MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Twins’ surprising run for a playoff spot came down to the final innings on the next to last day of season.

Minnesota was eliminated from the AL wild-card race Saturday, getting stifled by Yordano Ventura for seven innings in a 5-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals.

Blaine Boyer (3-6) allowed two runs, one earned, while getting two outs for the Twins (83-78), who weren’t expected to contend this season with a young squad led by rookie manager Paul Molitor. But Minnesota began play Saturday two games back of Houston for the second wild-card spot.

“I think you’d have to say that overall, the curtain came down so to speak, but it was a pretty good show,” Molitor said. “Some of the acts were a little sketchy at times and we tried to move on to the next scene. But the body of work was good.”

The Twins tried to keep their performance going but committed two errors in a costly four-run seventh inning. Minnesota loaded the bases in the ninth before Wade Davis struck out Kennys Vargas and Eduardo Escobar for his 17th save in 18 chances.

“All the critics, all the analysts, all the sabermetrics, everything you can name said the Twins were going to be in last place,” outfielder Torii Hunter said. “You’re wrong. We did a great job. I give it a B-plus.”

Ventura (13-8) carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning and struck out 11 to win his third straight decision for the Royals (94-67), who momentarily pulled ahead of Toronto (93-67) for home-field advantage through the postseason. The Blue Jays play at Tampa Bay later Saturday.

“Tomorrow’s going to be a meaningful game,” Kansas City manager Ned Yost said. “We have to do everything we can to try to win tomorrow.”

Ventura, who could be in line to start Game 1 of the division series, lost just once in his final 14 starts of the regular season. He was 9-1 with a 3.03 ERA and 91 strikeouts in 89 innings since a loss on July 20.

“We’ve got him right where we want him, right where he needs to be going into next week,” Yost said. “And I feel like we as a team are right where need to be going into next week too.

TOMORROW FOR TORII

Hunter acknowledged he could be playing his final game on Sunday. The 19-year veteran who started his career with Minnesota in 1997, snapped Ventura’s no-hitter in the fifth and was cheered loudly by the hometown fans in his final at-bats.

Hunter isn’t sure what his future holds. He will be a free agent at the end of the season. Hunter has hit .277 with 353 home runs and 1,391 RBI in his career.

“I don’t know if it’s it,” Hunter said. “I can’t say that. I can’t do the farewell tour and all that stuff. I definitely think that there’s a chance for me to come back. Right now, I don’t know. I don’t know if I’ll make an announcement tomorrow, I don’t know if I’ll make one in January. So, we’ll just have to see. I don’t know.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: Kendrys Morales was available as a pinch hitter but was held out again after he left Thursday’s game with tightness in his left quadriceps.

UP NEXT

Royals: Johnny Cueto (9-13, 4.95) will make the final start of the regular season for Kansas City. Cueto has allowed eight earned runs in his last 20 innings over his last three starts after giving up 28 earned runs in 26 1/3 innings between Aug. 21 and Sept. 13.

Twins: After Minnesota was eliminated, Molitor said RHP Ricky Nolasco (5-1, 5.97) will start Sunday. Kyle Gibson was slated to start if the Twins were still in contention. Nolasco will be making his first start after returning from almost four months on the disabled list. He allowed three runs in two innings of relief on Sept. 30.

— Associated Press —

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Twins clubhouse, clouded so often this season by fog machines for the post-victory dance parties, was crystal clear and eerily quiet following the 160th game on the schedule.

This postseason bid by the upstart Twins took a big hit.

Ben Zobrist hit an RBI double in the eighth inning against struggling All-Star Glen Perkins, and the Kansas City Royals topped the Twins 3-1 on Friday night behind a strong start from Chris Young.

“You can feel it,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “It’s deflating for sure.”

Perkins, hampered by neck and back trouble that led to his removal from the closer role, spoiled a stellar performance by starter Ervin Santana (7-5) with a first-pitch fastball that Zobrist drove off the wall in right-center field. Zobrist then scored when right fielder Torii Hunter fumbled a single by Mike Moustakas, another blemish on an awful second half for Perkins.

