Royals starting pitcher Jeff Francis won in Toronto, giving him his fifth of the season and first since July 29th. Backed by four hits from Billy Butler, the Royals beat the Blue Jays 9-6.
Francis (5-14) came in 0-3 with an 8.27 ERA in his past four outings but was solid in his first career start north of the border. The left-hander, born in Vancouver, British Columbia, improved to 3-0 with a 2.37 ERA in three career starts against Toronto.
The Royals spotted Francis a 5-0 lead, who held the Jays to three hits over six shutout innings. He gave way in the seventh after giving up a two run homer and a single. The Royals and Jays each tacked on two runs over the final two innings against each other’s bullpen.
Butler ent 4 for 5 with two RBIs and scored twice. He doubled and scored in the fourth, singled in both the sixth and seventh and doubled home a pair of runs off reliever Shawn Camp in the eighth. He went 8 for 15 with five extra-base hits to help the Royals win twice in the three-game series.