The Kansas City Royals found themselves unable to round the bases a second straight game, falling to the Texas Rangers 4-0 Sunday afternoon in Arlington and being swept for the first time this season.

The Royals were limited to two hits, as MJ Melendez claimed the only hit off Max Scherzer in the Mizzou product’s return to the Rangers rotation. Melendez picked up a ground-rule double with one out in the fifth, but the Royals could not advance him. The only other hit was a single in the sixth by Maikel Garcia, who was caught stealing second on a strikeout.

Alec Marsh went 5.2 innings in the loss, giving up three runs in the fourth inning along with eight hits and two walks, while striking out three. Sam Long gave up a home run in the seventh to complete the Rangers’ scoring.

Kansas City has now gone 22 innings without scoring a run. Bobby Witt Jr and Salvador Perez both went hitless in the series to highlight the Royals’ sudden slump on offense. The loss has the Royals at 42-37, dropping 11 of their last 14 games. They’re now 7.5 games behind Cleveland in the AL Central and a half-game behind Boston for the third wild card spot.

The Royals hope an extended stay at home is the recipe needed to restart the offense, with the Miami Marlins making their way to Kauffman Stadium on Monday evening for the start of a three-game series. First pitch is at 7:10 p.m., with pregame at 6:30 on KMMO.