PHOENIX — Through three innings Thursday night, Jeremy Guthrie looked shaky. After that, he was perfect.
Guthrie retired the final 19 batters in Kansas City’s first complete game of the season, and the Royals beat Arizona 6-2 for a three-game interleague sweep of the Diamondbacks.
Guthrie (8-9) allowed seven hits, struck out four and walked none in his eighth career complete game.
Alex Gordon hit a two-run homer and Alcides Escobar had a two-run single for the Royals, who have won four in a row and 12 of 15 to pull within 2 1/2 games of first-place Detroit in the AL Central. They were eight games out on July 21.
Vidal Nuno (2-8) lasted just four innings for Arizona, allowing five runs and seven hits. The left-hander is 0-3 with a 4.05 ERA in six starts since he was acquired in a trade with the Yankees that sent Brandon McCarthy to New York.
Kansas City (60-53) moved seven games above .500, matching its season high. It went 5-1 on a trip to Oakland and Arizona and is 33-26 on the road this season.
The Royals have won five consecutive series.