“This is a hard one to swallow,” Hunter said.

The Twins began the day one game behind Houston and tied with Los Angeles in the AL wild-card race. With two days left to make up ground this was as devastating a defeat as they’ve had in 2015. The Angels beat Texas to pass the Twins, and the Astros played later at Arizona.

Here the Twins were, playing a game that mattered on Oct. 2, a testament to their resiliency under the rookie manager Molitor this season following four straight years of mostly bad baseball. The paid attendance of 31,534 wasn’t quite a postseason crowd, but there was a palpable energy in the ballpark, with a hearty standing cheer for Santana as he walked off the mound and doffed his cap in the eighth.

“Ervin had his good stuff tonight, man,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “You just knew it was going to be a tight game.”

Young was just as good, giving the defending AL champion Royals another reason to consider the 6-foot-10 right-hander for the postseason rotation. He allowed just an RBI single by Aaron Hicks in the third. The 36-year-old gave up four hits in 6 1/3 innings, retiring 15 out of 16 batters at one point.

In three starts against the Twins this season, Young surrendered just two runs and 11 hits in 18 innings.

“The weather, the sun setting early, it’s a fun time of year,” Young said, “and it’s fun to be a part of it.”

Louis Coleman (1-0), Ryan Madson and Wade Davis wrapped up the win, with Davis notching his 16th save in 17 attempts.

Santana didn’t join the Twins until July 4, due to the positive test for a performance-enhancing drug that made him ineligible for the postseason, but he gave them quite the push down the stretch while most of the rest of the rotation stumbled to the finish. Over his last seven turns, Santana logged 50 innings with a 1.62 ERA while the Twins went 5-2.

Santana only had more than one man on base in the third, when Jarrod Dyson hit a leadoff double and eventually scored on a grounder by Eric Hosmer.

“It was tough. They were pitching very good. Nothing we can do,” Santana said.

BAD AFTER THE BREAK

Perkins, a three-time All-Star who was 28 for 28 in save opportunities in the first half, has allowed at least one earned run in 11 of 22 appearances after the break for a 7.32 ERA.

“We’re all are aware that it’s not coming out quite the same,” Molitor said. “I think physically he’s fine.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: Three banged-up regulars were held out of the lineup, with CF Lorenzo Cain (knee), DH Kendrys Morales (quadriceps) and C Salvador Perez (thumb) on the bench, but Morales entered as a pinch-hitter, Yost said Cain should be ready to play on Saturday, and Perez was rested with the afternoon game next.

Twins: Molitor indicated Santana would be summoned on shortened rest to pitch in a tiebreaker game, which he would be eligible for.

UP NEXT

Royals: RHP Yordano Ventura (12-8, 4.20 ERA) will start on Saturday. He’s 8-1 with a 3.26 ERA and 81 strikeouts in 80 innings over his last 13 turns, and the only loss in that stretch was to the Twins at home on Sept. 7.

Twins: LHP Tommy Milone (9-5, 4.04) will take the mound in the middle game of the series, coming off a critical win at Cleveland on Monday following an 11-day break due to weakness around his shoulder.

— Associated Press —

CHICAGO (AP) — Jonny Gomes drove in three runs, and the banged-up Kansas City Royals moved into a tie with Toronto for the AL’s best record with a 6-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Thursday night.

Kansas City played without outfielders Lorenzo Cain and Alex Rios, and designated hitter Kendrys Morales (left quad tightness) and catcher Salvador Perez (swelling in right thumb) each departed during the game. Cain was sidelined by a sore right knee, and Rios was scratched because of a stiff back.

All four players are day to day, and the AL Central champions held on for their second straight victory against the lowly White Sox. Kris Medlen (6-2) pitched six innings of two-run ball, and Ryan Madson tossed a perfect ninth for his third save.

Kansas City (92-67) finishes the season with three games at Minnesota, while Toronto, which holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Royals, closes with a weekend series at Tampa Bay.

