Kikuchi’s short day makes for very long day for Blue Jays in KC

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — For the first two games of this series, the Kansas City Royals couldn’t buy a run.

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For the series finale on Wednesday, it felt like they might never stop scoring.

From back-to-back shutouts, the Royals looked like an offensive juggernaut against first Jays starter Yusei Kikuchi and then a slew of Blue Jays relievers.

The Royals came into the game hitting just .235 as a team but then banged out 12 hits and eight runs over the next few hours to prove they are still capable of stringing together a few good plate appearances in an 8-3 win to deny the Jays a sweep.

Granted Kikuchi made things significantly easier with his short day’s work.

First innings have not been kind to Kikuchi for much of the season and Wednesday was not an exception.

Even 45 pitches weren’t enough to see him out of that first frame as his day ended registering just two outs and giving up three earned runs on two hits and four walks.

Kikuchi actually struck out two of the first four batters he faced but those were bookended by a pair of walks and he would give up two more free passes and a run-scoring double to MJ Melendez.

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A two-run single off the bat of Emmanuel Rivera made it 3-0 until Kikuchi walked his fourth batter of the afternoon that Jays manager Charlie Montoya had seen enough and went to his bullpen.

Trent Thorton did his job holding the Royals off and buying time for the Jays office time to get back in this one.

The Jays tied the score in the third as catcher Zack Collins took Royals starter Brady Singer over the wall in right for a solo shot before Cavan Biggio, aboard with a none-out single, came around to score on Vladimir Guerrero Jr’s groundout.

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The Jays would add one-more in the ninth as Collins would lace a double into the left-field corner and and score when Cavan Biggio legged out an infield single with the throw to first getting by the intended target allowing Collins to score.

The Royals though were just getting started themselves.

They would score two more in the fourth, and add single runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh aided by another lost ball in the sun, this time by Raimel Tapia leading to a standup triple by the heavy-footed Salvador Perez.

Tapia, who did open the Jays scoring with a homer in the second had another sun ball fall right at his feet in the eighth off the bat of Carlos Santana but that was with two out and he was stranded at second so that one didn’t cost the Jays.

There was also a hit batsman that came around to score the inning after that.

All in all not the most crisp afternoon from really any part of the lineup, but the Jays did leave Kansas City with the series win, so there was that.

mganter@postmedia.com