Salvador Perez went 2-for-5 with two home runs and four RBIs to help power the visiting Kansas City Royals to a 12-4 win against the Chicago Cubs on Monday.
Starting pitcher Noah Cameron (4-4) allowed four runs on seven hits and struck out seven in six innings for the Royals.
Cubs reliever Ben Brown (4-7), who replaced Ryan Brasier after the first inning in a bullpen game, was tagged with the loss, giving up six runs on seven hits in four innings.
Down by one, Kansas City grabbed the lead in the fifth and never looked back.
John Rave reached on an infield force out, Kyle Isbel singled and Jonathan India doubled to drive in Rave and tie it 4-4. Isbel came around to score on Bobby Witt Jr.’s infield single for a 5-4 lead.
Witt Jr. then stole second with Vinnie Pasquantino at the plate. Catcher Carson Kelly’s throw to second went into the outfield, bringing in India to make it 6-4 and allowing Witt Jr. to advance to third. He scored on a wild pitch to extend the lead to 7-4.
Rave increased it to 8-4 with a solo home run to right-center in the seventh inning.
In the eighth, Perez’s second two-run homer of the night made it 10-4, a single from Rave drove in Jac Caglianone and Rave scored on a force out, pushing it to 12-4.
The Royals took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second when Caglianone knocked a solo shot into the basket on the wall in left-center.
The Cubs responded in the bottom half as Kelly homered to tie it 1-1. Dansby Swanson then singled, and Justin Turner doubled before Matt Shaw belted a three-run homer off the left-field pole to put the hosts up 4-1.
With Maikel Garcia on base in the fourth, Perez homered for a third straight game, hitting a first-pitch fastball to left-center to narrow the deficit to 4-3.
Chicago center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong missed the game with a bruised right knee, sustained on Sunday against the Boston Red Sox, and is listed as day-to-day.
Salvador Perez hits two homers as Royals rout Cubs