— Associated Press —

CHICAGO (AP) — The Kansas City Royals have home-field advantage in one round of the playoffs. They’re still looking for more.

Eric Hosmer hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the top of the 10th inning, and the Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 5-3 on Wednesday night to clinch home-field advantage in an AL Division Series.

Ben Zobrist singled with one out, and Hosmer drove a pitch from David Robertson (6-5) into the bullpen in right field to give the Royals the lead. For Hosmer, it was his 18th homer of the season.

“It was a huge hit for us,” manager Ned Yost said.

Alex Gordon and Mike Moustakas also homered for Kansas City, which had already clinched the AL Central title. They will host the first two games of their ALDS, and a Game 5 if necessary.

Combined with Toronto splitting its doubleheader in Baltimore, the Royals pulled within a game of the Blue Jays for home-field advantage throughout the AL playoffs. Toronto did win the season series, giving it the tiebreaker over the Royals.

But that’s still the target for the Royals, who came within one victory of winning last year’s World Series.

“As many games as we can get at home as possible, that’s what we want to try and do,” Hosmer said. “Obviously we would like home-field advantage throughout the whole entire postseason but just got to see how that plays out. To have the first round at least at home is definitely big for us.”

The win was a painful one for Kansas City. In the seventh, Lorenzo Cain fouled a pitch from Jose Quintana off his right knee. He remained in the game and grounded out to third but he didn’t make it to first and was replaced in the bottom of the inning.

The Royals said Cain has a right knee contusion and is day-to-day.

Edinson Volquez went six innings, allowed one run and nine hits while striking out five but couldn’t pick up his first win since Sept. 8. Franklin Morales (4-2) pitched a scoreless inning in relief and Wade Davis picked up his 15th save in 16 tries.

Quintana remained winless since Sept. 12 despite going nine innings while allowing three runs and five hits.

“He was great, outstanding, you can use all of them,” Chicago manager Robin Ventura said. “We thought we had a chance there to get him one.”

Chicago gave Quintana a 1-0 lead in the second on Adam Eaton’s run-scoring single. The White Sox had three singles off Volquez in the first and three more in the second but only scored one run.

Gordon led off the third with his 13th home run over the fence in deep left-center field. Moustakas’ two-run homer in the sixth gave Kansas City a 3-1 lead.

Jose Abreu hit his 30th homer in the seventh for Chicago to pull within 3-2. In the eighth, Chicago tied the game with a double by Tyler Flowers when his drive to right off Kelvin Herrera went over Paulo Orlando’s head and bounced over the wall, bringing in Tyler Saladino.

But Robertson couldn’t hold Kansas City in the 10th.

“I just wasn’t able to nail it down there in the 10th and give us another chance to score a run,” Robertson said.

Kansas City, meanwhile, picked up its usually sturdy bullpen.

“It’s not going to happen very often and that’s what good teams do,” Hosmer said. “Just find ways to pick up your teammates.”

BUILDING MOJO

Yost was asked how critical it is for his team to put together some wins heading into the postseason with the Royals entering Wednesday’s game having lost four of five.

“We want to get into the playoffs feeling good and win as many games as we can,” Yost said. “It’s not fun losing ballgames. . It’s important to win, but I don’t think it’s going to have any bearing on how you do in the playoffs because it’s a different animal. But you want to finish as strong as you can.”

HISTORY

Abreu joined Albert Pujols (2001-02) and Ryan Braun (2007-08) as the only players in baseball history to hit 30 or more home runs in each of their first two seasons.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: OF Jarrod Dyson replaced Cain in center field.

White Sox: INF Micah Johnson will have surgery on his left knee Thursday. Ventura said he didn’t have a timetable for when Johnson would return to baseball activities. “It’s not that big a deal but it’s enough to go in and fix it,” Ventura said.

UP NEXT

Kansas City RHP Kris Medlen (5-2, 4.30) faces Chicago LHP John Danks (7-14, 4.53). Medlen is 4-0 with a 1.13 ERA in three starts and eight outings on the road in 2015.

