The Kansas City Royals crushed the Philadelphia Phillies 17-5 Sunday afternoon at Kauffman Stadium, allowing the Royals to take two out of three games of this interleague series.

The Royals struck first in their half of the 1st inning. David DeJesus singled, went to second on a Jamie Moyer wild pitch, then scored on Mark Grudzielanek’s double.

Philadelphia tied it up in the top of the 2nd. Jayson Werth, who had walked, went to second on a walk to Wes Helms, then scored on a Carlos Ruiz double.

The Royals jumped back on top in the bottom of the 2nd on Tony Pena’s first home run of the season, a 379-foot blast to grass beyond the left field wall. But the lead didn’t last long. Shane Victorino hit his fifth homer of the season into the left field seats.

Mark Grudzielanek then put the Royals back on top with a two-run homer go left in the 3rd, his 4th roundtripper of the season, scoring David DeJesus, who had walked, ahead of him.

In the 4th, the Phillies drew to within one as Abraham Nunez walked and then scored on a Jimmy Rollins double. That chased Royals starter Jorge De La Rosa.

A double by David DeJesus brought home two runs for the Royals in the 4th. Ryan Shealy and Tony Pena, who had both singled, each moved up a base when Joey Gathright sacrificed. Both scored on the DeJesus double.

The hit parade wasn’t over as the Phillies played long ball in the top of the 5th. Ryan Howard belted his 12th home run of the season with Aaron Rowan on to narrow the Royals’ lead to 6-5.

Next, it was Kansas City’s turn to impress with the lumber. Mark Grudzielanek’s third hit of the day, a single that scored two runs, put the Royals on top by two. Mike Sweeney then singled to drive home the 6th inning’s third run, giving the Royals a 9-5 lead.

In the 7th, the Royals added two more. John Buck, who had reached base on a single, and Ryan Shealy, who was issued a base on balls, both came home to score on Jose Mesa wild pitches.

In the 8th, the Royals made a statement with more offensive power. They loaded the bases with nobody out, giving Emil Brown a chance to drive in two runs on a single. With a runner in scoring position, Ryan Shealy then singled to pick up an RBI. Tony Pena pocketed his second RBI of the day, driving in the Royals, 15th run on a sacrifice fly to left. Not to be outdone by his teammates, Alex Gordon joined the fun with a double to center field that scored two runs.

Zack Greinke (3-4) registered 5 strikeouts in two innings of work to earn the victory. Philadelphia starter Jamie Moyer (5-5) took the loss.

The Royals are off Monday night. Tuesday, the I-70 Series resumes as the Royals host their cross-state rivals the St. Louis Cardinals. Brian Bannister (2-3) goes to the mound for the Royals against the Cardinals’ Brad Thompson (4-1).

Download/Listen: Mnager Buddy Bell’s post game comments (5:00 MP3)