The Kansas City Royals put an emphatic stop to the Miami Marlins’ four-game winning streak on Sunday, riding a dominant start from Kris Bubic and a big day at the plate from Salvador Perez to secure a 7-4 victory at loanDepot park. The win also helped the Royals avoid a three-game sweep.
Bubic (8-6) was sharp all afternoon, scattering just three hits and a walk across five shutout innings while striking out three. Kansas City built a commanding lead behind him, jumping ahead 3-0 in the fourth inning and stretching it to 6-0 an inning later.
The spark came after Jonathan India popped out to start the fourth. Bobby Witt Jr. followed by lashing his major league-leading 33rd double of the season and advanced to third on Vinnie Pasquantino’s single. Maikel Garcia then brought Witt home with a sacrifice fly. Perez, who had already doubled earlier, ripped a ground-rule double before rookie Jac Caglianone capped the rally with a two-run double off Miami starter Janson Junk (4-2).
An inning later, India delivered a two-run double of his own, and Pasquantino added a sacrifice fly, pushing Kansas City’s lead to 6-0. The Royals’ doubles barrage was part of a balanced attack that included five doubles by five different players, underscoring why they entered the day with the fourth-most doubles in the majors (172), trailing only Boston, Arizona, and the Yankees.
Perez provided an exclamation point in the eighth, crushing his 15th home run of the season to left field.
Miami rallied late, scoring four unearned runs in the ninth after Andrew Hoffmann struggled, but closer Carlos Estévez came on to record the final out and earn his 26th save. Xavier Edwards and Agustín Ramírez each had two RBIs for the Marlins, who fell to 21-11 since June 13.
The win keeps Kansas City in the thick of the American League Central race, while the Marlins look to quickly regroup as they continue their homestand.
The Royals, who rank among the league leaders in doubles, collected five more on Sunday, including pivotal two-run doubles from Caglianone and India.
Miami sends Eury Pérez (3-2, 3.18 ERA) to the mound Monday night against the San Diego Padres. Kansas City travels to Chicago, where Noah Cameron (3-4, 2.31 ERA) is scheduled to face the Cubs.