— Associated Press —

CHICAGO (AP) — Eric Hosmer and Kendrys Morales homered and Johnny Cueto threw six quality innings, but the Kansas City Royals lost to the Chicago White Sox 4-2 on Tuesday night.

The Royals, who have lost four of their last five, fell behind 3-0 after Adam Eaton drove a two-run homer into the bullpen in right field off Cueto (10-13) in the fifth inning.

Cueto lost for the third time in his four September outings and gave up three runs and eight hits over six innings. He struck out two and walked two.

Kansas City got within 3-2 in the sixth when Hosmer and Morales hit back-to-back homers off Chicago starter Jeff Samardzija (11-13), who won for the second straight time after losing nine of his 10 previous outings.

The runs were the first the Royals scored in 17 innings during a three-game stretch that included Kansas City being shut out 1-0 in 11 innings by the Chicago Cubs on Monday night.

Coming off a complete-game one hitter against Detroit on Sept. 21, Samardzija scattered eight hits over seven innings to pick up the win, striking out two. The consecutive homers — Kansas City’s first since July 25, 2014 — snapped Samardzija’s string of 14 scoreless innings.

David Robertson pitched the ninth inning for Chicago, which added a run in the eighth on Alexei Ramirez’s RBI double, to earn his 33rd save in 40 opportunities.

The two solo shots were the only offense the Royals could muster. White Sox left fielder Trayce Thompson saved a potential game-tying run in the seventh inning with a diving catch that robbed Ben Zobrist of an extra-base hit that likely would have scored Alcides Escobar, who reached on a two-out single.

The Royals put a runner in scoring position in the eighth, but Chicago third baseman Michael Olt snagged a line drive by Mike Moustakes that appeared headed for left field.

The White Sox took a 1-0 lead in the third inning. Jose Abreu laced a two-out RBI single, scoring Carlos Sanchez, who led off the inning with a walk.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: Morales (bruised right ankle) returned to the starting lineup Tuesday as the DH. Morales did not play Sunday after being hit by a pitch. He pinch-hit on Monday.

UP NEXT

Royals: RHP Edinson Volquez (13-9, 3.65 ERA) will be looking for his first win since Sept. 8 after losing two of his last three starts. He will face White Sox LHP Jose Quintana (9-10, 3.38 ERA) who has taken no-decisions in his last two starts and who has only surrendered three earned runs in September.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City Royals reliever Greg Holland will undergo Tommy John surgery in Los Angeles on Friday.

The two-time American League All-Star had a drop-off on the mound this season, due in part to having pitched with a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. He was shut down last week after pitching in 48 games with a 3.83 ERA and 32 saves.

At the time he was shut down, the team determined that surgery was the likely outcome for Holland, who said the elbow has bothered him since August 2014.

Dr. Neal ElAttrache of the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic will perform Holland’s surgery, an MLB.com report said.

Holland returned to form for the Royals’ surprise run to the AL pennant but resisted an offseason MRI because he wanted to finish last season without knowledge of a potential tear, the report said.

An MRI on Aug. 31 detected the tear, but the 29-year-old wanted to try to pitch through it. He was replaced in the closer role by electric right-hander Wade Davis, who went 8-1 with an 0.97 ERA, 14 saves and 74 strikeouts in 64⅔ innings.

— Associated Press —

CHICAGO (AP) — Chris Denorfia hit a pinch-hit home run leading off the bottom of the 11th inning to give the Chicago Cubs a 1-0 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Monday night.

Denorfia hit the first pitch from reliever Miguel Almonte (0-2) into the left-field bleacher for the Cubs’ major league-leading 13th walk-off victory of the season. It was Denorfia’s third homer of the season.

Fernando Rodney (2-0) pitched a scoreless top of the 11th to get the win.

The homer ended a pitcher’s duel that was a makeup of a May 30 rainout. Both teams combined for eight hits.

Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks allowed just two hits in six scoreless innings. He walked two and tied a career high with nine strikeouts. He was lifted for a pinch hitter in the bottom of the sixth after throwing 90 pitches.

