Royals block Braves from clinching wild card in 4-2 win

The visiting Kansas City Royals got home runs from Michael Massey and Hunter Renfroe to beat Atlanta 4-2 on Sunday, salvaging a game from their three-game series and preventing the Braves from clinching a spot in the postseason.

Atlanta (88-72) now needs one win over the New York Mets to secure a wild card spot. The two rivals meet in Atlanta for a make-up doubleheader on Monday that will determine postseason fates for both.

Kansas City (86-76) qualified as a wild card for the American League playoffs, one season after losing 106 games. The Royals last made the playoffs in 2015.

Kansas City starter Alec Marsh (9-9) pitched five solid innings and allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and two strikeouts.

Carlos Hernandez (1 2/3 innings), Angel Zerpa (2/3 innings) and John Schreiber (2/3 innings) did not allow a run. Kris Bubic worked around a leadoff single to pitch a scoreless ninth and earn his first save.

Atlanta starter Charlie Morton (8-10) went 4 1/3 innings and allowed four runs on five hits — two of them homers — two walks and three strikeouts.

The Royals jumped on Morton for three runs in the first inning. Tommy Pham doubled, Bobby Witt Jr. singled — his major league-leading 211th hit — and Massey cleared the bases with a three-run homer. The 390-foot shot, his 14th, sailed deep into the right field seats.

Atlanta’s Gio Urshela cut the lead to 3-1 in the third inning with a line drive homer to left field, his ninth.

But Kansas City got the run back in the fourth when Renfroe hit a solo homer that cleared the bullpen in left field, his 15th.

Atlanta scored once in the fourth inning on Ramon Laureano’s RBI single, but Kansas City limited further damage when third baseman Maikel Garcia threw Jorge Soler out at the plate on a grounder.

The Atlanta bullpen worked 4 2/3 scoreless innings and recorded the final 11 outs via strikeouts.

This article first appeared on Field Level Media and was syndicated with permission.