KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Jorge Soler thought his spectacular diving catch in the ninth inning that helped preserve the Kansas City Royals’ 4-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers trumped his go-ahead single the previous inning.

Maybe that was because the young outfielder’s defense has been so maligned early in his career.

Or maybe it was because he got to the foul ball before the ballboy.

You see, the Tigers had taken a 2-0 lead in the top half of the eighth when the ballboy down the first-base line mistakenly picked up a fair ball, resulting in a ground-rule double. Royals reliever Blaine Boyer (1-0) walked Victor Martinez before serving up JaCoby Jones’ hard-hit double to left field.

But the Royals’ answered when Francisco Liriano, who was stingy all night, walked Cheslor Cuthbert to start the eighth. Liriano was lifted for Daniel Stumpf (1-1), who gave up a pair of singles and was yanked for reliever Joe Jimenez, who promptly threw a wild pitch to score a run.

Whit Merrifield knotted the game moments later with a sacrifice fly, and Soler’s single through the left side of the infield brought home two runs — and gave that embarrassed ballboy a bit of relief.

“I didn’t think it was going to impact the game,” said Royals manager Ned Yost said of the boy’s flub, reasoning it would have been a double anyway. “At least he was awake.”

Royals closer Kelvin Herrera worked a perfect ninth for his sixth save, though the highlight was Soler tracking down that fly ball along the wall and making a dramatic diving grab.

“I was in a little bit and I saw the line drive toward the wall,” Soler said through a translator. “I actually worked on that particular play (before the game). The dive and catch.”

The collapse by the Detroit bullpen squandered a stellar outing by Liriano, who gave up a run on three hits and two walks. It also added to the misery that began before the game, when the Tigers had to put slugger Miguel Cabrera on the disabled list with a strained right hamstring.

“It’s disappointing. It’s bothersome because we had some good performances,” Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said. “It was a great pitching matchup. Both starting pitchers did their thing. You score like that and that shutdown inning has got to come next and we didn’t get it.”

The Royals’ Ian Kennedy was also sharp, facing the minimum through three innings before leaving runners stranded on the corners in the fourth. He allowed back-to-back singles leading off the fifth before striking out the side, then left two more runners at the corners to wrap up the sixth inning.

He left after throwing 103 pitches, allowing six hits and striking out seven with a single walk.

Liriano was even better at escaping jams, though. He got double plays to end the third, fourth and fifth innings, the last of them after a review that confirmed Lucas Duda out at first base, and then set the Royals down in order the next two innings before turning it over to his ragged bullpen.

“Get the first guy out and I didn’t do that,” Liriano said. “We lost the game.”

REPLAY RECORD

Royals replay official Bill Duplissea improved to 9 for 9 on the season when he correctly challenged a call in the seventh inning. The Tigers’ James McCann was called safe while stealing second base, but the Royals correctly argued that he had slid through the bag while the tag was applied.

CABRERA TO DL

Gardenhire hopes Cabrera, who was hitting .323 with three homers and 21 RBI in 26 games, returns quickly but conceded “only time will tell.” Detroit recalled C Grayson Greiner from Triple-A Toledo to fill his roster spot. John Hicks will get the majority of time at 1B while Cabrera is out.

OTHER MOVES

Detroit also selected the contract of LHP Blaine Hardy from Toledo after optioning LHP Chad Bell on Thursday night. … The Royals optioned RHP Scott Barlow to Triple-A Omaha and selected the contract of RHP Jason Adam from the Storm Chasers. Adam was a fifth-round pick of the Royals from nearby Blue Valley Northwest High School. He was traded to Minnesota in 2014 and also spent time with San Diego, undergoing four surgeries before returning to Kansas City this past offseason.

UP NEXT

Tigers RHP Jordan Zimmermann has not allowed more than three earned runs in any of his first five starts, two of them having come against Kansas City. He starts Saturday against Royals RHP Jason Hammel.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Ned Yost was happy to see Jorge Soler’s pitch recognition sharpen, slugging first baseman Lucas Duda produce some timely hits and Alex Gordon’s long-awaited breakout continue for at least another day.

For once, the Royals manager had plenty of reasons to praise his offense.

Duda finished with three hits and drove in four, and Soler and Gordon went deep along with catcher Salvador Perez as Kansas City outscored the Detroit Tigers 10-6 on Thursday to open their four-game series.

Everyone in the starting lineup had at least one hit except for Cheslor Cuthbert, and he came within a couple feet of a home run in the seventh inning. Kansas City finished with 13 hits in all.

“Every point in the game there were big homers,” Yost said after a rare scoring outburst. “We knew it was only a matter of time before we got on track.”

Chad Bell (0-1) allowed five runs in 1 2/3 innings in relief of Mike Fiers to take the loss, though nobody on the mound was very effective. Bell was optioned out after the game.

“I put my team behind early and I just kept giving up runs throughout the game,” Fiers said. “There’s got to be a time where I start making better pitches when we need it.”

Eric Skoglund likewise struggled for Kansas City, but Kyle McCarthy (3-0) wiggled out of a key sixth-inning jam before pitching a clean seventh to earn the victory.

“Just wasn’t able to stay ahead and they had some quality at-bats,” Skoglund said. “I can’t be any prouder of these guys. They absolutely competed and put up runs for me.”

Nick Castellanos homered and had three hits for Detroit, while slugging designated hitter Miguel Cabrera left with a strained hamstring in the sixth inning. He briefly walked through the clubhouse after the game and said he was “fine,” adding that he planned to test it on Friday.

“We’ll have more details as we go along, see how it feels,” Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said. “Miggy was fine with his arm. He ripped the ball. He just started running to first after he hit the one and felt his hammy and strained it, just got him off the field.”

