BOSTON (AP) -- Kansas City's Dave McCarty figured to be the hero. After all, he had dropped a popup that let Boston tie the wild game.

	Joe Randa, left, and the Royals won again in their last at-bat.

"That," Kansas City manager Tony Muser said, "was one of the wackiest games I've ever witnessed."

The Royals, who trailed 8-2 after five innings, rallied with nine runs in a crazy sixth inning that saw the teams combine for 12 runs, 12 hits and four walks as 22 batters faced 78 pitches.

"A lot of things happened out there that don't normally happen," Boston manager Jimy Williams said. "That's what makes this game a great game."

"Great" is one adjective that doesn't apply to Thursday's game in which Derek Lowe (2-2), one of baseball's best relievers, gave up McCarty's two-run triple in the eighth and in which Dan Reichert recorded his first save as a professional.

"You can't really think about what happened in the previous innings," said Reichert, who held Boston scoreless the last two innings. "You just have to go out there and throw as many strikes as you can."

McCarty's fourth hit won the game, driving in Carlos Beltran and Joe Randa with two outs. But he gave Nomar Garciaparra a chance to tie it 11-11 with a two-run double in the sixth after Garciaparra's foul pop bounced off his glove on the top step of the Boston dugout.

"I should have had the ball," McCarty said, "but it was nice for us to battle back like that."

Two runners were thrown out at the plate, Randa on the back end of a double-steal attempt in the second and Boston's Jeff Frye on Trot Nixon's double with the score 11-11 in the seventh.

Jose Santiago (5-2) was the beneficiary of the Royals' season highs of 13 runs and 19 hits.

Carl Everett had a grand slam, his 17th homer of the season, and Nomar Garciaparra added a two-run shot, his third, for Boston. Each drove in four runs.

"It stinks," Everett said. "We're not supposed to lose games like this."

The Red Sox began the game with a major league best 3.53 ERA, but four Royals -- Johnny Damon, Mike Sweeney, Beltran and Randa -- had three hits each to go with McCarty's four.

"Hitting became contagious for us and hitting became contagious for them, too," Damon said.

The Royals took a 1-0 lead in the third as Rey Sanchez, who reached on the first of third baseman Wilton Veras' two errors, scored on a groundout by Sweeney.

Boston scored six runs as it batted around in the bottom of the inning. One scored on a sacrifice fly by Veras and another on a groundout by Nixon before Everett's fifth career grand slam and first with Boston.

Kansas City made it 6-2 on two singles and a double-play grounder by McCarty in the fourth. Boston went ahead 8-2 in the fifth on Garciaparra's homer after a walk to Brian Daubach.

Then the Royals matched their biggest inning of the year, taking advantage of nine hits and two errors to score nine runs, only five of them earned, against four pitchers.

Singles by Beltran and Randa knocked starter Ramon Martinez out of the game. Rich Garces allowed singles to McCarty, Gregg Zaun and Damon that scored two runs.

Rheal Cormier gave up a two-run double to Jeff Reboulet, then retired Sweeney on an RBI groundout and would have escaped the jam leading 8-7. But Veras booted Jermaine Dye's grounder, sending in Reboulet with the tying run.

Beltran and McCarty followed with run-scoring singles and Tim Wakefield replaced Cormier. Zaun then singled, making the score 11-8, but was out on a rundown.

The Red Sox tied it in the sixth on Veras' sacrifice fly and Garciaparra's two-run double.

Game notes
Boston 3B John Valentin underwent surgery for a ruptured patellar tendon in his left knee. Dr. David Altchek, the New York Mets team physician, performed the operation in New York. Valentin is expected to miss the rest of the season. ... Garciaparra's homer was his first since April 26 and his first at Fenway Park this season. He totaled 92 homers the last three years. ... The Royals scored nine runs in the sixth inning against Toronto on April 6. ... Damon had three hits for the second straight night. ... Tomo Ohka of Boston's Triple-A team in Pawtucket pitched the first perfect game in club history and the third in the 117-year history of the International League, beating Charlotte 2-0. He threw 77 pitches.