Royals rally past Athletics 9-7 in seven-run eighth

The Kansas City Royals rallied from a 5-2 deficit to beat the Oakland Athletics 9-7, powered by a seven-run eighth inning that turned the game on its head. John Rave delivered a tiebreaking, bases-clearing double with the bases loaded and two outs after an intentional walk to Bobby Witt Jr., capping KC’s dramatic surge. In the inning, Maikel Garcia had two hits, highlighted by the go-ahead swing, while Vinnie Pasquantino added RBI contributions and later collected his 500th MLB hit. Salvador Perez contributed an earlier RBI double and Kyle Isbel, Isaac Collins, and Garcia helped push the late rally across, with Collins tying the game on a sacrifice fly. Royals reliever Craig Kimbrel worked a clean eighth, and starter Seth Lugo allowed five runs over six innings as KC secured the win to claim the series at Kauffman Stadium. The victory continued the Royals’ push in a pivotal series, with the club riding timely hitting and bullpen support to overcome an Athletics squad that led early and held multiple leads in the game.