Seth Lugo dominates the Yankees for his 16th victory as the Royals win 5-0

NEW YORK (AP) — Seth Lugo struck out 10 in seven masterful innings and Salvador Perez hit two run-scoring singles to reach 100 RBIs for the second time as the Kansas City Royals beat the New York Yankees 5-0 on Tuesday night.

Pitching in New York City for the first time since spending his first seven seasons across town with the Mets from 2016-22, Lugo absolutely dominated.

“I’m looking forward to going back and watching that, to be honest, because he must have been on the corners all night,” Kansas City manager Matt Quatraro said. "He got the breaking ball going to get the swing and miss. He elevated when he needed to. I mean, that was a pitching clinic.”

Tommy Pham homered and Bobby Witt Jr. had an RBI single for the Royals, who remained 3 1/2 games behind first-place Cleveland in the AL Central. They hold a 2 1/2-game edge over Minnesota for the league's second wild card.

New York's advantage in the AL East was shaved to a half-game over second-place Baltimore, which won 5-3 at Boston.

“We know they’re in line to make the playoffs," Lugo said. “With the atmosphere here in New York, I think the emphasis for a lot of guys on the team is getting used to this kind of atmosphere. This is what we’re going to face.”

In a potential postseason preview, Lugo (16-8) carved up a full-strength Yankees lineup that entered leading the majors in homers and ranked second in runs.

“That was probably as good a performance (as there's been) against us this year. We were silent,” New York manager Aaron Boone said. “He's throwing the kitchen sink at you. He's changing speeds.”

The right-hander allowed only three singles and walked none, retiring 17 straight batters after Gleyber Torres' bloop hit to begin the bottom of the first.

Torres snapped the string on another soft single off Lugo with two outs in the sixth.

“I think he was mixing up pitches really well tonight. He was pounding the strike zone,” Yankees slugger Juan Soto said. “It's tough with a guy who has like nine pitches, and he was showing every pitch today. So, he was throwing everything, he was confident about it, and he just kept us off balance.”

Kris Bubic and John Schreiber each fanned two in a perfect inning to complete the three-hitter, as New York failed to advance a runner to second base. It was Kansas City's first shutout against the Yankees since May 2015 at Kauffman Stadium.

Lugo tied Atlanta ace Chris Sale and Detroit lefty Tarik Skubal for most wins in the majors.

“I was locating all of my pitches and I don’t think there was a pitch that I didn’t think I could throw where I wanted," Lugo said. “It was just one of those nights. I had everything working.”

The right-hander outpitched former Mets teammate Marcus Stroman (10-8), who permitted three runs and seven hits in 5 1/3 innings.

No. 9 batter Kyle Isbel scored twice after leadoff singles for the Royals, who had dropped six consecutive road games. They won for the fifth time in 13 games overall and improved to 2-4 against the Yankees this season.

“That lineup is relentless so you don’t ever really get comfortable,” Lugo said. “I think it really comes down to the game yesterday. Tough loss and really wanted to even the series right there. So I think it was important.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals: RHP Michael Lorenzen (left hamstring strain) was tagged for three runs and five hits over 1 2/3 innings during a rehab start with Double-A Northwest Arkansas. He threw 38 pitches. It's possible Lorenzen could rejoin the big league rotation next week. ... LHP Will Smith (back spasms) planned to throw another bullpen at less than full intensity. "He’s still not completely symptom-free in his back. But he’s working through the bullpens,” Quatraro said. “It’s improving, it’s just not completely resolved.”

Yankees: Boone didn't rule out a return this season for infielder DJ LeMahieu (right hip impingement), but also said he wouldn't count on it, either.

UP NEXT

All-Star LHP Cole Ragans (11-9, 3.33 ERA) starts for Kansas City against rookie RHP Luis Gil (13-6, 3.24) in the rubber match of the three-game series Wednesday night.

