KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Nick Kurtz hit a solo ninth-inning homer to rally the Athletics to a 3-2 win and three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals on Sunday.
Kurtz hit Carlos Estévez’s (2-2) fastball 411 feet to right-center for his sixth home run. It gave the Athletics their first sweep at Kauffman Stadium since September 2016.
T.J. Ferguson (2-2) retired all four batters he faced, striking out two to earn the win and Mason Miller struck out two for his 14th save.
The Royals matched their longest losing streak of the season while dropping all six games of their homestand. Kansas City has lost six straight home series.
Austin Wynns hit a two-run homer to left-center off reliever John Schreiber, tying the game 2-2 in the sixth. It was Wynns’ fifth home run and second in five games since his acquisition from the Cincinnati Reds.
Royals starter Noah Cameron struck out seven in five scoreless innings.
After Kyle Isbel doubled off first baseman Kurtz’s glove to open the third, Bobby Witt Jr. snapped an 0-for-16 slump with an RBI double and moved to third on Jeffrey Springs’ balk before scoring on Vinnie Pasquantino’s single for a 2-0 lead.
Key moment
With the Athletics trailing 2-0 in the fifth, Lawrence Butler hit a two-out double, and then was caught stealing third to end the inning. Butler was initially ruled safe by third base umpire Adrian Johnson, who quickly changed his call, prompting an unsuccessful argument from A’s manager Mark Kotsay.
Key stat
The Royals have been outscored 44-15 in the sixth inning.
Up next
The Athletics host the Houston Astros on Monday to open a four-game series.
RHP Seth Lugo (3-5, 3.18) opens the Royals road series in Texas on Tuesday.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Marc Bowman, The Associated Press
