Royals put up season-high 10 runs in routing Twins

Three months before the Royals’ 10-4 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Monday night at Target Field, Paulo Orlando sauntered into a tattoo parlor near his home in Sao Paulo, Brazil. It was February, the final days before he would depart for spring training in Arizona, and Orlando sought a piece of art to commemorate his first offseason as a major-league baseball player.

Orlando wanted something that would honor his love for baseball, but as he sat down in a chair inside the shop, he had no specific ideas. His friend, the tattoo artist, suggested an image of Orlando swinging a bat, and together, they found a photo on the internet from one of Orlando’s first games.

Three months later, the art is still there, outlined in dark black ink, a forever tribute on Orlando’s left shoulder. Orlando smiles when the tattoo is brought up. In truth, he says, he just wanted something to remind him of the 10 seasons he spent toiling in the minor leagues. He also wanted something that would motivate him to keep going.

Three months later, Orlando is still here, an offensive catalyst for the surging Royals, a sudden hit machine who collected three more hits and two more RBIs in Monday’s victory. On the day the Royals lost starting left fielder Alex Gordon to a scaphoid fracture in his right wrist that could keep him out four weeks, the club’s other corner outfielder continued his blazing May.

Orlando led an offensive onslaught on a rainy night in downtown Minneapolis. The Royals beat up on the worst team in the American League.

In his last seven games, Orlando is now 15 of 26 with nine RBIs, raising his season batting average to .400. The Royals have piled up six wins in eight games during the stretch, moving to 23-21 after a series-opening victory at Target Field.

The Royals' offense scores a season-high 10 runs in victory over Twins 

Orlando, of course, was not the only Royal to feast on the Twins’ pitching. The offense had piled up eight runs and 14 hits in the first seven innings. Salvador Perez notched a career high with five hits, becoming the first Royal with five hits since Billy Butler on Sept. 5, 2013. Whit Merrifield made his first career start at third base and finished 2 for 5 with two runs scored.

Merrifield, who made his major-league debut last Wednesday, was in the lineup while starting third baseman Mike Moustakas nursed a right knee contusion. Behind the dugout sat his 86-year-old grandpa Bill, who had followed the team from Chicago to Minnesota, after driving from his home in North Carolina to see his grandson play in Chicago.

The night’s only true drama came during a 41-minute rain delay, which began in the bottom of the third inning. The pouring rainstorm forced the tarp out onto the field. It also shortened the night of Royals starter Ian Kennedy, who lasted just four outs after the delay and allowed two runs and five hits in 3 1/3 innings.

The rest of the night belonged to the Royals’ bullpen. Manager Ned Yost tapped Scott Alexander for 1 2/3 innings and Peter Moylan for 2 1/3 before Kelvin Herrera came on in the eighth inning.

After taking two of three from the first-place White Sox in Chicago, the Royals can win their fourth straight series with a victory here tonight.

When the day began, the Twins had won just 11 times in 43 games. Their 11-32 record was the worst in baseball; their run differential (-74) was the worst in the American League by 22 runs. A season ago, the Twins won 83 games and were in contention for a wild card spot deep into September. This year, the wheels fell off before May 1.

The Royals, along with the rest of the AL Central, could be a primary beneficiary of the porous play. Dating back to last season, Kansas City has now won 13 of its last 17 against Minnesota.

The two teams will meet 15 more times this season, starting Tuesday night at Target Field.

This story was originally published May 23, 2016 at 11:32 PM with the headline "Royals put up season-high 10 runs in routing Twins."