The first Royals lefty with 200 strikeouts in a season, Ragans pitched six shutout innings to beat Minnesota last Friday night. Gil returned that day from a lower back strain that landed him on the injured list and threw six innings of one-hit ball in a 3-0 win over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

New York Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman throws during the second inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals at Yankee Stadium, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

New York Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman looks up before the start of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals at Yankee Stadium, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Kansas City Royals' Salvador Perez hits an RBI single during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Kansas City Royals pitcher Seth Lugo throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

New York Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals at Yankee Stadium, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Kansas City Royals' Bobby Witt Jr., right, celebrates with MJ Melendez (1) after scoring on a single hit by Salvador Perez during the third inning of a baseball game at Yankee Stadium, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Kansas City Royals' Bobby Witt Jr., left, Salvador Perez (13), Paul DeJong, second from right, and Maikel Garcia (11) celebrate after a baseball game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Kansas City Royals catcher Freddy Fermin, left, and pitcher John Schreiber celebrate after a baseball game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Kansas City Royals outfielders MJ Melendez, left, Garrett Hampson and Tommy Pham celebrate after a baseball game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Kansas City Royals pitcher Seth Lugo throws during the third inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy" Combs was expected to appear before a federal judge in New York on Tuesday after his indictment on undisclosed criminal charges.

The music mogul was arrested late Monday in Manhattan, roughly six months after federal authorities conducting a sex trafficking investigation raided his luxurious homes in Los Angeles and Miami.

The indictment detailing the charges was expected to be unsealed Tuesday morning, according to U.S. Attorney Damian Williams.

Over the past year, Combs has been sued by people who say he subjected them to physical or sexual abuse. He has denied many of those allegations and his lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, said outside the courthouse Tuesday morning that Combs would plead not guilty. Agnifilo said he would “fight like hell” to try and get his client released from custody.

Agnifilo said he didn’t have details on the indictment, but that Combs knew it was coming and had relocated to New York two weeks ago in anticipation. Of Combs, he said, “His spirits are good. He’s confident.”

Combs, 54, was recognized as one of the most influential figures in hip-hop before a flood of allegations that emerged over the past year turned him into an industry pariah.

In November, his former girlfriend, the R&B singer Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, filed a lawsuit saying he had beaten and raped her for years. She accused Combs of coercing her, and others, into unwanted sex in drug-fueled settings.

The suit was settled in one day but months later CNN aired hotel security footage showing Combs punching and kicking Cassie and throwing her on a floor. After the video aired, Combs apologized, saying, “I was disgusted when I did it.”

Combs and his attorneys, however, denied similar allegations made by others in a string of lawsuits.

Douglas Wigdor, a lawyer for Cassie, said in a statement Tuesday that “neither Ms. Ventura nor I have any comment.”

“We appreciate your understanding and if that changes, we will certainly let you know,” he added.

A woman said Combs raped her two decades ago when she was 17. A music producer sued, saying Combs forced him to have sex with prostitutes. Another woman, April Lampros, said Combs subjected her to “terrifying sexual encounters,” starting when she was a college student in 1994.

The AP does not typically name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly, as Cassie and Lampros did.

Combs, the founder of Bad Boy Records, has gotten out of legal trouble before.

In 2001, he was acquitted of charges related to a Manhattan nightclub shooting two years earlier that injured three people. His then-protege, Shyne, was convicted of assault and other charges and served about eight years in prison.

This story has been corrected to show that Combs' age is 54, not 58.

Associated Press writer Andrew Dalton in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

FILE - Host Sean "Diddy" Combs presents the revolt black excellence award at the Billboard Music Awards, May 15, 2022, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

Sean 'Diddy' Combs is expected in court after New York indictment

Sean 'Diddy' Combs is expected in court after New York indictment

FILE - Sean "Diddy" Combs arrives at the LA Premiere of "The Four: Battle For Stardom" at the CBS Radford Studio Center on May 30, 2018, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP, File)