The A’s scored a quick run in the 1st inning, but had to wait until the 2nd for a crooked number.
Just like that it was 4-0, and the Royals were pulling their starter from the game in the 2nd.
The shortstop had the walk-off hit the night before, and in his first at-bat today he singled to lead off the rally in the 2nd inning.
In the 6th it was back to the Matt Show, as Chapman drilled a solo homer.
The Royals finally scored in the 8th inning, but it was only a brief blip as Oakland continued to pile on in the bottom of the frame.
The rookie had struck out in each of his three previous trips to the plate and also made a miscue on defense , and he was 0-for-8 since being called up by the A’s this month.
After Bolt’s dinger, Tony Kemp singled to reach base for the third time today out of the leadoff spot, and a moment later he would score for the third time.
When the dust settled, the two Matts combined to go 7-for-10 with 2 homers, 2 doubles, and 7 RBI out of the team’s 11 runs.
While the Matts led the way, the rest of the lineup contributed too.
For the third day in a row, Oakland’s starter kept the Royals off the board for the first six innings of the game.
He was flustered long enough to issue a walk and load the bases, but he bore back down and induced a popout from Andrew Benintenti.
In the 4th, a one-out double got past Bolt in CF, helping the batter advance for a triple.
Nobody escapes every rally forever, and left-on-base percentage isn’t a sustainable skill, but Kaprielian’s ability to work out of trouble so far in his MLB career is still a positive sign for a rookie.
To be fair, he got an enormously generous strike zone from HP umpire Ted Barrett, and maybe the Royals would have squeezed out a run or two without that extra help.
Jesús Luzardo kept Kansas City silent in the 7th, but allowed a two-run homer in the 8th, which at the time cut the lead to 6-2.
They hit for power, they got on base, and with runners in scoring position they collected four hits and two sac flies.