ed to give up 14 runs on 20 hits -- four of them home run

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Omar Infante told Royals shortstop Alcides Escobar that on a muggy night at Kauffman Stadium, with a stiff breeze blowing out to left field, any ball hit solidly would clear the fence. Infante never predicted that hed hit one with the bases loaded. The veteran capped a seven-run inning with his first career grand slam Friday, and Kansas City held on to beat the Los Angeles Angels 8-6 on a rough night for starting pitchers. "There was a lot of wind," Infante said. "I just wanted to make contact, do something." The grand slam in the third gave the Royals a 7-2 lead, and they tacked on one more run the next inning. Then, after starter Jason Vargas gave up four runs in the fifth, the Kansas City bullpen twirled five scoreless innings to preserve the victory. Michael Mariot (1-0) picked up his first career win with 1 1-3 innings of relief, and Greg Holland earned his 23rd save by tossing a perfect ninth. "We just knew that with Vargas going four innings, we needed to piece it together," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "Mariot did a phenomenal job." Lorenzo Cain, Billy Butler and Alex Gordon each drove in a run for Kansas City, which ended the Angels six-game winning streak after limping into the series having lost six of seven. Vargas and Angels counterpart Matt Shoemaker (5-2) combined to give up 14 runs on 20 hits -- four of them home runs -- and neither got an out in the fifth. "It was definitely not fun," Shoemaker said. "Its going to make me tougher, not that I wasnt, but you learn from it. The third inning was a long inning. There were a lot of runs." C.J. Cron hit two homers for Los Angeles, and Mike Trout sent a shot to centre in the first inning that cleared the fence, four rows of seats and a walkway before landing in a fountain. "I squared it up. I definitely barrelled it," Trout said. "I was trying to put a good swing on it and got a pitch I could hit. Im always looking fastball and reacted. I got a heater." Trouts mammoth drive only counted for one run, though. It was going to take more than that to win, with the ball carrying so well. Cron added a homer to left with two outs in the second inning, but Kansas City quickly erased its two-run deficit in the third by matching its biggest inning of the season. The seven-run outburst against Shoemaker began with a double by Escobar, who added a single later in the inning. Jarrod Dyson, Cain and Eric Hosmer hit singles, Butler walked, Gordon hit a sacrifice fly and Salvador Perez added another base hit. By that point, the Royals had pulled ahead 3-2 and the bases were loaded for Infante, who hit a high fly to left field that carried just over the wall and landed in the bullpen. His first career grand slam came in his 1,268th game. "The ball was really carrying tonight," Yost said. "I knew he hit it good." Butler added an RBI single in the fourth to make it 8-2. Shoemaker finished the inning but did not emerge for the fifth after allowing eight runs on 11 hits and a walk. The rookie was 5-0 with a 3.00 ERA in his previous seven starts. Vargas nearly squandered the big cushion when Cron hit a two-run shot in the fifth for his first career multihomer game. David Freese, Chris Iannetta and Collin Cowgill joined Trout in stringing together enough hits to eventually put up four runs. Howie Kendrick nearly tied the game with a shot to the wall in right, but Cain caught it on a gallop at the warning track to end the inning and preserve the Royals 8-6 lead. Despite some hiccups, their bullpen kept the Angels off the board the rest of the way. "We had a lot of great opportunities. We could have easily put our heads down when it was 8-2, but we fought back," Trout said. "We just fell short." NOTES: The Angels traded RHP Ernesto Frieri to Pittsburgh for RHP Jason Grilli before the game. "Were trying to get a bullpen with some chemistry," manager Mike Scioscia said. ... The Angels optioned INF Efren Navarro to Triple-A Salt Lake and recalled RHP Michael Kohn after the game. ... Royals RHP Yordano Ventura faces Angels LHP Hector Santiago on Saturday. Phillip Lindsay Jersey .C. -- Benn Ferrieros familiar with scoring important goals, just not in back-to-back games. Khalfani Muhammad Jersey . Mitchell first announced on Twitter that he has signed with the Steelers and his agent Brian Hamilton confirmed the signing to The Associated Press. Financial terms were not released. The Steelers have not announced the addition of Mitchell. http://www.cheapbroncosjerseysauthentic....a-watson-jersey. Sam, who joined the Cowboys in early September, has spent the entire season on the practice roster. Jake Brendel Jersey .com) - The New York Islanders will try to solve their issues against Central Division opponents when they visit the Minnesota Wild for Tuesdays battle at Xcel Energy Center. Zach Kerr Jersey .com) - Hassan Whiteside scored 20 points with nine rebounds in the Miami Heats 83-75 win over the Boston Celtics on Sunday.DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Jose Reyes reported to Blue Jays camp two days early, donning a Superman T-shirt, a wide grin and an optimistic attitude on what he expects will be a much improved season. The four-time All-Star shortstop spent much of the morning Tuesday working out and joking with teammates in the clubhouse. "Were very excited about this year, because last year was a tough year for me and for the whole team," Reyes said. "This year, I feel like Im 100 per cent and back to normal. I just cant wait to go to the field and do what I do best, and help this ballclub get where we need to get." The speedy Reyes was limited to just 92 games last season because of a broken ankle. Hurt in April, he says the injury continued to nag him after he returned from the disabled list in June. But with more time to rehab, Reyes says his ankle has gotten "way better." He says he is not worried about what kind of effects the artificial turf at Rogers Centre could have on it. "I feel like this off-season, I was able to move how I wanted to," Reyes said. "Last year, it was kind of tough for me. Running the bases, going from first to second. Stuff like that bothered me a little bit. But this year, its not a concern at all." Reyes said he is eager turn the page on the past two years, which he described as the hardest of his major league career. After spending his first eight seasons with the New York Mets, Reyes opted become a free agent in 2011. He signed a six-year, $106 million contract with the Marlins, believing a revamped roster could help them contend for a World Series title. But after the Marlins stumbled to a 69-93 record, Reyes was shipped to Toronto aloong with pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle as part of an off-season purge by Miami to dump salary.dddddddddddd The results didnt get much better for Reyes in a new uniform. Picked by many to be playoff contenders, the Blue Jays were crippled by injuries and poor starting pitching and finished 74-88, last in the AL East. "It is tough, because you come with high expectations in spring training," Reyes said. "But in baseball, you never know whats going to happen. You have to put it in the past. This is a new year." Reyes said he kept in touch with sluggers Jose Bautista and Melky Cabrera during the off-season. And while it wont be easy, they agree if the Blue Jays continue to build chemistry, they can contend in the division and return to the playoffs. "We just need to put it together on the field," Reyes said. "If we put it all together -- pitching, hitting, out there on the field -- why can we not compete? The team is still here. We still have the star players that we need to have. We just need to stay healthy and go from there." NOTES: Manager John Gibbons announced that knuckleballer R.A. Dickey will be the teams opening day starter for the second consecutive season, on March 31 against the Tampa Bay Rays. "Itll be Dickey opening up