How Salvador Perez helped Royals snap 6-game skid in I-70 finale vs. Cardinals

Jaylon Thompson, The Kansas City Star on May 17, 2026

Published in Baseball

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The Kansas City Royals simply needed a win on Sunday afternoon.

It had been a frustrating week — six losses in a row.

They began their six-game road trip against the Chicago White Sox — an opponent against whom they’d enjoyed much success in recent years. That wasn’t the case this time around as the White Sox swept the Royals at Rate Field.

The road trip continued in St. Louis over the weekend. And after two disappointing losses to open this latest edition of the Interstate-70 Series on Friday/Saturday, KC was facing the prospect of another winless road trip.

Instead, Royals team captain Salvador Perez took a stand. Several days after vowing to play better, the veteran catcher came through at a critical juncture.

Perez had a home run and a sacrifice fly to lead the Royals to a 2-0 victory over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. The win snapped a six-game losing streak.

Perez hit his sac fly in the first inning. Then he belted his seventh home run of the season in the fourth inning. The homer came against Cardinals starter Andre Pallante on a 77 mph knuckle-curve. Perez sent it over the left-field wall.

Perez finished 2 for 2 Sunday, reaching base four times. He is just eight homers shy of the Royals’ franchise record — currently held by Hall of Famer George Brett (317).

The run support aided Royals starter Stephen Kolek. He rebounded from a difficult outing — five earned runs against the White Sox — to post a quality start.

Kolek kept his pitches down in the strike zone. He pitched to contact, recording 13 ground balls across six innings.

The Cardinals had just four hits against Kolek. At each turn, the Royals right-hander found a way to avoid trouble. He was aided by some solid defense, including Isaac Collins’ leaping catch in the third inning and a big double play in the fifth.

Kolek mix of pitches was well balanced. He utilized three different fastballs while also throwing his sweeper, slider and changeup. Per Baseball Savant, he produced a 27% called strikes plus whiff rate across 82 pitches.

In the seventh, the Cardinals brought the tying run to the plate. Kolek surrendered a single to Nolan Gorman before getting Masyn Winn to hit into a fielder’s choice.

Royals manager Matt Quatraro went to his bullpen, summoning left-handed reliever Daniel Lynch IV. He retired Nathan Chruch and Thomas Saggese to end the threat.

Lynch pitched 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. He has held opponents to a .141 batting average (10 for 71) this season.

KC closer Lucas Erceg shut the door in the ninth with his 11th save.

What’s next: The Royals return to Kauffman Stadium to begin a nine-game homestand on Monday night. Right-hander Seth Lugo (1-3, 3.76 ERA) will start opposite Boston Red Sox right-hander Sonny Gray (4-1, 3.18). First pitch is set for 6:40 p.m. Central Time.

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