Duffy still mystery for Yanks
Danny Duffy beat the Yankees for the second time in a week and rookie Jorge Bonifacio capped a three-run, seventh-inning rally with a go-ahead, two-run homer that led the Kansas City Royals over New York 6-2 on Tuesday night.
Lorenzo Cain, Whit Merrifield and Mike Moustakas also homered late for the Royals, who went deep four times in a span of nine batters.
New York rookie Jordan Montgomery took a one-hit shutout and 2-0 lead into the seventh before a solo homer by Cain, who had been hitless in 14 at-bats.
On the 22nd anniversary of Mariano Rivera’s major league debut, the Yankees’ usually reliable bullpen flopped: Adam Warren (1-1), Jonathan Holder and Chasen Shreve all allowed long balls.
Home runs by Aaron Hicks in the fourth and Chris Carter in the fifth staked New York to a 2-0 lead against Duffy (43). The 28-year-old lefthander wasn’t as sharp as he was in Kansas City last Thursday, when he struck out 10 in seven scoreless innings to beat Montgomery, but Duffy got a key out in the fifth when Starlin Castro stranded the bases loaded with an inning-ending flyout.
Duffy gave up two runs and six hits, struck out seven and walked two. Kansas City’s opening-day starter, he had been 0-3 in his previous five outings before reviving against the Yankees.
New York put two on against Joakim Soria in the eighth, and first baseman Eric Hosmer leaped to snag Chase Headley’s twoout liner. Jacoby Ellsbury bounced into a game-ending double play — at first it wasn’t clear the game was over, but umpires ruled Merrifield tagged Carter running from first to second before the second baseman threw to first.
In the best of his eight big-league starts, Montgomery began 17 of 22 batters with strikes and walked none for the first time, although he did get four warning-track flyouts. He allowed five runs over five innings in last week’s loss to Duffy.
Warren relieved Montgomery with two outs in the seventh, and Salvador Perez singled to right, just over the outstretched glove of a leaping Castro.
Bonifacio, who made his big league debut April 21, sent the next pitch into the right-field seats for his fourth home run in five games and sixth overall. Merrifield connected off Holder leading off the eighth, and Moustakas greeted Shreve later in the inning with his 11th homer, a two-run drive.