EditorsNote: Fixed/flipped words in lede graf 'the host'
Glenn Sparkman pitched the first shutout of his career as the host Kansas City Royals defeated the Chicago White Sox 11-0 Tuesday. He became the first Royals right-hander to throw a shutout since Johnny Cueto did it in his Kansas City home debut in 2015.
Sparkman (3-5) previously went seven innings twice this season before his career-longest start on Tuesday. His eight strikeouts were also a career high, and all five hits he allowed were singles. Sparkman walked one.
Whit Merrifield led the offense with his first career inside-the-park home run, the 100th in Royals history. He finished a triple short of a cycle.
The victory may be overshadowed by a left shoulder injury sustained by Adalberto Mondesi, who was hurt diving for a foul ball hit by Yolmer Sanchez. The Royals announced after the game that Mondesi would undergo an MRI exam on Wednesday to evaluate the extent of the injury.
The White Sox also lost a key player. Prized rookie Eloy Jimenez had to leave with right elbow soreness in the first inning when he collided with center fielder Charlie Tilson on a flyout. After the game, the team announced that Jimenez was headed back to Chicago for an MRI exam.
Dylan Cease (1-1) took the loss in his second major league start. He gave up six runs (four earned) on eight hits in six innings. He struck out seven and walked one.
The Royals jumped on Cease early.
Mondesi started a first-inning rally with a one-out single. A wild pickoff throw by Cease allowed Mondesi to advance to second. Mondesi promptly stole third and scored on a wild throw by catcher James McCann. Alex Gordon singled, and Hunter Dozier followed with an RBI triple off the wall in right center.
The Royals got two more in the third inning, thanks again to Chicago's porous defense.
Mondesi led off the inning with a single. Gordon followed with a grounder to short, but a wild throw from Leury Garcia allowed Mondesi to score and Gordon to race to third. Another run scored in the inning on Bubba Starling's RBI single.
In the fourth inning, the Royals' Cam Gallagher stroked a one-out double to center. Merrifield then hit his inside-the-park home run down the right field line to give Kansas City a 6-0 lead.
The Royals got another run in the seventh and four more in the eighth, including two on a 447-foot home run by Dozier.
--Field Level Media
