Royals 3, Rangers 1
Alcides Escobar hit a two-run single in the fifth and Bruce Chen tossed 6 2/3 strong innings as visiting Kansas City cooled down Texas in the opener of their two-game series.
Jeff Francoeur recorded two hits and scored twice for the Royals, who have won four of five.
Chen (2-4) held the Rangers' potent offense to one run and five hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. The veteran journeyman entered with a 10.58 ERA in eight career games against Texas.
Three relievers bridged the gap to Jonathan Broxton, who worked a scoreless ninth for his eighth save in nine chances.
Nelson Cruz led off the fourth inning with his fourth home run of the season to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead. Escobar put Kansas City ahead for good with his single and Francoeur scored on a double-play grounder in the seventh to double the advantage.
Scott Feldman (0-1) lasted 4 2/3 innings in a spot start for Texas, surrendering two unearned runs and three hits.
Slugger Josh Hamilton extended his hitting streak to 14 games with a single for the Rangers, who registered only seven hits after notching 19 in Sunday's win over the Angels.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Hamilton's streak of consecutive games with an RBI ended at four. He failed to drive in a run for only the second time in nine contests but has 19 RBIs during that span. ... Kansas City third baseman Mike Moustakas returned to the lineup and went 1-for-4 after missing two games with a sore left hamstring. ... Royals left-hander Danny Duffy, who left Sunday's game complaining of tightness in his elbow, was discovered to have a torn ulnar collateral ligament and will likely need Tommy John surgery.