Indians pound Mazzaro, Royals on road
Michael Brantley's three-run homer and Travis Hafner's bases-loaded double keyed a 10-run fourth inning Monday night that sent Cleveland to a 19-1 win over Kansas City and put Vin Mazzaro in the record book as pitching the worst game in Royals history.
Mazzaro, the third Royals' pitcher, was charged with 14 runs on 11 hits in 2 1/3 innings. The 25-year-old right-hander is the third major league pitcher since 1947 to allow 14 runs in a game, according to STATS LLC, and he erased the Royals' record of 11, which had been done three times.
Brantley and Matt LaPorta each had four RBIs in the Indians' biggest offensive outburst since scoring 22 runs at New York on April 18, 2009. Hafner and Orlando Cabrera each had three RBIs.
LaPorta reached base five times with a walk and four hits.
After giving up 10 runs, all earned, in the fourth, Mazzaro allowed four more in the fifth before he was removed.
Starter Kyle Davies (1-6) left after walking the bases full in the first inning and retiring only one batter. The Royals said later that he would have an MRI for soreness in the front of his right shoulder. He was charged with two runs after Nate Adcock gave up a two-run single to Orlando Cabrera.
The Indians added another run in the second on an RBI single by Brantley, who set a career high with his four RBI.
Asdrubal Cabrera's RBI single got the Indians rolling in the fourth. Mazzaro then issued Carlos Santana's third walk of the game, and walk No. 7 on the night for the Indians, which loaded the bases.
Hafner then hammered a three-run double into left-center. Orlando Cabrera followed with an RBI single, then Travis Buck singled and LaPorta hit a two-run double that made it 10-0. After Jack Hannahan singled, Brantley hit a 1-1 pitch for a three-run home run and a 13-0 Cleveland lead.
The Indians, who were coming off back-to-back rainouts, sent 13 men to the plate in the fourth. For the game, they had a season-high 20 hits, including seven doubles, and drew eight walks.
In the fifth, Buck had an RBI single, LaPorta added a second two-run double and Hannahan brought in a run with an infield out.
Josh Tomlin (5-1) got the win, going six innings and giving up five hits and one run, on Billy Butler's infield out in the fourth.
According to STATS LLC, the last pitcher to give up 10 runs in an inning was Texas' Scott Feldman against the Red Sox on Aug. 12, 2008, although not all the runs were earned. Before Mazzaro, the only pitchers since 1947 to get clobbered for 14 runs were Milwaukee's Bill Travers against Cleveland on Aug. 14, 1977, and Oakland's Mike Oquist on Aug. 3, 1998 against the Yankees.
NOTES: The Indians are in the unusual position of playing a pair of two-game series on a four-game road trip. After two in KC, they'll fly to Chicago for two with the White Sox before returning home. ... It was LaPorta's second four-hit game. The other was Aug. 29, 2009 at Baltimore. ... The last Royals pitcher to give up 11 runs was Brian Bannister on June 12, 2010 against Cincinnati. ... The Indians also scored 10 runs in the fourth inning on April 8 at Seattle.