KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Jakob Junis carried a no-hit bid into the seventh inning, the Royals scored more runs than they had in their last six games combined, and Kansas City routed the Seattle Mariners 10-0 on Monday night.

Junis (2-0) hit three batters and walked two, but the quick-working right-hander did not allow a hit until Daniel Vogelbach’s grounder up the middle with one out in the seventh.

Junis finished up the inning without any more trouble, running his scoreless streak to 14 innings to start the season. He was given a standing ovation when his night was done by the announced crowd of 12,324, most of whom promptly filed out with temperatures just above freezing.

By that point, everybody in the Royals lineup but Drew Butera had scored off Marco Gonzales (1-1) and the Seattle bullpen — and all the catcher had done was drive in a couple of runs.

Mike Moustakas homered in the eighth off infielder Taylor Motter as Seattle saved its `pen.

Gonzalez allowed four runs, eight hits and a walk for the Mariners while retiring seven batters, and reliever Casey Lawrence promptly allowed five more runs while getting five more outs.

Kansas City’s offensive outburst on a cold, blustery night came out of nowhere. The club had been held to a single run in four of its previous five games, and two runs in the other. The Royals hadn’t scored more than three runs in a game since a season-opening 14-7 loss to the White Sox.

They had three runs in the first inning alone Monday night.

They tacked on another in the third before a five-spot in the fifth, a half-inning that lasted so long it was a wonder Junis didn’t cool off — or freeze entirely — while sitting in the dugout.

Instead, he trotted back out and worked a four-pitch sixth inning that lasted about 2 minutes in real time. And after he finally yielded a single to Vogelbach in the seventh, Junis struck out Guillermo Heredia and got Ichiro Suzuki to fly out to cap his dominant performance.

Seattle finished with two hits and left five runners on base.

MARINERS MOVES

1B Ryon Healy flew back to Seattle on Monday to meet with Dr. Edward Khalfayan and review an MRI of his ankle, which he hurt Saturday during a postgame workout. Healy was put on the DL retroactive to Sunday and RHP Chasen Bradford was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Mariners: DH Nelson Cruz (sprained right ankle) and C Mike Zunino (left oblique strain) resumed baseball activities Monday, and both could be back this weekend. OF Ben Gamel (right oblique strain) is getting at-bats at Tacoma and is also close to returning.

Royals: C Salvador Perez (left knee sprain) hit and ran bases for the first time prior to the game, and reported feeling “pretty good.” Manager Ned Yost said his All-Star could be back early in the four-to-six-week timeframe that was given when Perez got hurt just before opening day.

UP NEXT

Royals LHP Eric Skoglund makes his season debut against RHP Felix Hernandez as the three-game set continues Tuesday night. Skoglund has not pitched in a game since an exhibition March 17, thanks to rain outs and postponements that have wrecked the Royals’ early schedule.

— Associated Press —

CLEVELAND (AP) — Yan Gomes hit a tiebreaking two-run homer off Brandon Maurer in the ninth inning, lifting the Cleveland Indians to a 3-1 win over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday in the coldest game in Progressive Field history.

Gomes drove a 3-2 pitch barely over the 19-foot wall in left field, ending another tough day for Cleveland’s offense on a high note. Gomes was mobbed by his teammates at home plate after just the fourth hit of the day for the Indians.

Maurer (0-2) walked Yonder Alonso with one out before Gomes connected for his second homer. Cody Allen (1-0) worked the ninth for the win.

The game-time temperature was 32 degrees, the lowest in the 25-year history of the ballpark.

Jon Jay’s run-scoring triple put Kansas City in front in the fifth, but the Indians pushed across an unearned run in the eighth without registering a hit.

Bradley Zimmer led off with a walk and swiped second. He advanced to third on Francisco Lindor’s sacrifice.

Zimmer stayed at third when Jason Kipnis reached on a throwing error by reliever Justin Grimm. But Jose Ramirez followed with a check-swing dribbler, bringing home Zimmer with the tying run. Ramirez was originally ruled safe on Grimm’s wide throw to first, but the call was overturned after a review.

