Royals left-hander Daniel Lynch IV falters vs. Blue Jays en route to 9-2 loss

Jaylon Thompson, The Kansas City Star on Sep 4, 2026

Published in Baseball

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals are in evaluation mode as they finish out the final month of a disappointing 2026 campaign.

A litany of injuries has plagued the pitching staff. The Royals are missing key starters — such as Cole Ragans and Stephen Kolek — among others this season. And their absence has created opportunities for others in the starting rotation.

The Royals have handed starts to veteran right-hander Randy Dobnak. And they also have presented left-hander Daniel Lynch IV with a chance to show his stuff as a starter.

In August, Lynch returned to the starting rotation. The club granted him a trial run to cover innings and see if his relief success could translate. As a reliever, Lynch posted a 1.96 ERA in 46 innings.

On Friday, Lynch made his sixth consecutive start. He didn’t fare well as he allowed five runs on seven hits in the Royals’ 9-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays at Kauffman Stadium.

Toronto jumped out to an early lead. Lynch surrendered four runs in the first inning as the Blue Jays sent eight batters to the plate.

Alejandro Kirk recorded an RBI single to open the scoring. And later, Kazuma Okamoto followed with an RBI single of his own, while Ernie Clement laced a two-run double down the left-field line.

Clement finished 2 for 4 in the game. He later scored on Myles Straw’s sacrifice bunt in the sixth inning as Toronto added three more runs.

The Royals dropped to 63-79 with the loss.

At times, Lynch struggled to command his change-up. The Blue Jays tagged him with nine batted ball events and three hard hits, per Baseball Savant. Additionally, Lynch struggled to put away batters with his sinker and four-seam fastball.

Lynch recorded 11 of 24 first-pitch strikes (46%) in his start. He also didn’t generate a lot of chase percentage with his pitches.

The Royals also didn’t provide much offensive support. The club was limited to six hits as Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino logged the lone runs.

Witt belted his 17th homer in the first inning. And later, the Royals offense slowed to a halt against a slew of Blue Jays relievers. The club grounded into two double plays and left four men on base.

In the ninth, Pasquantino hit his 10th home run of the season.

The Blue Jays (71-71) held serve in the American League wild-card race. They trail the Cleveland Guardians for the final wild-card spot.

What’s next?

Royals right-hander Seth Lugo (6-8, 5.03 ERA) will start on Saturday night opposite Blue Jays veteran Max Scherzer (2-7, 6.16 ERA) with first pitch slated for 6:10 p.m. Central.