The Kansas City Royals can secure their first series win in more than a month when they host American League Central rival Chicago White Sox on Thursday in the finale of their four-game set.

Kansas City scored four first-inning runs Wednesday and never looked back en route to a 9-1 win. The offensive outpouring, which included home runs by Edward Olivares, Michael Massey and Nick Pratto, was the second from the Royals in the series.

They opened Monday scoring 12 in a seven-run defeat of Chicago. Kansas City heads into Thursday’s contest having scored six runs or more in six of its nine games in May, including four games of at least eight runs over the last seven.

“Hitting is contagious,” Massey said to Bally Sports Kansas City in his postgame interview. “You see some guys in the lineup start to heat up, it makes you want to get going a little bit more.”

With his 3-for-4 performance Wednesday, Massey extended his hitting streak to six games. MJ Melendez has had a hit in every game of the series and Vinnie Pasquantino delivered his third straight multiple-hit performance with a 3-for-5 showing after going 2-for-5 Monday and 2-for-4 Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Chicago will look for a series split with a starter who has flourished in his career against Kansas City.

Mike Clevinger (2-3, 4.84 ERA) takes the mound, undefeated in 14 career appearances against the Royals with 13 starts, posting a 9-0 record and 1.98 ERA.

He last faced Kansas City in a no-decision on July 25, 2020, when he struck out six and surrendered two earned runs over seven innings.

After beginning the season with wins in each of his first two starts, Clevinger has lost three and pitched a pair of no-decisions.

In his last appearance Saturday at Cincinnati, Clevinger struck out seven and gave up four earned runs over six innings in his third loss of the season.

Lance Lynn, Chicago’s starter credited with the loss Wednesday, noted the significance of the White Sox scoring a split when speaking with reporters postgame.

“We’ve won our last two series. We win (Thursday), we push this one. That’s called chipping away,” Lynn said.

Chicago lost seven straight series before taking two of three from Minnesota and Cincinnati before arriving in Kansas City. A win Thursday would improve the White Sox to 6-4 in May.

Brady Singer (2-4, 8.82) makes the start for the Royals in Thursday’s matchup, looking to bounce back after losses in each of his last two starts, and four of five overall.

Singer last appeared Saturday, giving up five earned runs in four innings in a loss to Oakland. The four innings were the second-fewest Singer worked in his seven starts of the season, save only his prior appearance April 30 at Minnesota.

Thursday marks Singer’s 10th appearance against the White Sox and ninth start, the last coming Aug. 30, 2022, when he struck out four and gave up four earned runs in a no-decision. He recorded a win over Chicago the same month, allowing just one earned run over 7 1/3 innings.

Singer is 3-2 all-time against the White Sox with a 3.35 ERA and 46 strikeouts.

–Field Level Media

Boston Red Sox closer Kenley Jansen recorded his 400th career save on Wednesday night, becoming the seventh pitcher in major league history to accomplish the feat.

Jansen worked around a one-out double to put the finishing touches on Boston’s 5-2 victory over the host Atlanta Braves. He now has nine saves on the season, his first with the Red Sox.

The only other pitchers to reach the 400-save plateau are Mariano Rivera (652 saves), Trevor Hoffman (601), Lee Smith (478), Francisco Rodriguez (437), John Franco (424) and Billy Wagner (422). Jansen currently has the most saves among active pitchers, but Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Craig Kimbrel is only three saves away from notching his 400th.

Jansen, 35, is 43-28 with a 2.43 ERA in 778 relief appearances across 14 major league seasons. He spent the first 12 years of his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers before signing with the Atlanta Braves ahead of the 2022 campaign.

In 780 2/3 innings, Jansen has racked up 1,124 strikeouts in his career.

–Field Level Media

After exiting Wednesday’s start against the host Pittsburgh Pirates after just 2 2/3 innings, Colorado Rockies right-hander Antonio Senzatela told reporters after the game that he is dealing with forearm tightness.

Senzatela left Wednesday’s game after allowing a two-run homer to Andrew McCutchen. He threw 51 pitches before walking off the field with a trainer and will undergo further examination on Thursday.

The injury is an unwelcome sight for Senzatela, who tore his left anterior cruciate ligament during a game against the St. Louis Cardinals last August and had to have season-ending surgery.

Colorado’s pitching staff has been ravaged by injuries during the young season, as German Marquez is set to have Tommy John surgery and will likely miss the remainder of the season and Noah Davis is on the 15-day injured list due to an elbow injury.

Senzatela is 0-1 with a 4.70 ERA in two starts this season. He has struck out four and walked two in 7 2/3 innings while allowing three homers.

