The Royals had an off-day before starting a nine-game road trip. Oddly, the Royals would play in four cities on the trip, with two-game stops in Texas, Boston, and Cleveland. Only their series against Toronto would be a typical three-game one.

Elsewhere in the AL West, Chicago won and Minnesota lost, with Texas idle as well. So the White Sox expanded their lead to two games over the Twins, three over the Rangers, and 3.5 over the Royals. The first two games of Kansas City’s trip, against Texas, loomed large.

Today’s birthdays: Stan Clarke (1960), Bob Scanlan (1966), Jason Frasor (1977), Drew Butera (1983)