Royals vs Rays Recap: Rays steamroll Royals for 13-2 win

The Rays were hungry after losing in extra innings the night before. Kansas City rolled into Tropicana Field needing a win to stop their two-game losing streak. Their record stood at 34-48, while Tampa Bay sat at 45-33 with momentum on their side. This was going to be a battle between two teams heading in completely different directions. The Rays had won their last two games. The Royals hadn't found their rhythm yet this season. Seth Lugo took the mound for Kansas City, looking to shut down the Rays' dangerous lineup. But Tampa Bay had other plans. The home crowd was ready for fireworks. You could feel the energy building before the first pitch even flew. This game would tell a story of one team that couldn't stop the bleeding and another that kept piling it on. By the time it was over, Tampa Bay had won 13-2 in a game that got away from Kansas City fast.

Junior Caminero came out swinging and didn't stop. In the first inning, he crushed a two-run homer that screamed over the left field wall at 372 feet. The ball exploded off his bat and the crowd erupted. That blast gave Tampa Bay a 2-0 lead before the Royals could even blink. But Caminero wasn't done. Not even close. In the fourth inning, Victor Mesa Jr. joined the party with a three-run shot that went 355 feet to right field. The scoreboard lit up again. Tampa Bay led 5-0 and the game was already slipping away from Kansas City. Then Caminero stepped up again in the fifth. He launched another moonshot over the left field wall, this one traveling 387 feet. Three homers by one player. Three different Rays crossing home plate with each swing. Seth Lugo was getting shelled. The pitcher couldn't find his control or his stuff.

The Royals finally got on the board in the ninth inning when Carter Jensen crushed a two-run home run off Craig Kimbrel that traveled 425 feet to right center. Starling Marte scored on that blast and suddenly Kansas City had two runs. It was 13-2 at that point. The crowd quieted for a moment. Jensen had brought some life back to the Royals' bench. But it was way too late to matter. Tampa Bay's pitching had been locked in. Chandler Simpson doubled in a run in the fifth. Jonathan Aranda doubled in another in the seventh. The Rays kept adding runs with small hits and smart baserunning. Kansas City's pitching was falling apart. Tyler Tolbert gave up five runs in just one inning. The final score was Tampa Bay 13, Kansas City 2. The Rays improved to 45-33 while the Royals fell to 34-49. This loss stung because the deficit grew too wide too fast.