CLEVELAND — Ryan Yarbrough won his first game back with the Kansas City Royals after being hit in the face by a line drive two months ago, and the Royals finally beat Shane Bieber, snapping a six-game losing streak with a 4-1 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday.
Yarbrough (2-4) suffered several facial fractures when he was hit on May 7 against Oakland by a line drive clocked at 106.2 mph. But the left-hander worked his way back from the scary incident and limited the Guardians to one run and six hits over six innings.
Carlos Hernandez pitched two scoreless innings and Scott Barlow finished up for his 11th save, but not without some nervous moments.
Barlow gave up a pair of two-out singles before Royals center fielder Kyle Isbel raced to his left to make a diving catch and rob Myles Straw for the final out as Kansas City avoided a winless road trip.
Michael Massey hit a two-run triple in Kansas City’s three-run sixth off Bieber (5-6), who came in 6-0 in 14 career starts against the Royals. The right-hander allowed four runs and nine hits in 6⅓ innings.
Isbel homered for Kansas City, which staggered into the All-Star break at 26-65 — the second-most losses before the break in franchise history.
Cleveland reached the season’s unofficial midpoint in first place in the AL Central and at .500 (45-45) or better for the seventh year in a row.