Cleveland hadn’t scored since the first inning of Friday’s 3-2 win. Lucas Duda’s seventh-inning homer gave Kansas City a 1-0 victory on Saturday.

Cleveland’s Mike Clevinger allowed one run in 7 1/3 innings while Kansas City starter Jason Hammel pitched six innings of three-hit ball.

Zimmer denied the Royals a run in the third when he threw Jay out at home on Mike Moustakas’ single. Jay drew a two-out walk and took second on Whit Merrifield’s single.

Kansas City right fielder Jorge Soler snapped a 0-for-34 skid dating to last season with three hits.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: Duda (right hamstring tightness) served as the designated hitter for the third straight game.

Indians: RF Lonnie Chisenhall (strained right calf) is expected to be sidelined for four to six weeks. The injury is similar to the one that caused him to miss nearly two months last season. OF Tyler Naquin was recalled from Triple-A Columbus.

UP NEXT

Royals: RHP Jakob Junis (1-0, 0.00 ERA) takes on Seattle on Monday in the opener of a three-game series at Kauffman Stadium.

Indians: RHP Corey Kluber (0-1, 2.40 ERA), the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, faces the Tigers as Cleveland continues its 10-game homestand.

— Associated Press —

CLEVELAND (AP) — Trevor Bauer felt the rules beat him before the Royals did.

Bauer allowed Lucas Duda’s homer on his first pitch in the seventh inning for the game’s only run and Ian Kennedy pitched six shutout innings, leading Kansas City to a 1-0 win over the Cleveland Indians on Saturday in frigid, football-like weather conditions.

Duda’s shot off Bauer (0-1) was one of only three hits by Kansas City and a rare highlight as the two teams survived nine innings with the temperature hovering around freezing.

But afterward, Bauer complained that he didn’t have enough time to warm up following the sixth inning. In an attempt to speed up play this season, Major League Baseball has cut the time between innings from 2 minutes, 25 seconds to 2:05.

“First pitch of the inning, coming out, I tried to get loose, but with the new [commissioner] Rob Manfred time [nonsense], we have only a certain amount of time between innings, it’s hard to get loose sometimes, especially in conditions like that. It’s not safe, but, whatever.”

Bauer said at one point plate umpire Will Little told him to speed up and he refused.

“I was like, ‘Look, I’ll take the fine if I need to, but I’m not going to put myself at risk and I’m not going to put the team at risk of me having exactly what happened happen,'” Bauer said. “Throw a pitch that you’re not ready to compete on because you’re still trying to get loose and it gets hit over the fence, and we lose because of it — not because of it, but it was a contributing factor.”

Bauer said the elements — temperatures were in the low 30s — made everything difficult.

“Since I don’t cheat like a lot of guys and put stuff on my hand, just grab the ball and throw it, my pitches were somewhat inconsistent,” said Bauer, who allowed only three hits in eight innings. “It’s like a cue ball. It slips out of your hand. But, it is what it is. It’s worse for the hitters. I was looking forward to it. I thought I pitched pretty well overall.”

So did Kennedy (1-0), who allowed four hits, walked none and struck out eight. The right-hander was only in trouble once but worked out of the sixth-inning jam. Blaine Boyer and Justin Grimm pitched an inning apiece before closer Kelvin Herrera worked a perfect ninth for his second save.

The temperature for the first pitch was 34, one degree above the coldest start to a game in the 25-year history of Progressive Field. Players on both teams bundled up, with several wearing hoods under their caps to try to stay warm.

“The ball feels like it’s an ice cube when it gets thrown to you,” Kennedy said. “For me it was probably my body, trying to keep it warm. You start to get a little cold at the end of the game. Your flexibility starts to die down a little bit. That was the main thing, heat packs, anything to stay warm.”

