Cheslor Cuthbert hit a two-run pinch-hit home run to break a 5-5 tie and highlight a seven-run ninth inning as the Kansas City Royals beat the Minnesota Twins 12-5 Saturday night in Minneapolis.
Cuthbert hit the first pinch-hit homer of his career off reliever Taylor Rogers (2-4), a 364-foot line drive down the left field line, to drive in Ryan O'Hearn who had opened the inning with a single and was sacrificed to second. The Royals would go on to roll up eight hits and two walks while sending 13 batters to the plate in the inning.
O'Hearn homered, doubled and had three hits and three RBIs, Jorge Soler finished with three hits and an RBI, and Ryan McBroom had two hits and scored twice for Kansas City (57-99), which snapped a four-game losing streak. Randy Rosario (2-0) retired one batter to end the eighth and pick up the win.
LaMonte Wade Jr. homered, tripled and scored two runs, and Luis Arraez, Nelson Cruz and Miguel Sano each had two hits and an RBI for Minnesota (95-60) which remained four games ahead of the Cleveland Indians (91-64) in the American League Central with seven games remaining for both clubs. Cleveland lost to Philadelphia 9-4 earlier Saturday night.
Kansas City took a 2-0 lead in the second against Minnesota starter Jose Berrios. Alex Gordon was hit by a pitch and took second on a bloop single by McBroom. O'Hearn then drove in Gordon with a double to right. Meibrys Viloria followed with a sacrifice fly to drive in McBroom.
Minnesota cut it to 2-1 in the third on Wade's second home run of the season, a 416-foot drive into the second deck in right-center.
The Twins then took a 5-2 lead in the fifth. Wade led off with a triple to right-center and then scored on a double by Arraez to tie it, 2-2. After Jorge Polanco walked, Cruz singled in Arraez. Sano made it 4-2 with a single that drove in Polanco and Cruz scored one out later when Adalberto Mondesi misplayed a grounder up the middle by Willians Astudillo for an error.
Kansas City tied it in the sixth on an RBI single by McBroom and O'Hearn's 14th homer of the season, a two-run drive into the second deck in right-center that traveled 426 feet.
--Field Level Media
