Omar Infante gets his replacement in Detroit, Ian Kinsler, out at second base. (photo/MLB)
When former Mizzou star Ian Kinsler was traded to Detroit in return for Prince Fielder, there was no room on the Tigers’ roster for Omar Infante. One of the holes in the Royals defense for the last few years was second base. Infante filled that role perfectly. On Monday night, in the first of four games which will decide if the Royals are first place material, Infante burned his former team.
Infante hit a three-run homer in the sixth inning and added an RBI single in a four-run fifth against Justin Verlander, as the Kansas City Royals beat the Tigers 11-8 for their eighth straight win.
The Tigers were never really in this, but did score six runs in the ninth inning. Prior to that it was all Kansas City as they roughed up Verlander for seven runs on 12 hits over six innings. Verlander falls to 6-7 on the year with his ERA 4.98.
The Royals took a 4-2 lead in the fifth inning when Billy Butler followed Infante’s RBI single with a three-run double off Verlander. After Infante’s homer made it 7-2, fans began booing Verlander, who who is in the second season of his seven-year, $180 million deal.
The offense continues to roll for the Royals who finished with a season high 17 hits, giving starter Jason Vargas a 7-2 record as he went seven innings allowing solo runs in the third and fourth innings.