KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Cole Irvin was outstanding in his major league debut and the Philadelphia Phillies scored six times in the fifth inning to beat the Kansas City Royals 6-1 on Sunday in the rubber match of their three-game series.
J.T. Realmuto hit a two-run double and Odubel Herrera followed with a two-run single for Philadelphia.
Irvin (1-0) threw seven innings of one-run ball, allowing five hits with one walk and five strikeouts. Seranthony Dominguez and Juan Nicasio each tossed a scoreless inning to close it out for the 25-year-old lefty.
Kansas City has lost 12 consecutive rubber games, a streak that stretches back to May 30 last year, when the Royals took two of three against Minnesota.