How Royals beat Giants on road despite spoiled no-hit bid & Quatraro’s ejection
With a host of family and friends in attendance, Kansas City Royals starter Kris Bubic navigated uncharted waters in a familiar place.
Bubic, who grew up attending San Francisco Giants games at Oracle Park, nearly made history against his hometown team on Monday: He took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and was in full control throughout.
The Royals (27-22) even found some late offense in a 3-1 victory to open this series against the Giants. Bubic allowed just two hits and struck out five across seven shutout innings.
“You always want to do well in front of them,” Bubic said of his entourage. “I think it makes life a little easier for everybody. But I think having pitched here already twice kind of takes those jittery nerves at the beginning of the game away. I treated this like any other game, to be quite honest.”
With around 40 Bubic-backers on hand, he made sure to put on a show. And the Giants were baffled at the plate all night.
Bubic pitched to contact and relied on his defense to make plays behind him. First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino made a diving stop to rob Giants outfielder Luis Matos of a base hit in the fifth inning.
Matos hit a line drive that appeared destined for right field. The Giants had a runner on second, but Pasquantino extinguished the potential rally with his excellent glovework.
That helped greatly. Giants starting pitcher Robbie Ray was also very good, striking out seven.
“I got some good defensive plays and quick outs early to kind of help me settle in,” Bubic said. “But it was a duel. Robbie Ray was doing his thing on the other side. (We) scratched across some runs late and it was huge.”
Bubic continued to pitch well, but his no-hit bid was nullified when a sixth-inning error by Michael Massey — who slid trying to field a sharp liner, unsuccessfully — was changed to a hit by the official scorekeeper.
Pasquantino didn’t let Bubic’s strong start go to waste. In the eighth inning, he blasted a two-run homer to give the Royals a lead they wouldn’t relinquish. Kyle Isbel added some insurance with an RBI single.
“For us to be able to get that for him is huge,” Pasquantino said. “It’s just big for the team to be able to pull it out there, scoring runs late.”
Once Bubic exited, the Royals’ bullpen shut the door. Daniel Lynch IV and John Schreiber worked the eighth inning before handing the ball to closer Carlos Estévez, who pitched the ninth for his 14th save.
Bubic earned the win, improving to 5-2 this season.
Royals manager Matt Quatraro was ejected in the seventh inning for arguing a call at second base, but it was a special night overall. Bubic has now pitched at Oracle Park three times, and each time he has been stellar. His 2023 start here gave him a blueprint for success this season.
“It’s the same that we have seen,” Quatraro said. “Tons of strikes, great mix, plus changeup and some really soft contact. He (Bubic) just attacked the (strike) zone the whole night.”
Bubic reached a new level Monday. He’s Royals’ best starter this season — with an ERA of just 1.47 — and appears to be firmly in consideration for an All-Star nomination.
Bubic has allowed just one earned run in 25 1/3 innings in May. His 0.36 ERA for the month is the lowest in the majors among qualified pitchers.
“It’s just ridiculous,” Pasquantino said. “I still remember his start here a few years ago. What he is doing now, hitters are getting to first base (and) talking about how frustrating it is facing him.
“I mean, that’s what we are looking for. He was ridiculous again tonight. He has been so good for us. He’s been a horse for us and it’s really fun to watch. He is tough on hitters.”
Sometimes a player matches the moment. Bubic did so in his latest homecoming. The 27-year-old left-hander proved himself worthy of high acclaim.
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Here are more notable aspects of Monday’s game:
Royals’ bullpen doesn’t break
Clinging to a 2-0 lead in the eighth inning, the Royals turned to Lynch and Schreiber with Lucas Erceg seemingly unavailable.
Lynch recorded one out but allowed two hits. So the Royals looked to Schreiber for a ground ball and potential double play.
Neither occurred.
Schreiber struck out Giants star Wilmer Flores for the second out. However, he also allowed an RBI double to outfielder Jung Hoo Lee. The extra-base hit inched the Giants closer in the final innings.
“You’ve got to just stay calm in that situation,” Schreiber said. “Just trying not to let two runs score right there and try to keep the lead or keep the score the same.”
Schreiber worked out of trouble, getting third baseman/cleanup hitter Matt Chapman to pop out and end the inning.
“I fell behind 2-0 with him and tried to get back in the count,” Schreiber said. “I was able to do that and execute that last pitch to try to get a pop-out or a strikeout.”
What’s next: The Royals continue their three-game series against the Giants on Tuesday. Michael Lorenzen (3-4, 3.76 ERA) draws the start against fellow right-hander Hayden Birdsong (1-0, 2.31 ERA).
This story was originally published May 19, 2025 at 11:10 PM with the headline "How Royals beat Giants on road despite spoiled no-hit bid & Quatraro’s ejection."