Royals starter Yordano Ventura was perfect through the first five innings, although Kris Bryant hit a drive to straight away center field in the first inning that Lorenzo Cain caught against the ivy reaching up.

The Cubs finally broke through when Jorge Soler led off the sixth with a base hit to center field. Ventura, though, retired the next three batters to end the inning.

The first two Chicago batters reached in the seventh — on a walk and an infield single, but Ventura got Tommy LaStella to ground into a double play and struck out Starlin Castro to end the threat.

Ventura allowed just two hits in seven scoreless innings.

CAL AND CUBS CHARITIES

Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. is set to be on hand Tuesday when the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation opens a multipurpose synthetic turf field on the southwest side of Chicago. The Freedom Field at Marquette Park project, in partnership with Cubs Charities and others, is designed to give inner-city youth a safe place to play and learn. The state-of-the-art facility features a baseball diamond with dugouts and batting cages. This will be the 50th field the Ripken foundation, dedicated to the father of the Orioles great, has built in 16 states in five years.

“When we first started the foundation in memory of Dad, we never imagined it would grow the way it has,” Ripken said.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: RHP Chris Young is expected to rejoin the team by Friday following the death of his father on Saturday. Young threw five innings of no-hit ball on Sunday to get the win against Cleveland.

Cubs: 1B Anthony Rizzo, who had played in 154 of the team’s 155 games before Monday, was given the night off. Manager Joe Maddon said he saw Rizzo laboring and looking fatigued on Sunday.

UP NEXT

Royals: They are staying in Chicago and will open a three-game series with the White Sox on Tuesday. RHP Johnny Cueto (10-12, 3.45 ERA) goes in the opener against Chicago RHP Jeff Samardzija (10-13, 5.04).

Cubs: They head out for a six-game road trip to conclude the regular-season schedule. RHP Dan Haren (9-9, 3.83 ERA) starts the opener of a three-game series at Cincinnati on Tuesday against Reds RHP Josh Smith (0-2, 7.23).

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A day after his father died, Chris Young took the mound and paid tribute the best way he knew how.

Young pitched five no-hit innings in his first start after nearly two months in the bullpen, and the Kansas City Royals beat the Cleveland Indians 3-0 Sunday.

“Today I had the opportunity to honor him, playing the game we both loved alongside of my baseball family,” Young said in a statement that a club spokesman read to the media. “I felt him next to me with every pitch.”

Young caught a flight to Dallas before the game ended.

“Last night he got a call that they had taken his dad to the hospital and he wasn’t doing good,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “About 11:30 to 12 (p.m.), he passed away.”

“Chris was adamant he wanted to pitch today. To go out with that on his heart and throw five innings of no-hit baseball was unbelievable,” he said.

Young (11-6) made his first start since July 28.

After Danny Duffy struck out two in a perfect sixth for the AL Central champion Royals, Ryan Madson took over to work the seventh.

On Madson’s first pitch, Francisco Lindor broke up Kansas City’s no-hit bid with a bunt single.

“We’re not trying to break up a no-hitter. We’re trying to win a game,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “If they have issues with it — I saw (shortstop Alcides) Escobar saying a few things — they can take it up with me. I thought it was a very good bunt.”

Yost had no quarrels with Lindor bunting.

“I was a little bit surprised,” Yost said. “But no, they’re fighting for a wild card.”

Yost said he would’ve been more annoyed if it hadn’t been a combo effort on the no-hit try.

“I just want to win the game and they want to win the game and they’re trying find ways to keep themselves in that wild-card hunt,” Yost said.

Lindor put down a bunt that third baseman Mike Moustakas, who was playing back, picked up with his bare hand about 40 feet from home plate. Moustakas’ one-hop throw to first was not nearly in time.

“I was trying to get on base and make something happen,” Lindor said. “Michael Brantley was coming to home plate, the tying run. I mean that’s big, to get the tying run to the plate. Getting somebody on base when it’s two-nothing, you can change the game like that.”

