Marlins top Royals, sweep second straight series

Jesus Sanchez blasted a 445-foot homer and drove in four runs to lead the host Miami Marlins to their sixth straight win, a 6-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday night.

Marlins second baseman Luis Arraez, who leads the majors with a .403 batting average, went 2-for-4. Arraez, who is seeking his second straight batting title, has five consecutive multi-hit games.

Sanchez went 3-for-4. He is now hitting .306 on the season, and his third-inning homer on Wednesday staked the Marlins to a 3-1 lead.

Miami has swept two straight series, beating the two teams with the worst records in the majors. Prior to taking three games from Kansas City (18-44), the Marlins captured a three-game set versus the Athletics, who are a major-league-worst 14-50.

Marlins starter Edward Cabrera (5-4) earned the win, allowing two hits, two walks and one run. He struck out four, but left after just five innings due to a blister.

The Marlins are now 8-5 when starting Cabrera this season, including three straight wins. He is 5-0 at home and 0-4 on the road.

Marlins closer A.J. Puk pitched a scoreless ninth in his first game since May 10. He was activated from the 15-day injured list on Tuesday.

Royals starter Jordan Lyles, who leads the majors in losses, allowed six hits, one walk and five runs in seven-plus innings. After winning 12 games last year, Lyles is now 0-10, and the Royals are 0-13 when he starts.

Kansas City opened the scoring in the third inning thanks to a rally started by Maikel Garcia's single. Garcia advanced to second on a groundout and scored on Nick Pratto's opposite-field single to left.

Miami got on the board in the bottom of the third on Sanchez's three-run shot. Garrett Hampson walked and Arraez singled before Sanchez's two-out homer on an 0-1 changeup.

The Marlins scored three more times in the eighth after singles from Hampson and Arraez. Bryan De La Cruz greeted reliever Jose Cuas with a two-run double. Sanchez's RBI single to center closed Miami's scoring.

With the win, the Marlins improved to 13-2 against American League opponents this year.