June 11 (UPI) -- Hunter Renfroe experienced a painful at-bat in more ways than one in a Kansas City Royals loss to the New York Yankees, fouling two pitches off his foot, resulting in a toe fracture, before striking out.
The sour sequence occurred during the third inning of the 4-2 setback Monday at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. The veteran outfielder left the game due to the injury.
"Broken toe," Royals manager Matt Quatraro told reporters, when asked about Renfroe's injury. "He's in pain. He's got it in the cold tub trying to take away some of the pain.
"That's all we know right now. He's going to be seen [by a doctor] and figure out what we need to do."
Yankees left fielder Alex Verdugo plated designated hitter Juan Soto with an RBI single in the top of the first for the first run of the night. First baseman D.J. LeMahieu doubled the Yankees lead with an RBI sacrifice fly in the next at-bat.
Neither team scored in the second inning. Renfroe then led off the bottom of the third, settling in against Yankees starter Carlos Rodon. The left-handed pitcher tossed in a curveball, which dropped out of the strike zone. Renfroe hacked at the offering, getting a piece of it and sending the ball flying into his left big toe. He grimaced in pain.
He later smacked another off-speed pitch into the same area. Renfroe ended the at-bat by watching a fastball fly into the middle of the zone, resulting in his strikeout.
The Yankees scored two more runs on an RBI single from catcher Jose Trevino in the top of the fourth. M.J. Melendez replaced Renfroe in right field in the top of the fifth.
Royals catcher Freddy Fermin nearly sparked a rally with an RBI single in the bottom of the seventh. Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. cut the deficit in half with an RBI double in the eighth, but the Royals didn't score again.
Second baseman Nick Loftin was the only Royals player to reach base more than once. He went 2 for 2 with a walk in the setback.
Royals starter Seth Lugo allowed eight hits and four runs over seven innings to drop to 9-2 this season. Rodon allowed five hits and one run over seven innings to improve to 9-2.
Trevino and Verdugo recorded two hits apiece for the Yankees.
Renfroe, 32, is hitting .200 with six home runs and 26 RBIs through 56 games this season. The nine-year veteran, who signed with the Royals in free agency, owns a .237 batting average for his career.
The Royals (39-28) will host the Yankees (47-21) in the second-game of their four-game series at 8:10 p.m. EDT Tuesday at Kauffman Stadium.
