Royals beat Orioles for first series victory

Jaylon Thompson, The Kansas City Star on Apr 6, 2025

Published in Baseball

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals took care of business to begin their seven-game homestand at Kauffman Stadium.

Kansas City welcomed the Baltimore Orioles in a rematch of their American League wild-card series from last October. Both teams appeared stagnant to begin the 2025 season; perhaps a renewal of their postseason rivalry would be a perfect spot to rebound.

For the Royals, it was: They clinched their first series victory of the season with a 4-1 win Sunday. Left-handed starting pitcher Kris Bubic shut down the Orioles at the plate while Bobby Witt Jr. nearly made history again.

Witt finished a home run shy of the cycle in Sunday’s game. He recorded a triple in the first inning, a double in the second and a single in the fourth.

The Royals took two of three from Baltimore, with their lone loss coming Saturday. Kansas City held the visiting club to just five hits Sunday, improving to 4-5 with a series against the Minnesota Twins opening at Kauffman Stadium on Monday night.

Here are three takeaways from the Royals-O’s series:

Kris Bubic stars in starter’s role

The Royals always knew Bubic had the intangibles required to become a big-league starting pitcher. All signs pointed to the Stanford product enjoying a long run as a central figure in the rotation.

Bubic accelerated quickly through the Royals’ minor-league system. In 2020, he jumped from Single-A Lexington to the majors. There were expected growing pains along the way as he developed at the highest level of baseball.

Two years later, Bubic seemed to figure things out. He had a strong start to the 2023 campaign before undergoing Tommy John surgery. He missed significant time and returned as a reliever last season.

The Royals were impressed with his progress. This offseason, Bubic was named a full-time starter and earned his rotation spot during spring training.

On Sunday, he earned his second victory of the season in as many starts (both quality starts). He shut down the Orioles in 6 2/3 innings, allowing five hits and striking out eight.

Bubic kept Baltimore’s hitters baffled throughout the game. He threw 68 of 99 pitches for strikes and relied on his fastball early in the count. The pitch registered 19 swings, while his changeup generated eight whiffs, per Baseball Savant.

Bubic has now allowed one run in 12 1/2 innings to begin the year, striking out 16 and walking just three.

Royals’ offense still seeking consistency

After scoring one run in Saturday’s loss to the Orioles, the Royals scored early on Sunday against Orioles starter Cade Povich.

First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino drove in a run with a sacrifice fly and Michael Massey followed with a two-run double.

But the Royals also left a few scoring chances on the table. They stranded two base runners in the second inning and did so again in the fifth.

Hunter Renfroe grounded into an inning-ending double play to end one scoring threat. Later, Salvador Perez struck out with a potential insurance run on third base.

The Royals were 3 for 10 with runners on base Sunday. They left seven men aboard but won anyway.

The Royals scored a total of 12 runs during this series. They had opportunities to do more damage.

Maikel Garcia continues hot all-around start

Garcia is in a groove to start the 2025 season. He is getting it done at the plate and building confidence in center field.

He had two hits and a run scored Sunday. And he showed himself serviceable as an outfielder: In the third inning, he tracked down infielder Jordan Westburg’s drive to the gap in right-center.

Garcia ranged to his left to make the terrific play. Then he received a standing ovation from the announced crowd of 19,098. As he arrived at the home dugout, he was congratulated by teammates Perez and Witt at the top of the steps.

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