KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Jason Vargas tossed six sharp innings, the Kansas City offense finally woke up against AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber and the Royals beat the Indians 4-2 on Wednesday night.
Mike Moustakas drove in a run in the first inning, and Lorenzo Cain, Eric Hosmer and Kendrys Morales hit consecutive RBI doubles off Kluber (3-6) in the third to give the Royals the lead.
Vargas (4-2) made it stand up in his second start back from the disabled list. The left-hander used a pair of double plays to wiggle out of jams, and limited the streaking Indians to two runs on eight hits while striking out three without a walk.
Greg Holland pitched a perfect ninth for his eighth save.
It was the second piece of good news the Royals received Wednesday.
Major League Baseball has apologized for a breakdown in its replay process during a crucial moment in a 2-1 loss to the Indians Tuesday night.
The issue occurred in the eighth inning of a tied game, when first base umpire Bob Davidson ruled the Indians’ Jose Ramirez had beaten out a relay throw to prevent a double play. Replays showed Ramirez was out, but the call stood after a nearly 3-minute review.
The Indians wound up scoring the go-ahead run later in the inning.
MLB said Wednesday that the “super slow motion view” was delayed in getting to the replay crew in New York, so umpires there had to render a decision without that information.