The Tigers and Royals spent most of the afternoon trading stiff jabs.

Kansas City scored two in the first on singles by Duda and Jon Jay, then Detroit scored two in the third on Jeimer Candelario’s double. The Royals answered with two in the bottom half on Perez’s shot to left field, and both teams scored a run in the fourth inning.

Detroit finally knocked Skoglund from the game in the fifth, when Castellanos went deep and Jose Iglesias drove in a run off reliever Scott Barlow to tie it 5-5.

Fiers was gone after five runs and six hits and a walk in four innings, while Skoglund left after allowing five runs and eight hits and three walks in 4 2/3 innings.

Soler pushed the Royals back on top with his soaring homer to left later in the fifth, and they kept pulling away from there. Duda added a bases-loaded, two-out single in the sixth to continue giving Kansas City’s bullpen plenty of support on “School Day at the K.”

“You look up and see all the kids out here, you want to do whatever you can and win ballgames for them,” Yost said. “It got to the point where we could tack on.”

MIGGY LEAVES IN 6TH

Cabrera was trying to advance to second base in the sixth inning when he pulled up and grabbed his right hamstring. The two-time MVP had returned to the lineup Thursday after missing three games with biceps spasms. INF Niko Goodrum replaced him in the lineup. “A hamstring strain is nothing to sneeze about,” Gardenhire said, “so we’ll have to wait and see. We’ll make a decision and let you know.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Tigers: DH Victor Martinez got the day off to rest a swollen ankle. … LHP Daniel Norris (left groin injury) had a muscular decompression procedure Thursday. He’s expected to miss up to 12 weeks.

Royals: 3B Mike Moustakas was in the lineup for the second straight day. He was hit in the forearm by a pitch earlier this week in Boston and missed some time with a nasty bruise.

UP NEXT

RHP Ian Kennedy hopes to get some rare run support from the Royals when he takes the mound Friday night against Detroit. LHP Francisco Liriano will be on the hill for the Tigers.

— Associated Press —

BOSTON (AP) — Mookie Betts heard the name Ted Williams, and that was enough for him.

Betts belted three solo homers and J.D. Martinez also went deep, powering the Boston Red Sox to a 5-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday.

It was the fourth three-homer game for the 25-year-old Betts, snapping a tie with Williams for most three-homer games in franchise history. Betts broke into the majors with the Red Sox in 2014, so he was well aware of the significance of the connection to the Hall of Famer.

“It’s pretty cool,” Betts said. “He hit .400 in a year and did a whole bunch of things I haven’t done. Just to know my name is amongst his is pretty cool.”

Betts also hit three homers in a 10-1 victory at the Angels on April 17. He is the first player in major league history with four three-homer games before turning 26, according to STATS.

“We’re trying to shut them down just to get Mookie another at-bat,” Red Sox starter Drew Pomeranz said, smiling. “When he gets going like that, that’s pretty cool.”

AL East-leading Boston won for the third time in four games after losing 7-6 in 13 innings on Tuesday night.

Cheslor Cuthbert homered for Kansas City, and Drew Butera had a two-run double. The Royals were trying for consecutive wins for just the second time this season.

Danny Duffy (0-4) was tagged for five runs and 10 hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Pomeranz (1-1) worked six innings, giving up all three of his runs in the first two frames. Craig Kimbrel struck out the side in the ninth for his eighth save and 299th of his career a day after his first blown opportunity this season.

Unlike most of the early season games in Fenway Park, there was a summer-like feel with a game-time temperature of 86 degrees under bright-blue skies.

Betts led off the fourth with a drive to center for his ninth homer of the season. Hanley Ramirez walked with one out and Martinez followed with a drive to center, tying it at 3.

“I see Mookie Betts six times a year,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “Going on a six-game look, a special player.”

Betts connected again in the fifth, sending a drive just inside the left-field foul pole into the Green Monster seats. His third homer of the game also came against Duffy, driving a 1-2 pitch over the wall in center in the seventh.

“I’m searching for outs. I’m tired of going out there and getting my butt kicked,” said Duffy, who is winless in his career against the Red Sox.

Kansas City closed to 5-4 on Cuthbert’s homer in the eighth, but Boston finished it off from there.

The umpiring crew had four calls overturned — including two by first-base umpire Fieldin Culbreth.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: 3B Mike Moustakas returned to the starting lineup after just pinch-hitting on Tuesday. He was hit on the right forearm by a pitch in the series opener.

Red Sox: Betts started for the first time since leaving Saturday’s game with a tight right hamstring. … LHP Eduardo Rodriguez was placed on the family medical leave list and RHP Marcus Walden was recalled from Triple-A Pawtucket. Manager Alex Cora doesn’t know if the lefty will miss his turn in the rotation.

GET BACK

The Royals scored a strange run in the first.

With Jorge Soler on second and Whit Merrifield on third and one out, Salvador Perez hit a fly ball near the triangle in center.

Merrifield waved Soler back as he raced home. Soler was doubled up.

Perez was credited with a sacrifice fly because Merrifield crossed before the double play was completed.

ALLOWED BACK

Boston right-hander Joe Kelly returned after serving a six-game suspension for his part in a brawl with the Yankees last month. He pitched one scoreless inning.

UP NEXT

Royals: LHP Eric Skoglund (1-2, 6.23 ERA) starts Thursday afternoon at home against Detroit. He allowed one run in a career-high seven innings in his previous start.

Red Sox: LHP David Price (2-3, 3.78 ERA) starts Thursday night at Texas in the opener of a 10-game trip, tying the club’s longest this season. He is 4-5 with a 5.11 ERA in 14 career starts against the Rangers.

— Associated Press —