The Indians came in with an AL-low .157 batting average and stayed as chilly at the plate as the unseasonably cold April. Cleveland hasn’t scored in 17 innings.

Limited to one hit through six innings by Bauer, the Royals got the one run they needed on Duda’s second homer, a rocket into the seats in right field.

Duda jumped on Bauer’s 90 mph fastball and drove it over the wall for Kansas City’s first run since the Royals scored two in the first inning Friday. Duda has both of Kansas City’s homers this season.

CHISENHALL HURT

Indians right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall is likely headed to the disabled list with a right calf injury. He got hurt while making a running catch in the first and was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the second.

Chisenhall missed nearly two months last season with a strained right calf.

Manager Terry Francona indicated Tyler Naquin will be recalled from Triple-A Columbus. He was optioned to the minors Friday when Michael Brantley was activated.

K FOR KENNEDY

Kennedy has struck at least one batter in each of his 271 career appearances. He’s tied with Boston’s David Price for the longest such streak among active pitchers.

STRIKE UP THE BAND

Indians DH Yonder Alonso got an early birthday present as his family and a few teammates arranged for a mariachi band to play in the clubhouse before the game. Alonso, who turns 31 on Sunday, even busted out some dance moves while being serenaded.

“They didn’t make me dance, but I just can’t help it,” Alonso said. “I’m from Miami. I’m a Cuban guy. So, it’s just kind of in the blood.”

UP NEXT

Cleveland’s Mike Clevinger is 3-0 with a 2.42 ERA in four career starts against the Royals, who will go with right-hander Jason Hammel in the series finale. Hammel went 3-2 in five starts against the Indians last season.

— Associated Press —

CLEVELAND (AP) — Michael Brantley singled home two runs in his first at-bat this season and Carlos Carrasco worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth, leading the Cleveland Indians to a 3-2 win in their chilly home opener over the Kansas City Royals on Friday.

Brantley missed Cleveland’s first six games while on the disabled list recovering from offseason ankle surgery. But just hours after being activated, the two-time All-Star delivered in the first inning against Danny Duffy (0-2), who managed to hang around until the sixth.

Following devastating finishes in the past two postseasons, the Indians are hoping this is the year they end their 70-year World Series title drought, baseball’s longest.

Brantley is a major part of their plans, but he needs to stay healthy after being limited to 101 games the past two seasons due to injuries.

Carrasco (2-0) gave up two runs in the first inning, but settled in. The right-hander retired 13 straight before running into trouble in the sixth, when the Royals loaded the bases on two singles and a one-out intentional walk.

But Carrasco struck out Lucas Duda looking at a 3-2 pitch and retired Cheslor Cuthbert on a liner to left.

Nick Goody worked the seventh, Andrew Miller put on two runners then struck out the side in the eighth, and Cody Allen pitched the ninth for his second save.

The Indians, who didn’t hit while blowing a 2-0 lead to New York in the AL Division Series last October, came in batting a league-low .161. They only got four hits, but that was enough thanks to Carrasco and their top-flight bullpen.

The Royals dropped to 3-16 in Cleveland since May 8, 2016.

Down 2-0 in the first, the Indians benefited from Duffy’s early wildness to score three times.

The left-hander, possibly bothered by the bitter, blustery weather conditions, walked Francisco Lindor and Jason Kipnis before Jose Ramirez dribbled an RBI single through the middle.

After Duffy’s third walk of the inning, this one to slugger Edwin Encarnacion, Brantley dropped a two-run single into right, a satisfying moment for the 30-year-old who has spent the past two seasons battling back from shoulder and ankle injuries.

The Royals scored twice in the first on an RBI groundout by Mike Moustakas and Duda’s broken-bat RBI single, which came after he inadvertently flung another bat into the netting behind home plate.

WELCOME BACK

Rajai Davis received a huge ovation from Cleveland’s fans during pregame introductions. Davis, who hit a game-tying homer in the eighth inning of Game 7 in the 2016 World Series, re-signed with the club this winter.

