DETROIT (AP) — Shane Greene has been part of almost every victory this season for the Detroit Tigers.

The right-hander allowed a home run in the ninth inning against Kansas City on Friday night, but still closed out the win.

Greene finished Detroit’s 4-3 victory over the Royals for his American League-leading 13th save in 13 chances. The Tigers only have 14 wins, so Greene is clearly a big reason Detroit is just a game under .500 in what was supposed to be another rebuilding year.

“You lose your confidence, sooner or later you’re going to pay for it,” Greene said. “So you’ve got to walk around thinking you’re the best, knowing you’re the best and playing like you’re the best.”

Greene struck out two in the ninth, but he also allowed a solo homer to Jorge Soler and a two-out double to pinch-hitter Ryan O’Hearn. He finally retired Martin Maldonado on a popup to end it.

Matthew Boyd struck out nine in another solid outing, and the Tigers scored three runs in the first inning. It was the sixth straight quality start for Boyd, who allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings. He walked one.

“His pitch count got up early, and then he had a couple good innings to get back in it,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “We needed him out there.”

Joe Jimenez struck out two in a perfect eighth for Detroit.

Jorge Lopez (0-3) settled down nicely after a tough start. He allowed four runs and five hits in seven innings.

“He made a little adjustment after the first inning and he just got a lot sharper,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “He left some sliders up in the first and they hit them, but he didn’t let them do that the rest of the way.”

Miguel Cabrera hit an RBI single in the first, giving the Tigers a 1-0 lead before Lopez had gotten an out. Another run came home when Ronny Rodríguez grounded into a force play, and Rodríguez scored on a wild pitch, sliding in safely on a close play at the plate.

Rodríguez added an RBI double in the third, and Boyd kept the Royals off the scoreboard until the fourth, when Soler hit a sacrifice fly and Kelvin Gutierrez followed with a run-scoring triple.

Boyd (3-2) worked out of that jam with back-to-back strikeouts, and the Tigers held on from there to improve to 4-0 on the season against Kansas City.

Cabrera had three singles for Detroit.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Brandon Lowe hit a two-run homer off Wily Peralta with two outs in the ninth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays rallied to beat the Kansas City Royals 3-1 Thursday for a four-game split.

Whit Merrifield became the third player with a two-triple game this season for the Royals, who lead the major leagues with 17 in 32 games. His third-inning triple drove in Martin Maldonado, who beat out an infield hit and is 7 for 13 against Charlie Morton.

AL East-leading Tampa Bay tied the score in the fifth on consecutive singles by Willy Adames, Nate Lowe and Guillermo Heredia.

Peralta (2-2) walked Daniel Robertson on four pitches leading off the ninth, and Lowe connected with two outs for his seventh home run this season.

Adam Kolarek (2-1) got the final two outs of the eighth, and Diego Castillo struck out two in a perfect ninth for his fourth save in as many chances. Tampa Bay won the season series 4-3.

Royals starter Danny Duffy allowed six hits in six innings, while Morton gave up five hits in 6 2/3 innings with nine strikeouts.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Glenn Sparkman and Kelvin Gutierrez were hanging out at Triple-A Omaha last weekend, the career reliever and young third baseman eagerly awaiting a call from the Kansas City Royals.

They both got it. And they both made the most of it.

Sparkman was recalled on Wednesday to start the second game of a doubleheader against Tampa Bay, and he merely breezed through seven innings of three-hit ball while outpitching reigning AL Cy Young winner Blake Snell in an 8-0 victory. Gutierrez hit his first homer in the second game to go with an RBI in the first, which Kansas City took by a 3-2 score.

“My focus today was just trying to stay relaxed. Don’t let the game get too big,” said Sparkman, who arrived in town about 1 a.m. and proceeded to earn his first major league win. “I knew I had to go out there and do my thing to get the sweep.”

In the opener, Adalberto Mondesi hit a two-run homer to highlight a three-run first inning for Kansas City, and Jacob Junis and the bullpen held on the rest of the way. Mondesi also drove in a run in the second game to cap a big afternoon, while Gutierrez’s homer off the foul pole helped him match a Royals record with seven RBIs in his first five games.

It was the first time the Royals swept a doubleheader since July 7, 2015, when a team that would reach its second straight World Series also accomplished the feat against the Rays.

“The first game we scored three runs in the first and just could not tack on, and fortunately we were able to tack on in the second,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “We broke the game open.”

The sweep was especially eye-opening given Tampa Bay was coming off a club-record 19 wins through April, and the Royals had stumbled into the day having lost eight of their last 10.

