Yankees hit 6 homers, every starter has at least 2 hits for first time amid a 15-1 romp over Royals

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Yankees clubbed six home runs and every starter in the lineup had at least two hits for the first time in franchise history, sending New York to a 15-1 rout of Kansas City on Tuesday night and its 12th consecutive win over the Royals.

Amed Rosario homered twice and Cody Bellinger, Anthony Volpe, Trent Grisham and Jazz Chisholm Jr. also went deep for the Yankees, who have hit a league-leading 82 home runs this season. Kansas City, by comparison, has hit just 51.

The Yankees finished with 24 hits against Kansas City, their most since a game against Baltimore on July 30, 2011.

Cam Schlittler (7-2) allowed his third homer of the year, a solo shot by Bobby Witt Jr., but little else over six innings. It was the seventh time in his last eight starts that Schlittler allowed one earned run or fewer, and he struck out six without issuing a walk.

The Royals sent Bailey Falter (0-2) out against him to lead off a designated bullpen game. He wound up allowing as many runs (seven) as he recorded outs, and the Yankees proceeded to pull away against Luinder Avila and the rest of the Kansas City staff.

That included backup outfielder Tyler Tolbert, who threw a diet of 44 mph lobs in the ninth inning.

Bellinger started the damage for New York by homering for the second straight game, a two-out shot in the first. Paul Goldschmidt followed with a double and, when the Royals thought they were out of the inning on a sinking liner right fielder Jac Caglianone lazily snared at grass level, a challenge by Yankees manager Aaron Boone showed the ball had touched the ground.

Rather than escaping the inning down 1-0, the Royals trailed 2-0 with a runner on base. Rosario made it 4-0 a couple of pitchers later, sending Falter's hanging curveball 420 feet over the left-field fence, and the Yankees were on their way.

Yankees RHP Gerrit Cole (0-0, 0.00 ERA) makes his second start since Tommy John surgery when he faces Royals LHP Noah Cameron (2-3, 4.72) in the series finale Wednesday night. Cole allowed two hits over six scoreless innings against Tampa Bay last Friday night. It was his first major league game since Game 5 of the 2024 World Series against the Dodgers.

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New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger runs past Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez to score after hitting a solo home run during the first inning of baseball game, Tuesday, May 26, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Bailey Falter throws during the first inning of baseball game against the New York Yankees, Tuesday, May 26, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

New York Yankees' Ben Rice (22) celebrates in the dugout after scoring on a single by Anthony Volpe during the third inning of baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Tuesday, May 26, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger runs home after hitting a solo home run during the first inning of baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Tuesday, May 26, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

New York Yankees' Amed Rosario hits a two-run home run during the first inning of baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Tuesday, May 26, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. (AP) — Southern California officials lifted the final evacuation orders Tuesday night for residents who live near a damaged chemical tank, allowing 16,000 people to return home.

The crisis forced 50,000 people to evacuate in and around the Orange County city of Garden Grove last week. A crack that formed by chance on the tank relieved pressure and helped avert a catastrophic explosion, allowing most evacuees to return home over the Memorial Day weekend.

The tank contains methyl methacrylate, which is highly flammable. Health officials have assured residents that there was no contamination or fumes released. Officials say they will keep monitoring the air for several months and checking the sewer and storm drains.

But the risk of a smaller explosion or potential spill had kept orders in place for about a third of the evacuees. Many were living out of hotel rooms, tents, emergency shelters at schools or staying with family or friends.

Isabel Mendez said she broke out in a rash on her face and developed tingling lips and a sore throat while evacuating last week. After spending several expensive nights in a hotel, she was staying with her mother in the Los Angeles area.

Exposure to the chemical can cause serious respiratory problems, neurological issues and irritation to the skin, eyes and throat, according to the federal Environmental Protection Agency. The tank at GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems, which makes cockpit windows, canopies and windshields, contains 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 to 26,500 liters) of the chemical.

“We apologize for the ongoing disruption this incident is causing and our priority remains its safe resolution,” the company said.