Davis doubled in three at-bats.

CHILLING OUT

The Royals have played a league-low five games, thanks to weather postponements against the White Sox and Tigers. But manager Ned Yost isn’t fretting about their erratic workload. “You can’t do anything to change it, so it’s as difficult as you want to make it,” he said. “You just try to go with the flow the best you can.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: Duda (right hamstring tightness) returned to the lineup after missing one game. Yost said he will serve as the designated hitter all weekend.

Indians: Brantley’s workload will be closely monitored before he plays regularly. Manager Terry Francona said the Indians will use a “common sense” approach with Brantley, who has been limited to 101 games over the past two seasons.

UP NEXT

Kansas City RHP Ian Kennedy (0-0, 1.50 ERA) takes on Cleveland RHP Trevor Bauer (0-0, 3.60 ERA) in the second game of the series Saturday. Kennedy is winless in his last five starts against the Indians. Bauer pitched five innings in his first start.

— Associated Press —

DETROIT (AP) – The Kansas City Royals celebrated as if they had won a game.

They cheered Wednesday morning when their scheduled game against the Detroit Tigers was postponed due to inclement weather. The game will be made in a day-night doubleheader on April 20.

“It’s perfect news,” Royals shortstop Alcides Escobar said. “It’s not easy to play in this weather. Everybody saw what happened in the last game.”

With a postponement looming as a possibility, Kansas City breezed to its first victory of the season on a chilly, rainy Tuesday. The Royals beat the Tigers 1-0 in 2 hours, 17 minutes.

“It’s really hard for the hitters,” Escobar said. “The ball doesn’t go anywhere even if it you hit it hard. Nobody wants to play like that.”

“The teams in the AL Central they should start on the West or South side where it is hot.”

— Associated Press —

DETROIT (AP) — With another postponement looming as a possibility, Jakob Junis and the Kansas City Royals breezed to their first victory of the season.

Junis took a shutout into the eighth inning, and the Royals beat the Detroit Tigers 1-0 on Tuesday. On a chilly, rainy day — with snow a possibility on Wednesday — Kansas City and Detroit played nine innings in 2 hours, 17 minutes.

The Royals were the last team in the American League to earn their first win. They already had one game called off because of the weather, on Sunday at home against the White Sox. This one had the potential to be dicey, but although some light rain had fans leaving the lower bowl of seats in the third inning, there were no delays.

“At the beginning, the wind was blowing right in my face, but that kind of helped me out a little bit, to get some more movement on my pitches,” Junis said. “Later in the game it still wasn’t great, but at least the wind had died down a little bit. I pitched in a lot of that type of stuff back in high school, being from Illinois.”

The temperature at game time was 40 degrees.

“Those conditions out there are miserable for everybody,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “When it’s misty like that it helps you a little bit, because you get a little bit of moisture on your fingers. When it’s super ice cold, the ball feels like you’re throwing an ice cube.”

Jorge Soler, who still doesn’t have a major league hit since July 2, drove in the game’s only run with a sacrifice fly in the second.

Junis (1-0) allowed three hits in seven-plus innings . The 25-year-old right-hander walked one and struck out six before being lifted following Mikie Mahtook’s leadoff single in the eighth.

Justin Grimm finished the inning, and Kelvin Herrera struck out two in a perfect ninth for his first save.

Matthew Boyd (0-1) was sharp for the Tigers, allowing a run and four hits in six innings. A native of Mercer Island, Washington, Boyd said he, too, has some experience with conditions like this.

“I think I had an advantage, because I grew up pitching in weather like this,” he said. “In my opinion, it is much easier to pitch in this weather than to hit in it.”

The only run came after Cheslor Cuthbert led off the second and let go of the bat while swinging. The result was a flare that dropped over first baseman Miguel Cabrera and bounced down the line. By the time Cabrera retrieved the ball, Cuthbert had a double. He went to third on a flyout and scored on Soler’s flyball.

