Major League Baseball
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Kansas City 4, Oakland 2
When: 2:10 PM ET, Sunday, April 19, 2015
Where: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri
Temperature: 65°
Umpires: Home - Greg Gibson, 1B - Marvin Hudson, 2B - Chad Fairchild, 3B - Jim Joyce
Attendance: 36755

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Center fielder Lorenzo Cain and designated hitter Kendrys Morales each doubled and combined to drive in three runs in the eighth inning as the Kansas City Royals rallied for a 4-2 victory over the Oakland Athletics on Sunday.

Cain's double tied the game, while Morales' double off left-hander Eric O'Flaherty scored Cain and first baseman Eric Hosmer, who had walked.

A's left-hander Scott Kazmir, who had lost his four previous starts to the Royals, exited after 7 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on six hits, a walk and a hit batter.

Left-hander Franklin Morales retired the only batter he faced to pick up the victory. Wade Davis, who is assuming the closer's role with Greg Holland on the disabled list, picked up his second save.

More chaos came in the eighth inning when right-hander Kelvin Herrera, the fourth Royals' pitcher, threw high and behind third baseman Brett Lawrie. Herrera was immediately tossed by plate umpire Greg Gibson. Bench coach Don Wakamatsu and injured shortstop Alcides Escobar were also ejected.

Tempers had flared earlier in the finale of this heated three-game series.

Royals manager Ned Yost was ejected in the first inning by Gibson after Kazmir hit Cain with a pitch. Yost came out after Gibson issued a warning to both dugouts and was quickly thumbed, his 37th career ejection. Yost threw his gum to the ground in the debate. Royals pitching coach Dave Eiland was also ejected for choice words yelled from the dugout.

This came in the aftermath of both benches clearing Friday and Saturday. On Saturday, Royals right-hander Yordano Ventura was ejected after clunking Lawrie with a 99 mph fastball right after yielding a three-run homer to right fielder Josh Reddick. On Friday, Lawrie's aggressive slide into second base sprained shortstop Escobar's left knee, causing him to miss the next two games. Escobar called it a "dirty slide."

Royals left-hander Danny Duffy walked five A's in the first three innings and paid for it in the third. Duffy walked No. 9 hitter shortstop Marcus Semien leading off the inning. He also walked first baseman Mark Canha with one out and gave up an RBI single to second baseman Ben Zobrist. Duffy threw only 31 strikes in 67 pitches the first three innings.

The A's made it 2-0 in the fifth when Zobrist's single scored Canha, who singled with one out and stole second.

The Royals got a run back in the bottom of the fifth, which Omar Infante led off with a double. With one out, second baseman Christian Colon reached on an infield single with Infante going back to second. Infante, however, came out on the play with an apparent injury after the trainer visited him. Orlando Calixte, making his big league debut, ran for Infante. Calixte and Colon moved up a base on a Kazmir wild pitch. Calixte scored on left fielder Jarrod Dyson's ground out.

Jason Frasor replaced Duffy in the sixth. Duffy threw 93 pitches in five innings, allowing two runs on four hits.

NOTES: The A's are the first club in major league history to log five shutouts in their first dozen games. ... Royals C Erik Kratz made his first start since Aug. 31, giving C Salvador Perez a rest. Perez started the first 11 games this year and caught a major league record 161 games, including the postseason, in 2014. ... A's RHP Jesse Hahn's scheduled Thursday start against the Angels is dicey because of a finger blister, which flared up in the sixth inning Saturday. ... RHP Edinson Volquez, who lost to the Twins on Wednesday, gets a rematch with them Monday at Kauffman Stadium. ... A's rookie RP Kendall Graveman starts the opener of a four-game series at the Angels.
Top Game Performances
Starting Pitchers
Oakland   Kansas City
Scott Kazmir Player Danny Duffy
No Decision W/L No Decision
7.1 IP 5.0
5 Strikeouts 5
6 Hits 4
2.45 ERA 3.60
Hitting
Oakland   Kansas City
Ben Zobrist Player Omar Infante
2 Hits 2
2 RBI 0
0 HR 0
2 TB 3
1.000 Avg 1.000
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Hits HR TB Avg LOB K RBI BB SB Errors
Oakland 7 0 8 .226 11 8 2 6 2 0
Kansas City 8 0 11 .258 13 5 4 2 1 0