Jonathan Heasley allowed one run and two hits over six innings as the host Kansas City Royals posted a 4-1 win over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday to complete a three-game series sweep.
The Royals (61-89) came into the series having scored a total of 10 runs during a seven-game losing skid to the Twins.
Kansas City’s bullpen didn’t allow a run in 11 2/3 innings in the three-game series.
Bobby Witt Jr. recorded his third straight multi-hit performance and Salvador Perez drove in a run for the seventh straight game for the Royals.
The Twins (73-77) have lost seven of their last eight games.
The Royals outscored the Twins 14-7 in the series.
Brad Keller earned his first career save after striking out two batters in the ninth inning.
Twins starter Josh Winder (4-5) had good success against former teammates. He held high school teammate Vinnie Pasquantino and college teammate Nate Eaton to a combined 0-for-6. But he was not as successful against the rest of the Royals. He allowed three runs on six hits in six innings.
The Royals scored first when Perez drove in Witt with a two-out, broken-bat single in the third inning. Witt reached on a single and stole second base prior to Perez’s RBI single.
Edward Olivares led off the fourth inning with a solo home run to give the Royals a 2-0 lead. Drew Waters matched Olivares’ effort by leading off the fifth inning with a 428-foot blast beyond the bullpen in right field.
The Twins scored in the sixth inning after Heasley walked nine-hole hitter Caleb Hamilton. Hamilton went to third on a single by Luis Arraez, who got his first hit of the series in his ninth at-bat, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Nick Gordon. The run ended Heasley’s scoreless innings streak at 12 1/3.
Eaton drove in Pasquantino with the Royals’ fourth run in the eighth inning.
–Field Level Media