–Field Level Media

The Kansas City Royals struck for four runs in the first inning and never looked back as they cruised to a 9-1 victory over the visiting Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night.

Vinnie Pasquantino began his 3-for-5 night at the plate with a double that set in motion Kansas City’s big opening frame. He scored when Salvador Perez doubled during the following at-bat.

Chicago starter Lance Lynn (1-5) almost escaped the first with just the one run allowed, as Perez, who moved to third base on an MJ Melendez single, was tagged at the plate for the Royals’ second out of the inning when Edward Olivares hit into a fielder’s choice.

But after Nick Pratto drove in the first of his three RBIs with a two-out single, Matt Duffy hit a popup to right field, and miscommunication in the White Sox outfield caused it to drop, extending the inning and sending Olivares home.

A Michael Massey single scored Pratto, and by inning’s end, the Royals had six hits and four runs. Lynn went on to allow seven runs on nine hits while walking two and striking out four through five innings.

Lynn gave up a solo home run to Massey in the fourth and surrendered a two-run homer to Pratto in the fifth. Massey finished the game 3-for-4, while Pratto went 2-for-4.

The additional runs gave Kansas City starter Brad Keller (3-3) even more of a cushion, though he had all the support he needed in the first.

Keller pitched five innings, giving up one run on three hits with four walks and four strikeouts. Chicago’s lone run came in the second, when Hanser Alberto drove in Gavin Sheets with a single.

Alberto went 1-for-3 and Sheets was 1-for-2 with two walks.

The Royals bullpen took over in the sixth and combined for four scoreless innings between Jose Cuas, Amir Garrett, Josh Staumont and Taylor Clarke. Each reliever logged one inning.

Kansas City has won three of its last four games and can claim the four-game series with a victory on Thursday.

–Field Level Media

Alex Kirilloff singled to drive in Max Kepler from second in the bottom of the 11th inning to give the Minnesota Twins a 4-3 walk-off win over the San Diego Padres on Wednesday night in Saint Paul, Minn.

Kepler, who also homered, doubled and scored three runs, began the inning at second as the designated runner. Reliever Domingo Tapia (0-1), making his first appearance since earning a save on May 1 against Cincinnati, intentionally walked Carlos Correa, who earlier had an RBI double, to start the inning. Kirilloff then grounded a 2-0 fastball down the right field line to drive in Kepler for the game-winning RBI.

Griffin Jax (2-4) pitched a scoreless inning of relief to pick up the win for Minnesota, which snapped a three-game losing streak.

Juan Soto homered for San Diego, which suffered its third loss in four games. Jake Cronenworth reached base four times with three walks and a hit by a pitch and he also stole a base.

Minnesota took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on Kepler’s sixth home run of the season, a 415-foot drive into the second deck in right.

The Twins extended the lead to 2-0 in the third when Kepler lined a double over the glove of Soto in left and then scored on Correa’s towering double off the fence in left-center.

Soto cut it to 2-1 in the seventh when he led off with his sixth home run of the season, a 417-foot drive to dead center.

The Padres tied it, 2-2, in the eighth when Trent Grisham led off with a single off reliever Jorge Lopez, advanced to third on a single by Fernando Tatis Jr. and scored on a sacrifice fly by Manny Machado.

San Diego then took its first lead of the game in the 10th when designated runner Rougned Odor tagged and went to third on a flyout by Grisham and then scored on a suicide squeeze up the third base line by Austin Nola.

The Twins tied it in the bottom half against closer Josh Hader when pinch-hitter Donovan Solano singled down the right field line to drive in designated runner Willi Castro. Solano then advanced to second on a wild pitch but Hader, despite blowing his second straight save opportunity, rebounded to strike out Christian Vazquez and Nick Gordon. After Byron Buxton was intentionally walked, Hader struck out Kepler.

The Padres loaded the bases with two outs in the 11th on back-to-back walks to Soto and Xander Bogaerts after designated runner Tatis took third on a groundout by Machado. But Jax got out of the jam by striking out Matt Carpenter on three pitches.

–Field Level Media

Yan Gomes came off the injured list to club a two-run home run, Patrick Wisdom also hit a two-run bomb and Justin Steele went six innings to stay unbeaten as the Chicago Cubs routed the visiting St. Louis Cardinals 10-4 on Wednesday night.

Out since May 1 with a concussion, Gomes belted his sixth homer in the fourth inning and followed with two more hits as the Cubs capped a 3-3 homestand. Wisdom’s 12th of the season came with a man on in the third and erased a 2-1 St. Louis edge.