Separately, an implosion of a chemical tank Tuesday at a pulp and paper mill in Washington state killed one worker and left nine others accounted for, with authorities saying they were working on recovery efforts. Nine others were injured.

Crews at the California plant worked overnight to ensure two nearby tanks were neutralized and would not be affected by the compromised tank, Orange County Fire Capt. Brian Yau said.

The tank overheated because a valve on the cooling system failed that kept it at at 50 degrees, (10 degrees Celsius), said Orange County Fire Authority Division Chief Craig Covey.

Crews sprayed water on the tank until the interior temperature stabilized to 92 F (33.3 C), down from 100 F (37.7 C) over the weekend, the fire department said Tuesday. A sprinkler system is still dousing the tank, and the company said its technical specialists and firefighters removed insulation from the tank to help cool it.

So far testing has found no contamination, officials said.

Orange County Health Director Regina Chinsio-Kwong tried to reassure people returning home over the holiday weekend, saying "you should feel comfortable going home even if you’re across the street from that new zone line.”

The crisis interrupted Memorial Day plans, graduation ceremonies and daily life in central Orange County, which is made up of a cluster of cities including Garden Grove.

The city of 170,000 people, along with neighboring Westminster, is home to Little Saigon, the largest Vietnamese community outside Vietnam, and is next to Anaheim, home to Disneyland’s two theme parks, which were outside the evacuation zone.

Henry Nguyen, a 56-year-old auto mechanic, and his family spent the first two nights sleeping in their car.

Days into the evacuation, Nguyen said he sneaked into their Stanton home, which was filled with fumes, to rescue the family’s dog, cat and betta fish.

He also got a tent, which he pitched by an emergency shelter that officials set up in a nearby park building in Fountain Valley. Nguyen said he was trying to focus on the experience like it’s a camping trip in the heart of densely populated Orange County.

He even brought archery equipment to use at a range in the park to help his teenage daughter, who was back at high school Tuesday, keep busy until they could go home.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District will monitor the air for several months and the EPA will be checking sewer and storm drains for spills, Orange County Supervisor Janet Nguyen said.

As the tank heated up, the chemical converted from liquid to gas, ramping up the pressure and explosion risk, said Andrew Whelton, a Purdue University engineering professor who has studied environmental contamination. Some of the methyl methacrylate may already have hardened into a stable plastic similar to plexiglass, reducing the danger, he said.

“The tank was on track for a catastrophic explosion,” Whelton said. “The formation of a crack seems to have allowed pressure to vent.”

The risk remains of a smaller blast that could send projectiles or even a chemical plume toward nearby homes, he said.

The tank needs to get closer to 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6 to 21.1 degrees C) before conditions are considered significantly safer, he said.

The California crisis is reminiscent of a 2014 chemical spill in Charleston, West Virginia when storage tanks failed. The disaster inspired a new state law requiring more inspections and registrations of aboveground storage tanks.

This story has been updated to correct a quote’s attribution to Orange County Fire Authority Division Chief Craig Covey not TJ McGovern, an interim fire chief of the Orange County Fire Authority.

Weber reported from Los Angeles and Bellisle from Seattle. Associated Press journalists Leah Willingham in Boston; Jamie Stengle in Dallas; and Ethan Swope in Garden Grove, California, contributed to this report.

Two evacuees sit in their pickup truck at a gas station within the evacuation zone in Stanton, Calif., Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

An aerial view shows a police checkpoint enforcing a road closure at the evacuation zone boundary in Anaheim, Calif., Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Jan De Jonge and fiancé Sher Stuckman set up a tent with their belonging and pet outside the Elks Lodge in Garden Grove, Calif., on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

An evacuation map is displayed at the incident command post at the Los Alamitos Race Course in Cypress, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Water is sprayed on a damaged tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026, after the tank containing a chemical used to make plastic parts overheated Thursday. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

People walk outside Freedom Hall, an evacuation center in Fountain Valley, Calif., on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

An American Red Cross volunteer walks outside Freedom Hall, an evacuation center in Fountain Valley, Calif.,on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

People tend to their pets outside Freedom Hall, an evacuation center in Fountain Valley, Calif., on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)