Witt homers as the Royals earn their fifth straight win with a four-game sweep of the Athletics

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Bobby Witt Jr. homered and scored three runs, and the Kansas City Royals beat the Athletics 6-2 on Thursday for their first four-game sweep of the season.

The Royals have won five straight games and earned their fourth series sweep of the season, but this was the first of four games.

The Athletics have lost 17 of their last 21.

Connor Thomas (1-1) pitched 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief for his first major league win.

Gage Jump (5-8) allowed five runs on eight hits in four innings to take the loss.

Royals starter Randy Dobnak maneuvered through four scoreless innings, allowing 10 baserunners on six hits and four walks.

The Royals took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on Witt's 16th home run.

Maikel Garcia followed with a double, but pulled up clutching his left hamstring after rounding third on Salvador Perez's grounder that eluded shortstop Darell Hernaiz for an error.

Garcia left the game with a left hamstring injury. He had just returned Monday after he had been on the injured list since June 23 with a left hand muscle strain.

The Royals added two in the third on a two-out, bases-loaded single by Isaac Collins. The Royals then added two more runs in the fifth on a triple by Nick Loftin and a single by Perez.

The Athletics scored a pair of runs in the fifth. They loaded the bases on three straight walks before Brian Serven's single and Donovan Walton's ground out drove in the runs.

The Royals answered with one in the fifth on a double by Michael Massey.

The Athletics will face the Astros in Houston on Friday. RHP J.T. Ginn (8-7, 3.53 ERA) will pitch for the A's, while the Astros have not named their starter.

The Royals will welcome the Detroit Tigers, who will send RHP Troy Melton (7-1, 1.71 ERA) to face LHP Noah Cameron (7-8, 4.16).

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