Dansby Swanson and Christopher Morel each had two hits with two RBIs, and Steele (6-0) surrendered three runs — ending his run of 14 straight starts allowing two or fewer earned runs — with seven hits and three walks.

The Cardinals’ season-high three-game win streak ended as Jordan Montgomery (2-5) was tagged for six runs on seven hits and three walks in five innings. St. Louis’ two biggest stars got to Steele in the first when Paul Goldschmidt singled with one out and scored on Nolan Arenado’s two-out triple. Ex-Cub Willson Contreras hit an RBI single in the third to make it 2-0.

After stranding the bases loaded in the second, Chicago came through in the third. Swanson delivered a ground-rule double and scored on Seiya Suzuki’s own double. Wisdom followed with his drive into the left-center field bleachers off Montgomery, who had thrown 24 consecutive scoreless innings against the Cubs.

Gomes’ long ball followed a leadoff walk to Trey Mancini in the fourth. Gomes had just eight homers in 86 games last season for Chicago.

The Cubs made it 6-2 in the fifth when Ian Happ (two hits) doubled and scored on Wisdom’s double play grounder.

St. Louis got a run in the sixth on Lars Nootbaar’s RBI single. However, in the bottom of the frame, Morel sent an RBI double off the right-center field ivy, then Swanson’s second double plated two for a 9-3 Cubs’ advantage.

Paul DeJong, who had two hits for the Cardinals, scored on Tommy Edman’s single in the ninth.

–Field Level Media

Raimel Tapia’s pinch-hit double drove in the go-ahead run in the seventh inning and Kenley Jansen pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn his 400th career save as the visiting Boston Red Sox beat the Atlanta Braves 5-2 on Wednesday to earn a split of their two-game series.

Jarren Duran walked to start the seventh against reliever A.J. Minter (2-4) and came around to score when Tapia lined a two-out double off reliever Nick Anderson into right field. It was Tapia’s major-league-leading fourth pinch hit of the season.

The Red Sox got insurance in the ninth on Triston Casas’ 442-foot two-run homer, his fifth, off Raisel Iglesias.

Jansen pitched one inning and allowed one hit, striking out Travis d’Arnaud to end the game and earn his ninth save. Jansen, who pitched for the Braves last season and led the National League in saves with 41, is the seventh player to record 400 saves and trails No. 6 Billy Wagner, who has 422.

Boston starter Brayan Bello (2-1) pitched six innings and allowed two runs on six hits, with one walk and five strikeouts. He has allowed only five earned runs over 16 innings in his last three starts.

Atlanta went with a bullpen game since Max Fried, whose turn it was to start, had to be placed on the injured list with left forearm soreness. Opener Dylan Lee, making the first regular-season start of his career, worked the first 2 2/3 innings without allowing a run.

The Red Sox broke the scoreless tie by scoring two runs in the fourth off Collin McHugh, the second pitcher used by Atlanta. Enrique Hernandez drove in a run with a single to left and Duran added an RBI single to center field.

The Braves tied the game in the sixth inning after Ronald Acuna Jr. crushed a solo homer 470 feet to left field. It was the seventh homer for Acuna, his first since May 3. Austin Riley singled with one out, took second on a ground ball and scored on Eddie Rosario’s single to right field.

–Field Level Media

Justin Verlander allowed just one run and two hits over seven dominant innings as the visiting New York Mets edged the Cincinnati Reds 2-1 on Wednesday night.

In just his third career start against Cincinnati, the 40-year-old, three-time Cy Young Award winner beat the Reds for the first time. Verlander (1-1) joins teammate Max Scherzer, Gerrit Cole and Zack Greinke as the only active pitchers to record wins against all 30 teams. He also became the 21st pitcher in major league history to accomplish the feat.

Verlander was making just his second start since signing with the Mets as a free agent in the offseason after having the start of his season delayed due to an upper arm strain that he sustained late in spring training.

David Robertson pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save in as many chances. Verlander, Adam Ottavino and Robertson combined to retire 24 of the final 25 Cincinnati batters.

Cincinnati starter and loser Hunter Greene (0-3) opened the game by striking out the side in order in the first inning.

The Reds got to Verlander for a run in the bottom of the inning after Jonathan India laced a leadoff single to left field.

Jake Fraley doubled high off the right field wall, missing a two-run homer by inches, to score India from first base.

After the Fraley hit, Verlander turned into his former dominant self, going on to strike out seven while walking two.

The Mets wasted little time responding, as Pete Alonso drove a first-pitch hanging slider from Greene to the seats in left to open the second for his league-leading 13th home run.

