Royals starter Mark Redman erased some doubts about his recent All Star selection pitching eight strong innings as Kansas City knocked off the Blue Jays 6-2, Thursday.
Kansas City scored all of its runs in the first four innings. Doug Mientkiewicz gave the Royals a 1-0 lead in the first inning with a double to center that scored Tony Graffanino. Third baseman Mark Teahen sent a solo shot over the fence in right field extending their lead to 2-0 in the second. Blue Jays starter, Ty Taubenheim, was knocked out of the game after Emil Brown’s two-run single in the third. Two more runs in the fourth gave Redman all the support he would need.
The veteran left hander allowed just two runs on five hits, one of them a solo homer by Vernon Wells in the ninth. Redman was three outs away from earning the complete game, but was removed from the mound after Wells’ homer and a Troy Glaus single to start the last frame. Reliever Joel Peralta recorded the last three outs preserving the sixth straight victory for Redman. The Royals are the only team in the Majors without a complete game.
Teahen, Mientkiewicz, and Graffanino each had two hits in the game. Teahen’s homer extended his career-high hitting streak to nine games.