb contusion) has not played since Monday. “We just couldn’t get a hit to drive in some runs tonight”. But let’s just try to see if we can knock out some of that inflammation and make it easier on him.
“It’s a teeter-totter back and forth with this team”, said Andrew Romine, who had two hits for Detroit, including an RBI double in the seventh.
“It’s what we all strive for to get better and better each year”, Hosmer said. They haven’t had Lorenzo Cain or Mike Moustakas in this series and will likely not have Alex Gordon in left after he left Saturday’s game with a sore ankle. “I guess four of them were infield hits; they didn’t get to the dirt”, Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said.
Kinsler homered on an 0-2 pitch from Brooks Pounders to lead off the Tigers’ ninth. The Twins are recalling RHP Jose Berrios from Triple-A Rochester to start. Gsellman (2-1) pitched out of trouble for six innings, and inexperienced center fielder Michael Conforto made a diving catch that thwarted a potential Nationals rally in the seventh.
REDS 9, CARDINALS 1 Zack Cozart hit a pair of doubles during run-scoring innings that included St. Louis misplays, and Cincinnati sent the Cardinals to their third straight loss.
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METS 3, NATIONALS 1 Curtis Granderson and James Loney came through with big hits to back Robert Gsellman, and NY got another gritty start from an unheralded rookie in its banged-up rotation.