Soler went 0 for 2 and is hitless in his last 31 at-bats in the majors.

Cabrera struck out with two on in the third, and the Tigers missed a scoring chance in the fourth when James McCann hit what looked at first like a clean line drive up the middle. Second baseman Whit Merrifield was shifted over, however, and made the diving catch — then doubled Nicholas Castellanos off first .

SMOOTH

Detroit SS Jose Iglesias made a diving stop on Cuthbert’s grounder in the ninth, the start of a nifty 6-4-3 double play that helped the Tigers stay within a run.

“That’s a great play, especially in this weather,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “It’s wet, so the ball is skipping on you, and then you’ve got to make a toss without a dry grip.”

ZIMMER’S STATUS

The Royals requested unconditional release waivers on RHP Kyle Zimmer, who was designated for assignment March 29.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: 1B Lucas Duda sat out after leaving Monday’s game with right hamstring tightness.

Tigers: Gardenhire said RHP Mike Fiers (lumbar strain) felt good after throwing around 80 pitches Monday at the team’s spring training facility in Florida.

UP NEXT

Detroit’s Daniel Norris faces Kansas City’s Danny Duffy (0-1) on Wednesday, weather permitting.

— Associated Press —

DETROIT (AP) — Ron Gardenhire’s first win with the Detroit Tigers came courtesy of a couple other grizzled veterans.

Francisco Liriano pitched into the seventh inning in his Detroit debut and Victor Martinez drove in three runs to give the Tigers a 6-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on a chilly Monday.

Gardenhire won 1,068 games as Minnesota’s manager from 2002-14. This is his first year at the helm in Detroit.

“I know what this city’s all about, I know what this team’s all about, so I’m very proud to be a part of it,” Gardenhire said. “Now I’m in their history books. I got one win.”

The temperature was in the mid-30s at Comerica Park for a matchup between the last two winless teams in the American League. Some fans came dressed in Michigan winter gear — the Wolverines played Villanova hours later in the NCAA men’s basketball championship game.

Liriano (1-0) allowed a run and four hits in 6 2/3 innings. The 34-year-old lefty, signed as a free agent in February, struck out three and walked two while throwing 94 pitches.

The Tigers scored four runs in the fifth, with Martinez delivering a two-run single off Jason Hammel (0-1).

“The third time through the order, they started finding holes,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “We had them played right and he was making decent pitches, but it didn’t work out.”

Kansas City took a 1-0 lead in the third on a sacrifice fly by Drew Butera, but Detroit tied it in the bottom half on an RBI single by Miguel Cabrera.

The Tigers broke open the game in the fifth. With one out, Leonys Martin singled and Jeimer Candelario doubled. After an intentional walk to Cabrera loaded the bases, Nicholas Castellanos hit a soft line drive to left for a run-scoring single.

Then Martinez added his two-run single , and James McCann’s grounder brought Castellanos home and made it 5-1.

Martinez added a sacrifice fly in the seventh.

Hammel allowed five runs and seven hits in five innings. He had the second-lowest run support among qualifying AL pitchers last season, and this game was more of the same.

“This was a maddening game,” Hammel said. “We had a good game plan, we executed it and I felt great out there, but we come out of it with a loss. It’s frustrating.”

Detroit lost its season opener Friday after the Tigers had the winning run taken away by a replay review against Pittsburgh. On Monday, they initially appeared to have turned a game-ending double play, but that was also overturned by a review. Detroit was nonetheless able to close out the victory without incident.

BATTLING THE ELEMENTS

The temperature at game time was 36 degrees, but Liriano didn’t seem too bothered.

“I missed a couple pitches because of that. Was hard for me to get a good grip on the ball, and kind of slippery,” Liriano said. “You have to find a way to stay warm and have some good grip on the ball.”

QUIET OFFENSE

Kansas City managed only five hits on the day. Designated hitter Jorge Soler went 0 for 3 and is now hitless in his last 29 at-bats in the majors. His most recent big league hit came July 2.

