Category: Kansas City Monarchs

The Kansas City Monarchs (54-27) lost game three 11-2 to the Chicago Dogs (49-31) in the final game of the road series on Sunday.

The Monarchs finished the important seven-game swing, 4-3.

Chicago ignited in the bottom of the second, beginning with pitcher Keyvius Sampson (2-1) giving up a walk and ending with three runs, thanks to a double to left by Michael Crouse. Sampson pitched for 4.1 innings, allowed four hits, six runs, six walks and recorded six strikeouts.

A lead-off double to center by Will Kengor got some momentum going in the top of the third. Ryan Grotjohn then stamped in an RBI single to score Kengor.

The Dogs extended their lead in the bottom of the fourth, tacking on three more runs, dominating the Monarchs, 6-1.

Kansas City kept the Dogs quiet in the fifth, but Chicago got going again in the sixth, scoring another three runs. The Dog offense couldn’t be stopped, as they scored a run off of a wild pitch by Jacob Lindgren in the seventh and a run by T.J. Bennett after Johnny Adams hit an RBI double, making the score a whopping 10-1.

Chicago scored again in the eighth, bringing the team ahead of the Monarchs 11-1.

Kansas City ended the game with a run by Gaby Guerrero, after he doubled then ran home, thanks to a wild pitch in the top of the ninth.

The Kansas City Monarchs will travel home for an off day tomorrow; then they will open a six-game homestand on Tuesday night at Legends Field, beginning with the Sioux City Explorers. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game beginning at 6:30 p.m. and the video stream airing on aabaseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

• Story by Emerson Peavey, Monarchs

The Monarchs dropped Game 2 of a three-game set with Chicago on Saturday night, falling 7-4 as the offense was neutralized for the first six innings by John Baker.

The loss is the first of the year against the Dogs.

For the first time in his professional career, Brock Gilliam climbed the mound as a starter for the Monarchs.

The Dogs (48-31), however, struck early off the right-hander with a sacrifice fly from Danny Mars. With a 1-0 lead, Baker worked efficiently through Kansas City’s lineup.

In the bottom of the fourth, Chicago flexed its muscles on Gilliam. K.C. Hobson and Anfernee Grier blasted a pair of solo shots to give the Dogs a 3-0 lead over the first -place Monarchs.

It wasn’t until the top of the seventh that Kansas City (54-26) broke through off Baker. With a runner on, Casey Gillaspie rocked his team-leading 18th homer of the 2021 campaign and trimmed the deficit to one run.

Chicago, for the most part, put the game out of reach in the bottom of the seventh. Facing Ryan Newell, the Dogs knocked in three runs on an RBI-single by Hobson that scored two and a fielder’s choice.

The Monarchs made their attempt to claw back in the top of the eighth. After collecting a hit earlier in the night, Morgan McCullough clubbed his 10th home run of the year to cut the lead back to two.

In the ninth, Jeff Kinley slammed the door on the Monarchs and handed Kansas City its 26th loss of the year.

Kansas City is finishing its road trip against Chicago at Impact Field on Sunday afternoon. First pitch was at 3:05 p.m. The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network.

Ticket to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

• Story by Jack Johnson, Monarchs

The Kansas City Monarchs and the Chicago Dogs both came in first place in their divisions in the American Association Friday night, but it was the Monarchs who relished the win over the Dogs.

With the 6-4-win in Chicago, Kansas City (54-25) is now 4-0 against Chicago Dogs (47-31) this season.

A two-run home run from Morgan McCullough in the ninth gave the Monarchs the boost they needed to secure the win over the second-place team in the north division.

The Monarchs were quiet to start the night as Chicago’s right-handed pitcher Jordan Kipper delivered four strikeouts in half as many innings, ending his night with eight. Monarch’s right-handed pitcher Justin Donatella tossed another quality start with six strikeouts in as many innings.

Kansas City got on the board in the third, courtesy of a McCullough RBI after his base hit single brought in Daniel Wasinger from second base, making the score 1-0.

Chicago responded with a run of its own during their next at bat with an unearned run, tying up the game, 1-1.

Casey Gillaspie took back the lead for the Monarchs with a solo home run in the fifth inning.

The first multi-run home run came from Ryan Lidge with a two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth, and the Dogs took the lead, 3-2.

Will Kengor extended his hitting streak to game number 19 with a single in the seventh inning, going 1-4 in the game.

More home runs were delivered as Ryan Grotjohn sent his own two-run home run to right field in the seventh, taking back the lead for the Monarchs, and making the score 4-3.

McCullough’s own two-run homer in the top of the ninth was necessary as Chicago’s Anfernee Grier blasted a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth, but it wasn’t enough as Monarchs hold on to win the first game of the series 6-4.

The Monarchs will continue their series with the Chicago Dogs on Saturday with the first pitch at 7:05 p.m. The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game beginning at 6:30 p.m. and the video stream airing on aabaseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

• by Kaitlyn Sanders, Monarchs