Five was the magic number Sunday at Kauffman Stadium. Royals starter Luis Mendoza won his first game in five starts at home. He and Aaron Crow held Houston to five hits and the Royals won their fifth in a row, with a 2-0 victory over the Astros.
The Royals have the best ERA in the American League and continued that trend after Mendoza, who was winless with an 8.05 ERA in his first four home starts, match Astros’ starter Lucas Harrell with zeroes through the first seven innings. The Royals’ bullpen has not allowed a run in 17.2 innings in the past six games.
In the bottom of the eighth, the Royals finally broke through. Alex Gordon and Eric Hosmer each had run-scoring singles off reliever Hector Ambriz.
After getting a scoreless eighth from Crow, Greg Holland closed out the victory.
