KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Clay Buchholz pitched effectively into the eighth inning and designated hitter David Ortiz drove in his 99th run as the Boston Red Sox snapped a four-game losing streak with a 6-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday night.
The loss dropped the Royals’ lead to a half-game over idle Detroit in the American League Central, and the Cleveland Indians moved within four games by sweeping the Minnesota Twins.
Buchholz (8-8) muted the Royals on six hits and three runs (one unearned) in 7 1/3 innings while striking out seven and walking three.
In winning his past three starts, Buchholz has allowed four earned runs in 22 1/3 innings. Buchholz has won his past six starts against the Royals dating to 2090.
The Royals cut the Red Sox lead to 4-3 in the sixth inning on center fielder Lorenzo Cain’s two-out, run-producing single.
Boston second baseman Jemile Weeks answered in the eighth inning with a two-run, two-out double down the first base line, scoring third baseman Will Middlebrooks and catcher Christian Vazquez, who both reached on walks by right-hander Aaron Crow, to give the Red Sox a cushion.
Red Sox right-hander Edward Mujica worked a spotless ninth inning to log his fifth save in six opportunities.
The Royals did not look like a first-place team in the first four innings, trailing the last-place Red Sox 4-2.
Right-hander Liam Hendriks was pulled after retiring only seven of the 15 batters he faced and throwing only 37 of 65 pitches for strikes. He walked two, including first baseman Mike Napoli with the bases loaded in the third inning, and hit a batter.
Hendricks was filling in for left-hander Danny Duffy, who was skipped a start with a sore shoulder.
Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer, shortstop Alcides Escobar and third baseman Mike Moustakas took turns committing errors, which led to two unearned runs.
Hosmer’s failure to glove Vazquez’s grounder in the second inning allowed Middlebrooks, who had doubled, to score.
Escobar (fielding) and Moustakas (throwing) errors in the fourth inning gifted the Red Sox with an unearned run as right fielder Mookie Betts scored on Ortiz’s two-out single.
The Royals benefited from a throwing error on Napoli to score two runs (one unearned) in the second inning. Escobar drove in the first run with a blooper into shallow right-center field.
Royals right fielder Nori Aoki led off the first inning with a double and second baseman Omar Infante bunted him to third, but he died there after Buchholz struck out left fielder Alex Gordon and Hosmer.
NOTES: Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia had season-ending left wrist surgery Thursday. It was the third straight year that Pedroia has required wrist or hand surgery. He hit .278 with 40 extra-base hits in 551 at-bats. Rookie Jemile Weeks started in Pedroia’s place. … Royals RHP Greg Holland, who did not pitch on the just-concluded six-game trip to New York and Boston, said he was fine to pitch Thursday if needed. … LHP Danny Duffy, whose start was skipped Thursday because of a sore shoulder after throwing only pitch on Sept. 6, said he hopes to resume playing catch in the next day or two. … Who are these guys? Only four Red Sox position players — SS Xander Bogaerts, DH David Ortiz, 1B Mike Napoli and 3B Will Middlebrooks — participated in the 2013 World Series against St. Louis. … Royals RHP Yordano Ventura, who starts Friday, leads major league rookies with 19 quality starts, including his past seven starts.