KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Boston Red Sox started the day leading the AL by striking out a shade better than nine enemy batters per game. But now they know how the other guys feel.
While dropping a 3-2 decision to Kansas City in the first game of a doubleheader, baseball's top offense did keep its team home-run streak going. But they also struck out 13 times -- tying a season-high set back in early April at Toronto.
Royals starter Ian Kennedy fanned a season-best nine in his 5 1/3 innings, including the last two batters he faced. Then Brian Flynn came out of the bullpen and struck out the only batter he faced, Jackie Bradley Jr. Manager Ned Yost then summoned Luke Hochevar, who proceeded to fan Chris Young, Ryan Hanigan and Mookie Betts, making it six Boston batters in a row to go down on strikes.
Steven Wright went all the way for the Red Sox, giving up five hits and three runs, with one walk and six strikeouts. The Red Sox will send David Price against Edinson Volquez in the nightcap.
Jarrod Dyson tripled and scored the go-ahead run in the sixth and made what may have been the game-saving play in the eighth. Xander Bogaerts, on first with a single, set sail after another single. But Dyson picked up the ball in right field and fired to third, catching the runner by a nip. David Ortiz then flied out deep enough to score the runner from third had he not been sitting in the dugout.
Leading off the fifth inning, Young hammered Kennedy's 2-2 pitch 408 feet, knotting the score 2-all and stretching Boston's home run streak to 18 games. That's only one short of the record set by a 1996 club that saw Mo Vaughn blast a career-best 44 homers but finished third in the AL East.
Dyson tripled leading off the sixth and nudged the home team into a 3-2 lead on Lorenzo Cain's sacrifice fly.
Bogaerts had two singles, boosting his league-leading hit total to 56. But he would have had three singles if not for a spectacular play in the fifth by shortstop Alcides Escobar. Diving to his right to stop Bogaerts' hot smash, Escobar threw out the runner by a whisker while still on his knees.
Bradley singled with one out in the ninth off Wade Davis, keeping his hitting streak alive at 23 games.
Kennedy, after striking out the side in the third, allowed a leadoff double to Dustin Pedroia the next inning, and then singles to Bogaerts and Ortiz. But with the tying run on third, Travis Shaw and Josh Rutledge struck out and Bradley grounded out to the second baseman.