Cameron's gem sets up Loftin's walk-off in positive end to rocky 1st half

KANSAS CITY-- Noah Cameron made his Major League debut in late April, but the 25-year-old rookie has quickly become a mainstay in the Royals’ rotation. Despite a 43-minute rain delay, Cameron was ready to roll from the start.

The seventh-round 2021 Draft pick notched his seventh quality start of the season with 6 2/3 scoreless frames, matching a career high with eight strikeouts. His brilliance in the first-half finale was enough for the Royals to withstand a late Mets rally before Nick Loftin blooped a walk-off single to left field in Kansas City’s 3-2 win over New York on Sunday at Kauffman Stadium.

Cameron now has a 2.31 ERA over his first 12 career outings, allowing two or fewer runs in 10 of those starts -- five of which were scoreless.

“It was a good day,” Cameron said. “When you can obviously command the ball and they are getting bad swings on stuff, really good defense behind me, it was an easy day. We gameplanned really well. Freddy [Fermin] was unbelievable in calling pitches and Bobby Witt Jr. making plays like he did just makes it real easy.”

Kansas City needed a late rally after New York broke through with a two-run ninth inning to tie the game off All-Star closer Carlos Estévez. But Tyler Tolbert got it started with a single and a stolen base before Loftin provided the clutch knock, his second walk-off of the homestand.

“... Wanting to go into the break on a high, you know, there was a lot to deal with in the last couple of innings,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “And for those guys to battle through what happened in the top of the ninth and pick each other up, that speaks volumes to what these guys are all about.”

Cameron pitched with a 2-0 lead from the second inning until his departure with two outs in the sixth thanks to John Rave, who came through with a two-run double. It was an important hit for a Royals club that had gone just 1-for-17 with RISP the first two games of the series.

Cameron was a seventh-round Draft pick by the Royals in 2021, and the St. Joseph, Mo., native has put on a show for Kansas City fans in the first half of the season.

In his debut, Cameron carried a no-hit bid into the seventh inning, allowing just one hit in 6 1/3 innings. He had a run of five straight quality starts, matching Steve Busby for the club record to begin a career. He was also the second pitcher in MLB history to record at least six innings and allow one run or fewer in each of his first five starts, joining the Dodgers’ Fernando Valenzuela (1981).

“[Cameron] came up and hit the ground running with a no-hitter for his first six-plus innings of his career,” Quatraro said. “So I mean, he’s confident. He understands who he is and he doesn’t try to do more than that. He is not trying to prove to anybody that he can be more than what he is. He just goes out there and competes like crazy.”

Cameron has fit into a rotation that has been impacted by significant injuries during the first half of the season, most notably Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans. With the postseason push looming and Ragans on the 60-day IL, Cameron will likely take on a bigger role in the rotation.

The Royals’ pitching staff has been the highlight of the first 97 games, holding a 3.49 team ERA, which passed the 2015 Royals for the franchise’s best team ERA (3.50) before the All-Star break in the past 35 seasons.

With the win on Sunday, Kansas City (47-50) secured a 4-2 homestand, but still trail the Mariners by 4 1/2 games for the third and final AL Wild Card spot.

“Going into the All-Star break, I think that it is a really big time for us to get some rest,” Cameron said. “Starters have been throwing a lot of innings, which is good. We are obviously trying to throw a lot of innings, so getting some rest here the next few days, everyone getting healthy and coming back [will be important]. Nobody wants to get hurt, go down that road, but guys are excited to come back stronger than ever.”