Why the KC Royals bats remained silent in Sunday’s series finale against the Baltimore Orioles

The Kansas City Royals received a real test from the Baltimore Orioles this weekend at Kauffman Stadium.

The Orioles deployed their well-balanced offense throughout the three-game series, and the Royals proved up to the challenge…until Sunday.

KC won Friday’s game and nearly clinched a series victory Saturday night, but Baltimore delivered the final blow with a 5-0 victory in the afternoon finale of the series.

The Orioles (14-7) recorded nine hits against Royals starting pitcher Seth Lugo, including back-to-back home runs – the first allowed by Lugo this season – in the third inning.

It was Lugo’s first defeat of the year. He pitched 5 1/3 innings and didn’t have his best command.

Meanwhile, the Royals were shut out by Orioles starter Cole Irvin. He allowed four hits in 6 2/3 innings for this first victory of the season.

KC shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. finished 1 for 4 and first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino extended his hitting streak to 10 games.

The Royals fell to 13-9 and will begin a four-game home series against the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night.

Did you miss the previous games in the series?

Game 1: Michael Massey returns as Royals earn 9-4 win over Orioles

Game 2: Royals fall behind early in 9-7 loss to Orioles

Here are the most notable aspects of Sunday’s game:

Seth Lugo hesitates at the 5th start

The Orioles marked Lugo with hard contact all afternoon. In the third inning, he allowed back-to-back homers to Colton Cowser and Jordan Westburg.

The fifth homer for each player, the two solo shots gave Baltimore a 2-0 lead by traveling 430 and 433 feet, respectively. According to Baseball Savant, Cowser’s home run recorded an exit velocity of 111.5 mph right off the bat.

Lugo threw 60 of 99 pitches for strikes. However, it only generated nine puffs during its release. The Orioles did damage on his fastball and four-seam sinker — Westburg, for example, homered on a 92.4 sinker left over the middle of the plate.

Angel Zerpa relieved Lugo in the sixth inning. Lugo, who entered with a 1.05 ERA, failed to post a quality start for the first time this season.

Royals waste late scoring chance

The Royals had a chance to come back.

In the eighth inning, Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia drew a leadoff walk, then advanced to third base when Pasquantino struck out Orioles reliever Danny Coulombe.

That paved the way for Royals captain Salvador Perez at the plate.

Perez, who entered Sunday’s game with a .342 average this year, had a chance to bring the Royals within one run. He assisted on six pitches against Coulombe, but was struck out on the second out of the inning.

Outfielder Nelson Velazquez was called to hit, but he too was struck out, ending the Royals’ threat. Instead of KC being able to score, the Orioles added an insurance run in the ninth inning.

What’s next on the KC Royals schedule?

The Royals begin a four-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night.

Pitcher Brady Singer will start against Blue Jays left-hander Yusei Kikuchi at Kauffman Stadium. Singer is 2-0 with a 1.54 ERA in four starts this season.

This will be the first meeting between the teams this year. The Blue Jays have won six of their last seven games against the Royals.