A day after climbing above .500 for the first time since April 9, the Indians (77-77) fell four games behind Houston (82-74) for the AL’s second wild card with eight games left.

Cleveland’s only previous baserunner before Lindor was Brantley, who walked with two outs in the fourth. Lorenzo Cain tracked down Jose Ramirez’s liner to right-center in the third for the closest thing to a hit off Young.

Brantley followed Lindor’s hit with a walk and, one out later, Lonnie Chisenhall lined out to Madson, who threw to first baseman Eric Hosmer trying for an inning-ending double play. The throw was off line and in the dirt as Brantley eluded Hosmer and got back safely, while Lindor came home.

Kansas City asked for a video review, but after a 71-second delay the call was not overturned — Hosmer tagged Brantley with his glove while the ball was in his throwing hand.

Moustakas claimed Lindor did not tag up before running home. Crew chief Dane DeMuth called for an umpire’s review and, after a 3:27 delay, umpires ruled Lindor left early and was out.

Kelvin Herrera worked a flawless eighth, and Wade Davis gave up a double to Jason Kipnis in the ninth as he finished for his 14th save in 15 chances.

Kansas City took a 2-0 lead in the fourth against Danny Salazar (13-10) when Hosmer hit an RBI double and scored on Moustakas’ groundout. Alex Gordon singled in a run in the seventh.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Indians: Brantley (right shoulder injury) played left after missing the four previous games.

Royals: DH Kendrys Morales sat out with a bruised right ankle after being hit by a pitch Saturday. X-rays were negative.

UP NEXT

Indians: RHP Corey Kluber, who starts Monday against the Twins, is tied for the AL-lead with 15 losses after winning the AL Cy Young Award last year.

Royals: RHP Yordano Ventura will start Monday at Wrigley Field, a makeup of a May 30 rainout against the Cubs.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Back above .500, the Cleveland Indians are focused on getting back to the playoffs.

Carlos Santana drove in three runs, Yan Gomes homered and the Indians beat the Kansas City Royals 9-5 Saturday night to move above .500 for the first time since April 9.

Two years after winning their final 10 games to earn a wild-card berth, the Indians (77-76) have a winning record for the first time since they were 2-1. They remained three games back in the AL wild-card race.

“It was awful difficult, but that can’t be our goal, obviously,” Indians manager Terry Francona said of getting above .500. “But shoot, man, I would be lying if I said it didn’t feel good to get there.

“It needs to be a jumping off point, not a goal. It’s been a lot of hard work those guys have gone into to get us back to kind of being respectable and being in this race. It is good, but we need to go.”

The Royals, who wrapped up the AL Central title with a victory Thursday, fell to 9-15 in September.

They no longer control their own destiny for home-field advantage throughout the AL playoffs. With the loss and the Toronto’s victory over Tampa Bay, the Blue Jays and Royals share the AL’s best record at 89-65. However, Toronto holds the tiebreaker by beating Kansas City in the season series.

“We’ll find out,” manager Ned Yost said when asked how his team will respond with eight games remaining, seven on the road. “We’ll see. I’ve got a lot of confidence in this group. But again, we just worry about ourselves. We’ve got to go out and win baseball games. That’ll take care of everything.”

Indians relievers Zach McAllister (4-4), Jeff Manship, Kyle Crockett and Bryan Shaw held the Royals hitless over the final 5 1/3 innings.

“All we can do is win,” said Manship, who retired all six batters he faced. “We can’t pay attention to what else is going on. We kind of can, but at the same point if we’re not winning games it doesn’t even matter. If we can win out from here on out and see what happens. We’ve just got to keep playing how we are.”

Santana hit a two-run triple in the first and drove home another run in the three-run sixth with a fielder’s choice grounder.

Gomes homered in the third. Jose Ramirez went 3 for 5 with a double and triple. He scored three runs and drove in another.

Rookie Francisco Lindor had two hits, a sacrifice fly, drove in a pair of runs and scored a run.

