Royals begin final homestand with decisive loss to White Sox

Jaylon Thompson, The Kansas City Star on Sep 22, 2026

Published in Baseball

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals entered their final homestand of the regular season with a clear objective in mind.

Play spoiler.

The Royals welcomed the Chicago White Sox to Kauffman Stadium on Tuesday night with a lot at stake for their American Central rivals. The White Sox entered trailing the Cleveland Guardians by a game in the divisional race.

It’s likely the AL Central winner won’t be decided until later this week. And that’s where the Royals factor in the race.

Kansas City will host both the White Sox and Guardians to end the 2026 regular season. A strong finish could directly affect playoff seeding and, most importantly, the division crown.

The White Sox (81-76) fired on all cylinders in Tuesday’s game. The Sox knocked around Royals left-handed starter Daniel Lynch IV in a 14-11 victory.

Lynch allowed nine runs in his start. White Sox second baseman Chase Meidroth tagged him with four RBIs — including a two-run homer in the third inning. Brenton Doyle added a two-run homer.

Randal Grichuk delivered the final blow in the fourth. Grichuk bested his former team with a three-run homer to effectively put the game away. He belted a knuckle-curve left at the bottom of the strike zone.

The blast traveled 415 feet over the center-field wall. It was his 14th homer of the season as the White Sox opened a 9-2 advantage.

Grichuk finished a triple away from the cycle. He was 4 for 5 with two doubles and three RBIs.

Lynch was pulled after four innings. He didn’t have his command as he issued three walks and hit a batter. And his changeup was hit hard — registering four batted ball events and three hits, per Baseball Savant.

The Royals failed to keep pace. The club scored four runs against White Sox starter Anthony Kay with Nick Loftin leading the way.

Loftin recorded two RBIs in the game. In the third inning, he hit his eighth home run on an 85.6 mph slider that was located well. However, Loftin got his bat around the baseball and lifted it into the left-field seats.

However, the Royals finished 4 for 15 with runners in scoring position.

In the first inning, Bobby Witt Jr. was left stranded at second base with less than two outs. Neither Jac Caglianone (strikeout) nor Maikel Garcia (flyout) cashed in the scoring opportunity.

A similar situation occurred in the third frame. After Loftin’s homer, Witt got aboard with a two-out double and was left on base

Chicago took advantage of its chances. The club was 6 for 9 with RISP and scored at least two runs in four separate innings.

The Royals dropped to 67-90. Lynch took the loss after giving way to former All-Star Tony Gonsolin, who made his Royals debut.

Gonsolin allowed five runs and recorded five strikeouts in 2 2/3 relief innings. The Royals later added seven runs in the final two innings, and Vinnie Pasquantino hit his first career grand slam in the loss. But it wasn’t enough.

What’s next

Royals right-hander Seth Lugo (7-9, 5.06 ERA) will start Wednesday against the White Sox. He will oppose Chicago veteran Erick Fedde (8-9, 3.90 ERA) with first pitch set for 7:40 p.m. ET.

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