“I mean look, doubleheaders are tough to begin with. I think you’ve got to give a lot of credit to the Royals,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “They came out and ready to go, two ballgames, sweep the doubleheader — whether you’re at home or on the road, that’s a difficult thing to do in baseball, and they just did it to what we would consider a good team.”

Junis (3-2) won his second consecutive start , both against the Rays, by allowing two runs on six hits in 6 1/3 innings in the opener. The young pitcher walked two and struck out two.

The Royals jumped on Rays opener Ryne Stanek (0-1) when Whit Merrifield led off with a double and stole third before Mondesi drilled his fourth homer this season to right. Alex Gordon walked and later scored as the first four batters reached safely.

Ian Kennedy worked two scoreless innings for his second save in three chances.

The Royals kept rolling in the second game, getting the first of two RBI singles by Jorge Soler and Gutierrez’s homer to stake them to a 3-0 lead against Snell after the first inning.

Kansas City added another run in the third before a four-run fourth inning sent Snell to the clubhouse. The first six batters reached base in the frame on four hits and a pair of walks.

Billy Hamilton chased Snell (2-3) with an RBI single in the fourth, the third straight batter to reach to start the inning. By the time all three scored, Snell had allowed seven runs on six hits and three walks in his second start since a 10-day layoff for a broken toe.

“It was uncharacteristic,” Cash said. “He just never could get it right, for whatever reason.”

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays’ game against the Kansas City Royals was washed out Tuesday night, and the teams will make it up at part of a doubleheader Wednesday with the first game starting at 12:15 p.m.

The second game will begin 45 minutes after the first game.

The Rays planned to send Blake Snell to the mound Tuesday in his second start since hurting his toe in a freak accident at home, while the Royals planned to counter with Jakob Junis.

Tampa Bay intended to use an opener against the Royals’ Danny Duffy in their game Wednesday.

The Rays (19-9) rolled to an 8-5 win in the opener Monday night, building upon the best record in baseball. The rainout means Kansas City (9-20) will avoid matching its worst March-April loss total of 21, set just last season.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays have successfully started a Cy Young Award winner and relievers, generated offense from everyone in their hobbled lineup, and watched as their bullpen has preserved far more leads than they’ve squandered.

No wonder they have the best record in the majors as the end of April nears.

“You’ve got to be happy the way this club has come out of the gate strong,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said after an 8-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Monday night. “We felt like we were balanced and if you had a one-month review, you’d be happy with what you see.”

Tommy Pham, Yandy Diaz and Ji-Man Choi each drove in a pair of runs against Kansas City, helping the Rays (19-9) win for the fifth time in six games. They also improved to 10-2 on the road.

“This is just everyone doing their best to play well. Everyone is fighting to win every single game,” Choi said through a translator. “Everyone is doing well, so it’s fun.”

Yonny Chirinos went 5 2/3 innings in relief of effective opener Ryne Stanek, allowing two earned runs on two hits and a walk. Chirinos improved to 4-0 after going 0-3 last season.

The Rays did most of their damage against Brad Keller (2-3), who struggled in his return from a five-game suspension for his role in a fracas with the Chicago White Sox. The big right-hander allowed five runs on six hits and three walks over five innings.

“From the first inning on he was really pulling the ball,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “He was going on the seventh day, so a little bit rusty, but just fought command the whole time. But to his credit, he never stopped competing. He never gave in. He just kept battling, kept grinding.”

The Royals have lost 11 of 12 against Tampa Bay after going 29-10 in the previous 39 matchups.

“Definitely didn’t feel my best out there,” Keller said. “Didn’t have my best stuff. Just went out there and tried to battle as much as possible and get as deep in the game. I was yanking a lot of pitches. Just tried to settle down and go after guys.”

The Rays jumped on Keller in the first when Choi drew a two-out walk, went to second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on a balk. When he scored on Diaz’s base hit, Tampa Bay had outscored its opponents 29-4 in the first inning this season.

The Rays added three more in the second after Kevin Kiermaier was hit by a pitch, beginning a parade of batters to the plate. Perez delivered an RBI double and Pham provided the big blow with a two-run triple, staking the Rays’ pitching staff — with the best ERA in baseball — to a 4-0 lead.

They nearly gave it right back in the third.

The Royals took advantage of an error by Rays shortstop Daniel Robertson and a walk to Whit Merrifield when Adalberto Mondesi tripled to right. He scored on Alex Gordon’s sacrifice fly.

Jorge Soler homered in the seventh for Kansas City, but the Rays added a run in the eighth and Choi’s two-run double off Wily Peralta in the ninth to put the game away.