The Mets gave Verlander a 2-1 lead in the fourth. Luis Guillorme doubled to right with two outs against Greene and, following a walk to Francisco Alvarez, Brandon Nimmo singled through the hole on the right side of the infield to score Guillorme.

Greene, still in search of his first win of the season through eight starts, limited the damage to two runs on six hits over 5 1/3 innings, walking four and striking out four.

The Mets had a chance to add insurance in the eighth when Daniel Vogelbach and Guillorme both singled, but Buck Farmer struck out Alvarez to end the threat.

–Field Level Media

Dean Kremer pitched six scoreless innings and the Baltimore Orioles defeated the visiting Tampa Bay Rays 2-1 on Wednesday.

Austin Hays had two hits and drove in what proved to be the winning run for Baltimore, which took two of three games from division-leading Tampa Bay.

Kremer (4-1) allowed four hits and walked two while striking out four. Yennier Cano pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his third save and has pitched 18 2/3 innings this season without allowing a run.

The Orioles took a 2-0 lead in the sixth. Adley Rutschman singled, Anthony Santander doubled and Ryan Mountcastle walked on a pitch-clock violation by Yonny Chirinos (1-1) to load the bases with no outs. Adam Frazier grounded into a force play at second to score Rutschman and Hays singled to left, scoring Santander.

In the Tampa Bay eighth, Yandy Diaz doubled with one out against Austin Voth. Wander Franco singled to center, and the Baltimore lead was cut to 2-1. Danny Coulombe replaced Voth and Randy Arozarena pinch hit for Brandon Lowe. Coulombe struck out Arozarena and then Harold Ramirez to end the inning.

Mountcastle walked leading off the eighth inning for Baltimore. He went to second on a passed ball and advanced to third on a groundout. Hays lined out and, after an intentional walk to Gunnar Henderson, Jorge Mateo popped out.

Frazier doubled with one out in the Baltimore second and went to third on a wild pitch, but Rays opener Jalen Beeks retired the next two batters.

The Orioles put runners on first and second with two outs in the third before Chirinos got Santander to fly out.

Ramirez and Luke Raley singled with one out in the Tampa Bay fourth, but Kremer induced a double-play grounder from Isaac Paredes.

The Rays got singles from Josh Lowe and Christian Bethancourt to open the fifth. Kremer battled back, striking out Jose Siri and Diaz before Franco lined out.

Chirinos allowed two runs on five hits and four walks over five innings. He fanned one.

–Field Level Media

Cristian Javier struck out a season-high 11 batters in six innings, leading the Houston Astros to a 5-4 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday afternoon in Anaheim, Calif.

Javier (3-1), who struck out Mike Trout three times and Shohei Ohtani twice, gave up a two-run homer to Hunter Renfroe on an 0-2 pitch in the second inning, but was otherwise stellar before handing the ball to the bullpen with a 5-2 lead.

Javier gave up three hits and walked one in his 93-pitch outing. He has given up more than three runs only once in eight starts this season.

Hector Neris (seventh) and Bryan Abreu (eighth) each pitched a scoreless inning of relief, but closer Ryan Pressly gave up a two-run homer to Ohtani in the ninth that brought the Angels within one run.

Anthony Rendon and Renfroe followed with back-to-back singles, but Pressly worked his way out of the jam for his sixth save. Pressly struck out Brandon Drury, got Matt Thaiss on a popout to short and retired Gio Urshela on a grounder.

Jeremy Pena led Houston’s offense with two hits, including a two-out, two-run single in a pivotal four-run fourth inning.

The Astros took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a home run from Yordan Alvarez, his eighth of the season. Angels starter Griffin Canning (2-1) retired the first two batters of the inning before Alvarez got ahold of a 97-mph fastball, hitting it into the seats in center.

The Angels took the lead in the second inning after Rendon led off with a single and scored on the two-run homer by Renfroe. It was Renfroe’s team-leading 10th blast of the season, nine of which have come at Angel Stadium.

Renfroe is hitting .355 (22-for-62) at home versus just .179 (14-for-78) on the road.

The Astros regained the lead with their four-run fourth, knocking Canning out of the game in the process. Canning hurt himself in the inning with a throwing error on a pickoff attempt.

Canning gave up three singles, a sacrifice fly, a walk and hit a batter before being removed with two outs and two runs in. Reliever Jimmy Herget entered the game and immediately surrendered a two-run single to Pena, who gave the Astros a 5-2 lead.

Canning allowed five runs on five hits in 3 2/3 innings. He walked one and fanned three.

–Field Level Media