KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jac Caglianone delivered the biggest swing of the night and then kept adding to it. The Royals slugger hit two homers, added two doubles and drove in four runs as Kansas City beat the Chicago Cubs 6-3 on Saturday night.
The performance gave the Royals an immediate offensive jolt and helped back a strong outing from Seth Lugo. It also offered an early look at Clay Holmes’ first appearance for the Cubs after the club traded for him earlier this week.
Caglianone sets the tone for Kansas City
Caglianone finished with four RBIs and four runs scored, making him the central figure in the game from start to finish. His power display included a 448-foot home run, one of the clearest signs of just how loud his night was at the plate.
For Kansas City, the production was exactly what it needed in a game that stayed competitive before the Royals separated themselves. The combination of extra-base hits and run production gave the lineup a simple formula: get Caglianone into favorable spots, and let the damage follow.
Holmes works through his Cubs debut
Holmes was making his first Cubs appearance after coming off the injured list, and the outing came with built-in attention because of how recent the move was. He had been in rehab starts when Chicago acquired him, and Saturday marked his first chance to face major league hitters in a Cubs uniform.
The right-hander allowed six hits and two walks while striking out one in four innings. He gave up three runs and needed 70 pitches to get through the assignment. It was not a smooth debut, but it did at least give Chicago a baseline for where Holmes stands after the injury and the transition to a new team.
What comes next in the series
The Cubs will try to bounce back in Sunday’s series finale with Matthew Boyd scheduled to start. Kansas City is set to counter with Randy Dobnak.
After Saturday’s result, the Royals moved to 5-7, while the Cubs fell to 4-5. The game was a reminder that one big power night can still swing the tone of a matchup quickly, especially when a lineup gets help from a starter like Lugo and a breakout bat like Caglianone.