Royals right-hander Kris Medlen (5-2) was pulled after 3 2/3 innings, yielding six runs on nine hits, including six for extra bases, a walk and a wild pitch.

Indians starter Josh Tomlin also failed to make it through five innings, allowing five runs on seven hits.

Ben Zobrist homered for the Royals, while Salvador Perez contributed a two-run double.

Royals left-handed reliever Franklin Morales gave up hits to the only two batters he faced and both scored in the sixth. Morales has retired only one of the past seven batters he has faced.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Indians: RF Lonnie Chisenhall suffered hamstring cramps beating out an infield single in the third and was removed. . OF Michael Brantley (right shoulder injury) missed his fourth straight game. . 3B Giovanny Urshela (right shoulder injury) will be re-examined Monday in Cleveland.

Royals: DH Kendrys Morales was hit by a pitch above his right ankle in the eighth inning and after being checked out by a trainer, Paulo Orlando ran for him. Yost said it was a bruise and listed Morales as day-to-day.

UP NEXT

Indians: RHP Danny Salazar will be making his fourth start this season against the Royals. He is 2-1 with a 4.05 ERA in the first three.

Royals: RHP Chris Young will make his 17th start, but his first since July 28.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Carlos Carrasco had his A-plus stuff and overpowered the Kansas City Royals’ B-team.

Carrasco pitched a one-hitter, allowing only a seventh-inning single, and struck out a career-high 15 to lead the Cleveland Indians over the Royals 6-0 Friday night.

The AL Central Royals didn’t come close to a hit until Alex Rios lined a single to center with one out in the seventh.

Carrasco (14-11) was trying to pitch Cleveland’s first no-hitter since 1981, when Len Barker threw a perfect game. On July 1, Carrasco was within one strike of a no-hitter against Tampa Bay when Joey Butler singled on an 0-2 pitch with two outs in the ninth.

“In Tampa I knew I had a no-hitter,” Carrasco said. “This one I feel way different. I really didn’t know I had a no-hitter because I was playing with those guys over there and I was talking (in the dugout). I really didn’t pay attention to that.”

After Rios’ single, he struck out the next six hitters.

“He was unreal today, man,” his catcher Roberto Perez said. “He pounded the zone.”

A day after the Royals clinched their first division crown since 1985, manager Ned Yost opted to sit most of his starters. Ben Zobrist and Rios were the only regulars in the lineup.

“Carrasco would have beaten anybody tonight with that stuff,” Yost said. “He was just simply electric, a 97 mile per hour four-seamer, a 94 mile per hour two-seamer with a lot of action and a tremendous split, hard slider, throwing them all for strikes. That’s as good as stuff as we’ve seen all year long.”

This was the sixth time this season the Indians took a no-hit bid into the seventh inning.

“Carlos, by his own admission, told me in the first inning, `I feel lethargic,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “I said, `well, go as hard as you can, as long as you can and we’ll get you out of there.’ I hope he feels lethargic next time.”

Jose Ramirez, Abraham Almonte and Perez homered.

Ramirez homered in the first and connected in the second for a two-run drive. Perez hit a two-run homer in the seventh off Franklin Morales.

Carrasco fanned every Royals batter at least once. He struck out Zobrist, Paulo Orlando and Jonny Gomes three times.

All of Carrasco’s strikeouts were swinging, as the Royals chased his sharp-breaking pitches out of the strike zone. He walked two.

Edinson Volquez (13-9) yielded three runs on four hits, while walking two and striking out seven over six innings.

“It was a great night for Carrasco and a bad night for us,” Volquez said.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Indians: LF Michael Brantley was a late scratch after batting practice, missing his third straight game with a right shoulder injury. He hurt the shoulder on a diving catch attempt Tuesday at Minnesota.

UP NEXT

Indians: RHP Josh Tomlin is 3-1 with a 2.25 ERA while holding opposing batters to a .158 average in four road starts.

Royals: RHP Kris Medlen threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings to win 2-0 on Sept. 15 at Cleveland. He is 10-2 with a 1.99 ERA in 25 career September appearances.

— Associated Press —