The Royals’ Dairon Blanco slides to second after hitting an RBI double during the fourth inning of a game against the Cardinals on Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City.
Charlie Riedel, Associated Press
KANSAS CITY — A Cardinals squad that entered a series finale vs. the Royals ranked sixth across the majors in batting average with runners in scoring position came up empty in such scenarios on Sunday at Kauffman Stadium.
Having won the first two games of a three-game set against the Royals, the Cardinals totaled 12 hits and had three runners reach base with either a walk or a hit by pitch. The Cardinals put at least one runner in scoring position in the first, second, fifth, sixth, eighth and ninth innings but were a combined 0 for 8 when hitting with runners on scoring position. The missed opportunities left 13 runners on base in a 2-1 loss to Kansas City.
The lone run the Cardinals scored came on a solo home run by Alec Burleson in the fourth inning. That lead was erased in the bottom half of the inning when starter Matthew Liberatore allowed a two-out RBI double to Dairon Blanco. The Cardinals (26-21) fell into a one-run deficit they could not climb out of when reliever Chris Roycroft allowed a triple and a single to the first two batters he faced in the seventh inning.
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“(We) had a lot of opportunities and just didn’t come through,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “That’s something we’ve actually done well. And today, facing good arms, especially in the back end there with their eighth inning and ninth inning guys … it’s tough to score on those guys. But we had opportunities throughout that game and just didn’t get the big hit. And that’s what it came down to.”
The loss wrapped up a nine-game road trip for the Cardinals that began in Washington, D.C., and took them to Philadelphia before arriving in Kansas City for the weekend series. After going 4-13 in road games to begin the year, the Cardinals went 7-2 and collected series wins in each city they visited.
The three-city stop began with a sweep of the Nationals. It included a 14-7 win in the second game of a doubleheader vs. the Phillies, a 10-3 win in Kansas City on Friday and a 1-0 win on Saturday that showcased the Cardinals’ defense.
“We’re playing good baseball all the way around,” Marmol said. “Today was a tough game, facing good arms and didn’t come through. But I like the way we’re going about it. This road trip, we knew we were going to face some arms and some teams that were tough, especially on the road, and came out of it OK.”
On Sunday, Burleson’s jolt gave the Cardinals a momentary lift as Liberatore worked through traffic in the first three of the six innings he completed. Burleson belted a 1-1 slider from Royals starter and former Cardinal Michael Wacha 430 feet to center field to break a scoreless tie.
In the bottom half of the frame, a leadoff double from Hunter Renfroe on a chopping ground ball that got past the glove of third baseman Nolan Arenado put the game-tying run on base. A double from Blanco three batters later pushed Renfroe across to score and represented the lone run allowed by Liberatore in his quality start.
Despite seeing some dips in his velocity, Liberatore worked around six hits, one walk and struck out five batters on 92 pitches. He got four whiffs on his slider and had his curveball land for five called strikes. The outing lowered Liberatore’s ERA to 2.92 in 52 1/3 innings for the season.
Cardinals right fielder Lars Nootbaar catches a foul ball for the out on Royals superstar Bobby Witt Jr. during the third inning of a game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City.
Charlie Riedel, Associated Press
“I think any time you can get through six innings and give up one run, that’s a pretty decent day,” Liberatore said. “Obviously, there are some things I would have liked to do better today, but the velocity wasn’t quite as high as it has been, and I felt like the command wasn’t quite as good. But the curveball came into play today, and that ended up being a real weapon for me to keep guys off of the other stuff.”
Looking to regain the lead they had lost, the Cardinals put runners on first and third base in the fifth inning when Brendan Donovan and Arenado collected back-to-back two-out singles. A lineout by Willson Contreras left both Cardinals on base to end the inning.
A flyout by Lars Nootbaar in the sixth inning and a strikeout by Nootbaar in the eighth inning left runners stranded on first and second base on each occasion.
Donovan laced a double into the right field corner with one out in the ninth inning against Royals closer Carlos Estevez to provide another scoring opportunity for his club. But a pop out from Arenado and a flyout from Contreras on a ball Contreras laced to right field with a 105.8 mph exit velocity — with an expected batting average of .950 — left Donovan stranded.
“Today, I’m not going to say it was a fluke, but that’s just part of the game,” said Burleson, whose team entered Sunday with a collective .245 batting average when hitting with two outs and runners in scoring position. “That’s the game. That’s baseball. We’re going to drive runs in and our pitching staff has been really, really good for us. If we continue to do that — we lost the game 2-1 today. We’re hopefully going to win more of those than we lose. The pitchers continue to do what they’re doing, and the offense just continues doing what we’re doing, we’re going to be just fine.”
Photos: Cardinals can’t complete sweep, drop series finale to Royals in Kansas City
Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Carlos Estevez is doused by teammates after their baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals manager Matt Quatraro runs to the mound to check on relief pitcher Carlos Estevez during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Carlos Estevez throws during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Carlos Estevez, left, and catcher Freddy Fermin celebrate after their baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals outfielders Drew Waters, left, Kyle Isbel, center, and Hunter Renfroe celebrate after their baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals right fielder Hunter Renfroe catches a fly ball for the out on St. Louis Cardinals’ Willson Contreras to end the ninth inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals’ Drew Waters dives to third after hitting a triple during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher JoJo Romero throws during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals’ Maikel Garcia (11) is caught stealing second by St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Brendan Donovan (33) during the seventh inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals’ Drew Waters (8) celebrates with Kansas City Royals after scoring on a single by Maikel Garcia during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals’ Drew Waters (8) celebrates on third after hitting a triple during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals’ Drew Waters celebrates in the dugout after scoring on a single by Kansas City Royals’ Maikel Garcia during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals’ Drew Waters celebrates in the dugout after scoring on a single by Kansas City Royals’ Maikel Garcia during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals’ Maikel Garcia celebrates on first after hitting an RBI during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals’ Victor Scott II is tended to by a trainer after being hit by a pitch thrown by Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Daniel Lynch IV during the sixth inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Alec Burleson catches a fly ball for the out on Kansas City Royals’ Vinnie Pasquantio during the third inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Cardinals right fielder Lars Nootbaar catches a foul ball for the out on Royals superstar Bobby Witt Jr. during the third inning of a game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City.
Charlie Riedel, Associated Press
St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Lars Nootbaar catches a fly foul ball for the out on Kansas City Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr. during the third inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
The Royals’ Dairon Blanco slides to second after hitting an RBI double during the fourth inning of a game against the Cardinals on Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City.
Charlie Riedel, Associated Press
Kansas City Royals’ Hunter Renfroe (16) celebrates with Bobby Witt Jr. (7) after scoring on a double by Dairon Blanco during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Alec Burleson catches a fly ball for the out on Kansas City Royals’ Freddy Fermin during the fourth inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals’ Dairon Blanco slides to second after hitting an RBI double during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals’ Alec Burleson celebrates in the dugout after hitting a solo home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals’ Alec Burleson watches his solo home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals’ Alec Burleson celebrates in the dugout after hitting a solo home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Matthew Liberatore throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals center fielder Victor Scott II chases a single hit by Kansas City Royals’ Mark Canha during the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Matthew Liberatore throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Michael Wacha throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Michael Wacha throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals center fielder Dairon Blanco catches a fly ball for the out on St. Louis Cardinals’ Masyn Winn during the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Michael Wacha throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Michael Wacha (52) stands with teammates for the national anthem during the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo.
Charlie Riedel – AP
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