Salvador Perez mashes a monster home run but Kansas City Royals fall to Red Sox

Reed Hoffmann/AP

Shortstop Nicky Lopez took an awkward swing at a slider and missed in the fourth inning of the Royals’ 7-4 loss to the Red Sox on Friday night.

Lopez, frustrated with a called strike on what he thought was ball four on the previous pitch, slammed his bat to the ground, and the scene summed up a frustrating night for the Royals.

Kansas City (42-65) was 2 for 12 with runners in scoring position, including Lopez’s strikeout with the bases loaded, which followed Kyle Isbel hitting into a force out at the plate.

“We’ve got to make that mark,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “To get the bases loaded in less than two outs, we’ve got to make a mark and that one hurt.”

Lopez struck out again with the bases juiced in the eighth inning. But MJ Melendez, playing in left field Friday, followed with a two-run double as part of a three-run frame.

That got the Royals within striking distance, but they went down quietly in the ninth inning and ultimately fell short.

“It’s just sometimes you lock horns with the competition,” Matheny said, “and they get the best of you.”

The Red Sox pounded out 13 hits, drew five walks and took advantage of some shoddy Royals defense.

Royals starter Zack Greinke gave up four runs on seven hits with a pair of walks and two strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings.

“(Red Sox hitters) kind of weren’t really doing what I wanted them to do,” Greinke said. “Threw some close pitches early in some counts and they took them, and then it was like they were ready to swing when I didn’t want them to swing and they weren’t ready to swing when I wanted to swing.

“So just not a lot went as it was planned.”

The bullpen didn’t provide much relief on a day when the heat index was 100 degrees at first pitch.

Reliever Josh Staumont struggled the most, giving up two runs on a hit and two walks while getting just one out in the eighth inning. Just four of his 16 pitches were strikes.

Salvy smash

A bright spot for the Royals was a mammoth fifth-inning home run by catcher Salvador Perez. It was a 454-foot shot to left field, the longest homer of the season for the Royals.

The home run, which had an exit velocity of 112.4 mph was Perez’s fifth in eight games since coming off the injured list following thumb ligament surgery.

Forever young

The 10 starters for the Royals (nine batters and Greinke) were all drafted or originally signed by the team. Just the third time in franchise history there has been such a game. Six of the position players were rookies.

“Obviously, it would have been great to get a win ... but it’s a learning process,” Melendez said as Daniel Powter’s “Bad Day” played in the Royals clubhouse. “It’s a growing process, something that we’re just gonna get better each and every day that we go in on that field and just continue to battle.

The other times with 10 starters who were homegrown players were Sept. 19, 1990 and July 29 of this year at Yankee Stadium. The Royals lost those games, too.

How’d Hoz do?

Red Sox first baseman Eric Hosmer, the former Royals star, lined an RBI double to right in the second inning to open the scoring. It was his first career hit versus the Royals, and he now has a hit against all 30 MLB teams.

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