Mike Yastrzemski, Vinnie Pasquantino and Maikel Garcia homered to provide all of Kansas City’s offense, Michael Wacha pitched 5 2/3 effective innings and the surging Royals beat the visiting Texas Rangers 4-3 on Monday night.
In a matchup of teams trying to reach an American League wild-card position, Kansas City had just enough offense to win its fourth straight and improve to 6-1 on a 10-game homestand.
The Royals, 17-9 since July 20, got two hits apiece from Yastrzemski and Garcia. Wacha (8-9) permitted nine hits but limited Texas to two runs. He struck out three and walked none. Wacha has yielded two or fewer runs in seven consecutive starts.
Carlos Estevez pitched a perfect ninth inning for his career-high 32nd save.
Corey Seager had three hits and Evan Carter added two with an RBI for Texas, which is behind Kansas City in the wild-card chase and has lost nine of 11.
Rangers starter Jack Leiter (7-7) gave up three runs, six hits and three walks while lasting just 3 2/3 innings for the Rangers, who are 0-4 against the Royals in 2025. Leiter fanned five.
For the third time in 15 games as a Royal, Yastrzemski led off with a homer, this time taking a Leiter pitch over the right-center-field wall.
Texas tied it in the second when Wacha allowed singles to Marcus Semien, Joc Pederson and Jonah Heim during a stretch of four batters. The Rangers nearly went ahead, but Royals right fielder John Rave threw out Pederson at the plate on Josh Smith’s fly ball, ending the frame.
Kansas City regained the lead in the third. Leiter walked Bobby Witt Jr., who scored when Pasquantino lined a pitch into the seats, just inside the right field foul pole.
Garcia made it 4-1 when his blast hugged the left field foul pole to lead off the fifth against Luis Curvelo.
The Rangers got a run back in the sixth via Carter’s two-out RBI single off Wacha. They made it a one-run game in the eighth after Wyatt Langford hit a one-out single, went to third on Seager’s double and scored via Rowdy Tellez’s groundout.
Kansas City catcher Salvador Perez was scratched due to an illness.
–Field Level Media
