Lindor breaks up no-hitter, but Indians fall to Royals

Associated Press

KANSAS CITY, Mo.

If anybody has any quarrels with Francisco Lindor breaking up a no-hitter with a bunt single, Cleveland manager Terry Francona doesn’t want to hear it.

Lindor ended Kansas City’s no-hit bid with a bunt single against reliever Ryan Madson leading off the seventh inning, and the AL Central-champion Royals beat the Indians 3-0 with a five-pitcher two-hitter.

“We’re not trying to break up a no-hitter; we’re trying to win a game,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “If they have issues with it — I saw [Alcides] Escobar saying a few things — they can take it up with me. I thought it was a very good bunt.”

Royals manager Ned Yost had no qualms with Lindor bunting.

“I was a little bit surprised,” Yost said. “But no, they’re fighting for a wild card.”

Yost added that he would’ve been more upset if it was a one-pitcher bid.

“I just want to win the game,” he said, “and they want to win the game and they’re trying find [to] ways to keep themselves in that wild-card hunt.”

On the first pitch from Madson, who was pitching from the stretch, Lindor laid down a bunt that third baseman Mike Moustakas, who was playing back, picked up with his bare hand about 40 feet from home plate. Moustakas’ one-hop throw to first was not nearly in time.

“I was trying to get on base and make something happen,” Lindor said. “Michael Brantley was coming to home plate, the tying run. I mean that’s big, to get the tying run to the plate. Getting somebody on base when it’s two-nothing, you can change the game like that.”

Chris Young’s father died Saturday night, but he insisted on starting Sunday for the Royals.

Young (11-6), making his first start since July 28 after nearly two months in the bullpen, pitched five hitless innings.

Danny Duffy struck out two in a perfect sixth for the Royals, who already have clinched their first division title in 30 years.

A day after climbing above .500 for the first time since April 9, the Indians (77-77) fell four games behind Houston (82-74) for the AL’s second wild card with eight games left.

Cleveland’s only previous baserunner before Lindor was Brantley, who walked with two outs in the fourth.