KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kris Bubic went seven strong innings, Hunter Dozier and MJ Melendez had late-inning RBI and the Kansas City Royals beat Tampa Bay 4-2 on Sunday, winning a series against the Rays for the first time in five years.
Dozier snapped a 2-all tie with two outs in the seventh when he singled off Brooks Raley (1-1) to score Whit Merrifield. Melendez added an insurance run with a double down the left-field line in the eighth.
The Royals overcame the loss of Bobby Witt Jr. for their first series win against the Rays since 2017. They broke an 11-series losing streak to the American League East.
Bubic (2-6) tied with a season high by pitching seven innings. He gave up two runs on four hits, walked three and struck out four.
For the second straight game, the Royals lost a lead but found some timely hits late to prevail.
Witt hit an RBI single in the first inning, but exited the game before the next half-inning even started. The 22-year-old rookie stole second but then gingerly ran to third on a fly ball to center field and was removed with right hamstring tightness. He is considered day to day.