Athletics shut out Royals to secure series win

Jacob Lopez allowed three hits and struck out nine across six scoreless innings, and Max Muncy clubbed a two-run homer Saturday, as the visiting Athletics won 4-0 over the scuffling Kansas City Royals, who have lost five straight.
Lawrence Butler also went deep, and Jacob Wilson recorded two hits to raise his average to .369. The A’s took the first two of this set after losing 14 straight on the road. However, the day belonged to Lopez (1-4), who, making his seventh career start over three seasons, yielded two hits to Maikel Garcia, a Salvador Perez single and walked one for his second career quality start.
Having clinched their first winning road series since May 3-5, the A’s are in position to sweep their second away set of 2025.
Michael Lorenzen (5-6) also recorded a quality start while lasting six innings, but gave up three runs, three walks and four hits.
The Royals went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position while being shut out for the eighth time this season and second time in three games. Kansas City, winless on this six-game homestand amid a 10-21 rut while dropping to three games below .500, managed a combined four hits and fanned 12 times versus Lopez, Michael Kelly, and Hogan Harris.
Kansas City has also dropped six consecutive series at home, where it’s lost 13 of 16.
The Royals’ frustrating trend of failing to drive runners home from scoring position continued in the first. Garcia opened with a double that drew chalk from the right-field line but was stranded.
Then, Lorenzen walked Tyler Soderstrom to open the A’s second and Muncy, with four RBIs in the series, followed by lining a slider into his team’s bullpen over the left-field fence for a 2-0 lead.
After Kansas City left runners on second and third in third inning, Soderstrom again walked to lead off the fourth. He then stole second and scored on Luis Urias’ double that reached the left-field wall.
Butler sent a pitch from Daniel Lynch IV over the right-center field wall in the seventh.