Overview

The Royals finished out their short road trip with a visit to Chicago for three games against the White Sox. The Royals came into the series with a record of 5-9, while the White Sox had a record of 6-9. 

The Royals won this series 2-1. The team has to be pleased with the end result of this matchup, as any series win, especially on the road, is promising. The Royals now hold a record of 7-10, and the White Sox fall to 7-11. 

Game 1 - Lynch Throws Gem as Royals Take Game 1 6-0

Starters: Daniel Lynch (KC) vs. Dallas Keuchel (CWS)

Neither team was able to get onto the scoreboard until the top of the 4th. The Royals had a rather big inning, complete with Salvador Perez reaching on an error, a Carlos Santana walk, a Bobby Witt, Jr. RBI-infield single, and an Adalberto Mondesi RBI groundout to take a 2-0 lead. They extended it in the 6th with a massive inning. Witt doubled, Mondesi reached on an infield single, Michael A. Taylor hit a sac fly, Nicky Lopez and Whit Merrifield walked, Andrew Benintendi hit into a fielder’s choice, Perez walked, and Santana hit a 2-RBI single that stretched the lead to 6-0. The lead was never really in danger throughout the rest of the contest, and the Royals won 6-0. 

Daniel Lynch pitched a stellar game, hurling 6.0 innings while only giving up two hits, two walks, and no runs, and striking out 7 to record the win. Dallas Keuchel didn’t give up a run over 4.0 innings, but recorded the loss. The Royals bullpen pitched 3.0 innings and helped to blank the White Sox. Adalberto Mondesi unfortunately exited the game in the 6th inning with what eventually turned out to be a torn ACL. 

Final: Royals 6-0 White Sox

Most Notable Player: Daniel Lynch (6.0 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 0 ER, 7 K)

Game 2 - White Sox Even Series, Win 7-3

Starters: Zack Greinke (KC) vs. Dylan Cease (CWS)

The White Sox started the scoring in the bottom of the 2nd when Yasmani Grandal singled, Jake Burger doubled, and Reese McGuire sac flied. They added another in the 3rd off of a Tim Anderson single and an Andrew Vaughn RBI double. In the 4th, Jake Burger homered to give his team a 3-0 lead. The Royals brought the game back in the 6th and 7th. In the 6th inning, Edward Olivares reached on an infield single, Nicky Lopez walked, and Whit Merrifield and Andrew Benintendi each hit RBI singles. In the 7th, the Royals eventually manufactured a Merrifield sac fly to score Bobby Witt, Jr. The 3-3 tie didn’t last long, as Vaughn hit a 3-run homer in the 7th to give the White Sox a 6-3 lead. They added to it in the 8th when Leury Garcia came around to score, and the game ended with a White Sox 7-3 win. 

Dylan Cease pitched well, allowing two runs over 6.0 innings, but it was Bennett Sousa who came on in relief in the 7th, pitched 0.2 innings, and recorded the win. Collin Snyder also recorded 0.2 innings for the Royals, but gave up two runs and took the loss. Kendall Graveman pitched the last two innings and didn’t allow a run, and came away with the save. 

Final: White Sox 7-3 Royals 

Most Notable Player: Andrew Vaughn (2-4, 1 R, 4 RBI)

Game 3 - Royals Win 10-Inning Rubber Match 5-2

Starters: Brad Keller (KC) vs. Michael Kopech (CWS)

The Royals struck quickly in the rubber match of this series on a Nicky Lopez walk and Andrew Benintendi RBI double in the top of the 1st. They added to it in the 5th with the help of a single from Cam Gallagher, a walk from Nicky Lopez, and a sac fly hit by Andrew Benintendi. The White Sox finally started chipping away in the 6th with a Leury Garcia solo shot, then tied it in the 8th with an A.J. Pollock sac fly. The tie held up through 9 innings. In the top of the 10th, the Royals walked twice, loading the bases with the extra-innings runner. On a passed ball, the runners advanced, scoring the first run in extras. Kyle Isbel proceeded to single home two more runs. The White Sox couldn’t plate any runs in the bottom half of the 10th, and the Royals won 5-2. 

Brad Keller pitched a fantastic game, going 7.0 innings while allowing three hits and a run. Scott Barlow ended up getting the win for the 2-strikeout inning he threw in the 9th. Aaron Bummer pitched 1.2 innings in the 9th and 10th and gave up one earned run and was credited with the loss. Taylor Clarke recorded his first save of the season, pitching a flawless 10th inning. 

Final: Royals 5-2 White Sox

Most Notable Player: Brad Keller (7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 BB, 1 ER, 3 K)

Takeaways

Overall, this series showed fans a team that still has lots of promise, and was a much different story than the previous series with the Mariners. Daniel Lynch and Brad Keller both had fantastic outings, and Zack Greinke logged a pretty solid start as well. The bullpen pitched average at best, and while it had its bright spots, the group has shown a significant drop in production. The offense performed better than is customary this season, and showed lots of improvement. The Royals were able to pull ahead of the White Sox in the standings after the series, and while there is a lot to improve on, it was an all-around solid series win. 

Looking Ahead

The Royals will look to keep the wins coming in as they head home for a weekend series against the Yankees starting tomorrow night. The Yankees are coming off of a series sweep of the Orioles, and they lead the AL East at 13-6. The 7-10 Royals will bring the back end of their rotation in the series with Kris Bubic, Carlos Hernandez, and Daniel Lynch expected to pitch. The Yankees have slated the turn of the rotation this series with Nestor Cortes followed by Gerrit Cole and Luis Severino. If the Royals can turn those matchups into a series win, the results will be very promising.