ROYALS ROSTER

The Royals claimed outfielder Abraham Almonte off waivers from Cleveland. The 28-year-old hit .233 with three homers and 14 RBI in 69 games last season. The switch-hitter, who has also played for Seattle and San Diego, was sent to Triple-A Omaha. Kansas City designated right-handed pitcher Miguel Almonte for assignment.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: 1B Lucas Duda left the game in the seventh with right hamstring tightness.

Tigers: OF Victor Reyes, who left Sunday night’s game against Pittsburgh with a lacerated forearm, did not play Monday.

UP NEXT

Detroit LHP Matthew Boyd (6-11, 5.27 ERA last year) takes the mound Tuesday against Royals RHP Jakob Junis (9-3, 4.30). Boyd went 4-0 with a 3.42 ERA in spring training.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The season-opening series finale between the Kansas City Royals and Chicago White Sox was postponed Sunday with snow in the afternoon forecast and temperatures struggling to reach the freezing mark.

The game will be made up as part of a day-night doubleheader on April 28. The makeup game will begin at 1:15 p.m. and the original game will be moved back an hour to 7:15 p.m.

The White Sox won the opener Thursday with a six-homer barrage in a 14-7 rout, then rallied in the eighth inning for a 4-3 victory over their AL Central rivals on Saturday night.

Chicago continues its season-opening road trip Monday night in Toronto, while Kansas City departs for its own six-game road trip beginning Monday in Detroit.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Most days, Tim Anderson’s performance would have made him the star.

Matt Davidson showed up his Chicago White Sox teammate.

The young designated hitter became the fourth player in major league history to homer three times on opening day , while Anderson had to settle for just two of Chicago’s six home runs , and the White Sox pounded the Kansas City Royals 14-7 on Thursday to spoil their 50th anniversary celebration.

“I just couldn’t catch him,” Anderson said with a smile.

Of the four players with three-homer opening days, three have done it against the Royals, while the six homers by Chicago on opening day matched the big league record set by the Mets in 1988.

Jose Abreu also went deep for the White Sox, who picked up James Shields (1-0) in a big way after the former Royals ace surrendered four runs in the first inning. Shields wound up lasting six innings, holding Kansas City without a hit after that shaky first.

Yolmer Sanchez added a three-run single and Yoan Moncada drove in a pair of runs for the White Sox, who forced Royals manager Ned Yost to burn through nine pitchers.

“The boys did an unbelievable job hitting today. It was amazing to watch,” Shields said. “I told them, `You don’t see that many home runs at Kauffman Stadium this early in the year.”

Danny Duffy (0-1) breezed through three innings for Kansas City, but a trio of homers in a five-run fourth ruined his day. The left-hander survived the inning before hitting the clubhouse.

“I think they were heater-hunting,” Duffy said. “One inning, I gave up three homers. Not ideal.”

Despite a cold rain and steel-gray skies, the Royals looked early on as if they would reward the hardy fans who turned out to celebrate the start of their golden anniversary season.

Longtime third baseman Mike Moustakas, who signed a one-year deal during spring training, provided an RBI single in the first before new first baseman Lucas Duda hit a three-run homer to right.

Everything unraveled when the fourth inning began.

Abreu led off a homer binge with a two-run shot , Davidson followed with his first home run , and Anderson added his first two batters later . By the time Moncada added an RBI double off Duffy later in the fourth inning, Chicago had turned a four-run hole into a 5-4 advantage.

“We did the same thing to Shields that they did to Danny in the fourth. We jumped him early,” Yost said. “He was making pitches we could drive and after the first inning really just reeled it back in and pitched a great game.”

Davidson and Anderson went deep again in the fifth off Royals reliever Blaine Boyer, and Sanchez tacked on a bases-clearing single off Burch Smith with two outs in the seventh.

Davidson capped his big game with a three-run homer off Brian Flynn in the eighth , becoming the first White Sox player with a three-homer game since Dan Johnson in October 2012.

