ARLINGTON, Texas _ The torment had lasted for days, the punchless nights had piled up, so Royals manager Ned Yost went to work inside the visitors dugout at Globe Life Park on Saturday night.
The Royals were in the midst of a third straight loss to the Texas Rangers, a stretch that included just three total runs. Yost's mind wandered to possible solutions. They had already optioned Raul Mondesi and Paulo Orlando to Class AAA Omaha. They were still waiting for Alex Gordon and Eric Hosmer to break out. As the struggles persisted for another night, a new lineup formed in Yost's head.
It was one part desperation ("Just try something different," Yost would say), one part imagination. It would end with a new leadoff hitter (Whit Merrifield), a rookie in his second career game batting third (Jorge Bonifacio), and new spot in the order for Gordon. It could not fix the Royals' most pressing flaw.
On Sunday afternoon in Texas, the Royals dropped a 5-2 decision to the Rangers, falling for a fourth straight day. The loss completed a four-game sweep and prolonged a team-wide slump, a skid that erased the progress made during a 5-3 home stand last week.
The loss was the 10th straight against the Rangers, dating back to last year. Starter Jason Hammel could not survive the fourth inning. The Royals (7-11) are now 2-8 on the road as they prepare for a three-game series against the White Sox in Chicago.
On Sunday, the Royals' league-worst offensive attack was limited to solo homers by Mike Moustakas and Bonifacio, which came in consecutive plate appearances against Rangers starter Yu Darvish in the third inning. The barrage was fleeting.
Moustakas stroked an 0-1 cutter into the seats down the right-field line. Bonifacio whacked a hanging slider 421 feet to left for his first career home run. In seconds, the Royals had a 2-0 lead, scoring twice in the same inning for the first time since April 14, a span of three series and seven games. They could not find a way to tack on more against Darvish, who struck out seven in eight innings while retiring the final 16 hitters he faced
The lack of production spelled doom when Hammel allowed an RBI single in the third and nearly came apart in the bottom of the fourth. Hammel opened the inning with a walk before hitting Joey Gallo and Robinson Chirinos to load the bases.
Hammel issued another walk to Jurickson Profar, tying the score at 2-2. Yost emerged from the dugout and called on left-hander Scott Alexander.
The inning could have been worse. Alexander induced an RBI ground-out from Carlos Gomez and Shin-Soo Choo hit into a double play. Yet the Rangers emerged with a 3-2 lead and never looked back.
Gallo continued his weekend mastery of the Royals, clubbing a mammoth homer to left-center field in the sixth. Chirinos offered another insurance run with a solo shot against Chris Young in the bottom of the eighth.
