A night after banging out 14 runs, the Royals offense dried up on Thursday in a 5-1 loss to the Mariners. They managed just six hits on the night. Five Mariners drove in runs off Jeremy Affeldt who got the loss and fell to 3-2 on the season. His counterpart Gil Meche went 6 2/3 innings, striking out seven. Seattle’s relievers held Kansas City hitless over the final 2 1/3 to secure the win. The loss dropped the Royals to 25-20 as they fell to a game-and-a-half behind the Twins, who beat Oakland.