“Special day in anybody’s book,” White Sox manager Rick Renteria said. “Just in general, I thought it was a nice start. We fell behind early and that seemed to matter not to any of the guys.”

MORE HOMER NEWS

Davidson and Anderson are the eighth set of teammates with multi-homer days on opening day. The previous was Toronto’s Shannon Stewart and Tony Batista on April 3, 2000, against Kansas City. … The only other White Sox players to have multihomer games on opening day are Alejandro De Aza (2014), Jim Thome (2008), Sammy Sosa (1991) and Minnie Minoso (1960). … The others to homer three times on opening day were Detroit’s Dmitri Young (2005), the Cubs’ Tuffy Rhodes (1994) and Toronto’s George Bell (1988).

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: C Salvador Perez (left knee sprain), RHP Nate Karns (right elbow inflammation), INF Adalberto Mondesi (right shoulder impingement) and OF Bubba Starling (left oblique strain) were placed on the DL before the game. Perez is expected to miss 4-6 weeks, though Karns could be back soon.

White Sox: Hard-throwing LHP Carlos Rodon (left shoulder rehab) and C Kevan Smith (sprained left ankle) were placed on the DL retroactive to Monday.

MORE MOVES

The Royals also designated for assignment pitchers Wily Peralta and Ryan Zimmer, selected the contracts of INF Ryan Goins and RHP Blaine Boyer and recalled C Cam Gallagher from Triple-A Omaha. The White Sox selected the contract of LHP Hector Santiago.

UP NEXT

The teams are off Friday before resuming their series this weekend. The White Sox will send RHP Lucas Giolito the mound Saturday night while the Royals counter with RHP Ian Kennedy.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Talk about carrying some baggage into the season.

Kansas City will be without Salvador Perez for up to six week after the star catcher sprained the medial collateral in his left knee while carrying a suitcase up some stairs in his home.

The injury occurred Tuesday night, when the Royals returned to Kansas City from spring training. The five-time All-Star heard a “pop” and immediately called Royals trainer Nick Kenney, who advised Perez to ice the knee and come in for an MRI exam on Wednesday.

The exam revealed a Grade 2 sprain with a minor tear of the ligament.

No surgery is required, and recovery can be as little as four weeks. But the freak injury leaves the Royals without one of their top hitters when they open against the White Sox on Thursday.

“Hopefully,” Royals manager Ned Yost said, “it’s shorter than longer.”

Perez was wearing a bulky, black brace on his knee when he arrived at Kauffman Stadium for the club’s final preseason workout Wednesday. Later, he told reporters what irked him most about the injury is it happened at home, rather than in the midst of competition.

“All the work I do, training in the offseason, I feel sad,” he said.

Making it even more depressing was the fact that Perez, coming off one of the best seasons of his career, had been on a tear throughout the spring. He appeared in 16 games and hit .350 with six homers and 11 RBIs in only 40 at-bats during the Cactus League schedule.

He hit .268 with career-bests of 27 homers and 80 RBIs last season.

The Royals were counting on having his bat in the lineup after losing run-producers Eric Hosmer and Lorenzo Cain in free agency. And while they addressed some of the power loss by signing outfielder Jon Jay, first baseman Lucas Duda and re-signing third baseman Mike Moustakas — who set the franchise single-season home run record last season — it still hurts to lose Perez’s bat in the lineup.

Yost said after a rainy workout Wednesday that he expects Drew Butera, the club’s backup a year ago, and promising youngster Cam Gallagher to share catching duties in Perez’s place.

Butera hit .227 with three homers and 14 RBIs in 75 games last season, his third with the Royals, while Gallagher hit .250 with a homer and five RBIs in 13 games as a late-season call-up.

The Royals begin the season against former pitcher James Shields and the White Sox, then get Friday off before games Saturday and Sunday to wrap up a three-game set. Then they go on the road for three games in Detroit and Cleveland before returning home for a seven-game homestand.

— Associated Press —