Red Sox turn to Doubront against Royals

Third-year left-hander Felix Doubront makes the ninth start of his career - and first against Kansas City - when the Boston Red Sox visit Kauffman Stadium for the first of three games against the host Royals.

Doubront debuted with Boston in 2010 and made 12 appearances, including three starts, while posting a 4.32 earned run average across 25 innings.

He pitched out of the bullpen 11 times with the Red Sox a season later, then returned this spring and has made five starts while giving up 15 runs on 28 hits in 26 innings.

He's not pitched more than six innings in any of the five appearances and has allowed three or more runs three times.

Doubront has never faced the Royals.

For Kansas City, fellow lefty Jonathan Sanchez starts for the sixth time in 2012 and makes his third career start against the Red Sox.

A 13-game winner with San Francisco in 2010, Sanchez won just four times in 19 starts last season before heading to the American League in a November trade for outfielder Melky Cabrera.

He won a 7-3 decision over the Los Angeles Angels in his Kansas City debut on April 8, but is 0-1 with three no-decisions since, including a scoreless five- inning stint at Detroit in his most recent start on May 2.

Sanchez is 1-0 with a 5.68 earned run average against Boston.

On Sunday in Boston, Adam Jones hit a three-run homer off of Darnell McDonald in the top of the 17th inning on Sunday and the Orioles outlasted the Red Sox, 9-6, to sweep a three-game series.

McDonald (0-1), an outfielder, entered the game as a pinch-runner in the eighth inning and scored the tying run, then took the mound in the 17th in support of a spent Red Sox bullpen.

In Kansas City, Robinson Cano hit a grand slam as the New York Yankees hammered the Royals, 10-4, to close out a four-game set.

Luke Hochevar (2-3) was touched for seven runs on seven hits and a walk in just 2 1/3 innings for Kansas City, which had won three of its last four.

"When you give up a grand slam, that's not what you want," Hochevar said. "I just need to get to square one, figure it out, get things going and start helping this club."

The Red Sox have won seven of their past 10 versus the Royals.