The New York Yankees were hoping for a sweep in Kansas City but the Royals had other ideas to close out the series.

  •  New York Yankees: 1 (24-14)
  •  Kansas City Royals: 5 (17-23)
  •  American League, FINAL, Box Score
  •  Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO

The New York Yankees were going for the sweep of the Kansas City Royals on the road. The Royals had other ideas.

The Royals picked up run after run off of rookie phenom Jordan Montgomery. Montgomery took the rubber for the Yankees in his sixth start of the season.

Early on, the contest looked like a dominant pitcher’s duel, with Royals’ starter Danny Duffy striking out the side to open the game. Montgomery answered right back by shutting down the Royals in order.

With a botched double play in the bottom of the second by Chris Carter, the Royals were set up to do some damage. They brought in two runs on two RBI singles.

The Yankees have been down before but they kept falling victim to the devastating slider of Duffy. He retired the first nine Yankees in a row before allowing a bunt single to Jacoby Ellsbury.

However, the Yankees couldn’t capitalize on opportunities they were given. The Yankees had runners on in five innings tonight but could not manage to bring them around to score.

To make matters worse, Montgomery gave up a three-run home run to Mike Moustakas to put the Royals up by five.

While that usually isn’t a problem for the Yankees, their offense was not in sync tonight. They were flailing at pitches and combined for 12 strikeouts overall. Duffy struck out 10 Yankees batters, a season-high for him.

However, the ninth inning is where they do their best. Didi Gregorius drove in Starlin Castro to help the Yankees avoid the shutout. The potential rally fell short against Kelvin Herrera, who allowed a run but locked up the victory for the Royals.

This Day In Yankees History:

May 18, 1999: Manager Joe Torre returns to manage his first game after coming back from successful surgery for prostate cancer.

Torre went on to lead his team to another World Series championship that year and the next.

What’s Next:

The Yankees head to the Trop to take on the division rival Tampa Bay Rays Friday evening. The Yankees will send Luis Severino to the mound, hoping to stop another losing streak from starting.

The Rays will send Erasmo Ramirez to the mound, who is 2-0 with a 2.92 ERA on the season.

The last time the Yankees were in Tampa, they took one of three in a dismal series.

This game will be shown on WPIX and can be heard on WFAN 660/101.9 FM, as well as WADO 1280.