Jason Hammel came apart early. Joakim Soria tripped up late. On a calamitous Memorial Day at Kauffman Stadium, one defined by a crippling injury to starter Danny Duffy, the Royals offered a gut punch and a late twist: They lost a game that they seemingly controlled twice.
The final score said that the Royals lost to the Tigers 10-7 on the opening night of a three-game series. Yet the basic details could not quite capture the chaotic, seesaw nature of this contest. On an idyllic Monday, the Royals built a 3-0 lead, Whit Merrifield came a single shy of the cycle, and Eric Hosmer played momentary hero with a go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh.