The Royals were back in a familiar spot<\/a> on Friday night. And once again a close game ended the wrong way for Kansas City.<\/p>\n The Royals fell 5-4 in 11 innings to the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Both teams battled until the final out, but it was the Cardinals who pulled out the Interstate-70 series opener<\/a>.<\/p>\n St. Louis got the run the Royals couldn\u2019t in what turned out to be the final inning.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s disappointing to lose,\u201d Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. \u201cSo whether it was the 10th, 11th, whatever, we lost the game. Guys played their hearts out, came up a run short. So it really stinks.\u201d<\/p>\n Cardinals players celebrate their walk-off 5-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals in 11 innings on Friday, May 15, 2026 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n The Royals had two runners aboard with no outs in the 11th inning but came up empty: Michael Massey, Kyle Isbel and Maikel Garcia were retired in succession.<\/p>\n The Cardinals (26-18) took advantage of their opportunity. Pinch-hitter Yohel Pozo hit a walk-off RBI single<\/a> in the bottom of the 11th inning.<\/p>\n KC dropped to 19-26 and has now lost five consecutive games. The Royals finished 3 for 12 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base Friday.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve now dropped 16 of their first 22 road games, the second-worst mark in the majors in that area.<\/p>\n \u201cAny time we\u2019re scoring runs, I feel like that\u2019s how our offense clicks,\u201d Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. said. \u201cSo we\u2019ve just got to get back to doing that and playing good baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n Kansas City Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino slides safely into home plate ahead of Pedro Pag\u00e9s tag during the sixth inning of a series-opening game at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Friday, May 15, 2026. The Cardinals beat the Royals 5-4 in 11 innings.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n Here\u2019s how Friday\u2019s game played out:<\/p>\n The Royals turned to longtime veteran Michael Wacha on Friday night against the Cardinals \u2014 his former team.<\/p>\n They needed their stopper.<\/p>\n Wacha, who spent seven seasons with the Cardinals, returned to his old stomping grounds<\/a> and pitched like an All-Star. He entered with a 2.63 ERA across eight appearances and was coming off two consecutive quality starts.<\/p>\n Quatraro expressed confidence in Wacha before the game. The Royals came into Friday night\u2019s contest on a four-game losing streak and had just been swept by the Chicago White Sox.<\/p>\n Kansas City Royals pitcher Michael Wacha delivers against the St. Louis Cardinals, his former team, during the first inning of a Friday, May 15, 2026 MLB game at Busch Stadium in St Louis.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n Wacha turned in another quality start Friday. He surrendered three runs on five hits while recording five strikeouts.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know, there are a couple pitches that I\u2019d like to have back there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Cardinals tagged Wacha early with two home runs. St. Louis star Jordan Walker hit a two-run homer in the fourth inning \u2014 his 13th of the season \u2014 to erase a two-run deficit. And later, Cardinals catcher Pedro Pages hit a solo blast to straightaway center.<\/p>\n See photos from Kansas City Royals\u2019 I-70 Series opener at the St. Louis Cardinals<\/a><\/p>\n Wacha worked around the damage. He settled for a no-decision despite giving the Royals a chance to come through late.<\/p>\n \u201cReally solid,\u201d Quatraro said of the 34-year-old\u2019s effort. \u201cI mean, he gave up the two homers.<\/p>\n \u201cThe ball was flying there. You could tell in BP. They hit two balls well to center, but especially after getting hit in the foot, the way he competed kept us in that game. He leaves the game tied after six \u2014 it\u2019s pretty impressive.\u201d<\/p>\n The Royals scratched across runs in the middle innings. Left fielder Isaac Collins drove home two in bases-loaded situations. He recorded a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning and an RBI groundout in the sixth.<\/p>\n Kansas City Royals left fielder Isaac Collins hits a sacrifice fly against the Cardinals during the fourth inning of a series-opening game at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Friday, May 15, 2026.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n Both teams turned to their bullpens late. Royals relievers Daniel Lynch IV and Nick Mears worked around traffic, aided by some quality defensive plays. Third baseman Maikel Garcia started a 5-3 double play to help Mears escape an eighth-inning jam unscathed.<\/p>\n<\/div>
Michael Wacha spins quality start<\/h2>\n
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