Cole Ragans allowed one run over six innings and struck out 11 to help the Kansas City Royals earn a 4-1 win against the visiting Miami Marlins on Monday night in the opener of a three-game series.
Ragans (5-5) allowed four hits and walked three on a season-high 108 pitches.
Chris Stratton threw a scoreless seventh, John Schreiber overcame his own error to blank Miami in the eighth and James McArthur pitched the ninth for his 13th save.
Vinnie Pasquantino, Salvador Perez and Hunter Renfroe all homered for the Royals, who had lost three in a row and gone 25 straight innings without a run before Pasquantino went deep to start the bottom of the fourth.
Otto Lopez had two of the four hits for the Marlins, who had won four of their past five.
Miami rookie right-hander Roddery Munoz (1-3) allowed four runs and six hits in six innings, striking out four and walking four in his seventh major league start.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. walked with two outs in the third inning and Bryan De La Cruz hit a liner just over the head of third baseman CJ Alexander for a double. The ball rolled into the left field corner, allowing Chisholm to score from first for a 1-0 lead.
Munoz did not allow a hit until Pasquantino went deep to open the fourth and tie things at 1-1. Perez then homered on the next pitch to end an 0-for-17 skid and give Kansas City a 2-1 lead.
The inning continued with a single by Michael Massey, who was serving as the designated hitter after missing the previous 27 games with a back injury.
After walking MJ Melendez, Munoz got the next two outs, but Kyle Isbel hit a line drive that nicked off the glove of shortstop Tim Anderson and went into center field, scoring Massey for a 3-1 lead.
Renfroe blasted a solo homer to left with one out in the sixth to extend the lead to 4-1.
The Royals selected the contract of Alexander from Triple-A Omaha earlier Monday, and he started at third base in his major league debut. Alexander, the brother of Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop Blaze Alexander, went 0-for-3.
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