KANSAS CITY -- To understand Kris Bubic’s quest to use his curveball as a prominent part of his arsenal this season, rewind to a couple of weeks ago, when the Royals were in New York playing the Yankees.

On June 22, starter Brady Singer loaded the bases with two outs in the fourth inning. Manager Mike Matheny called on Bubic for the highest-leverage relief appearance of his young career. The Royals had a one-run lead at a loud Yankee Stadium, and Bubic was facing Giancarlo Stanton, one of the more dangerous bat in that lineup.

He threw one pitch -- a curveball -- that Stanton chopped to third base for an inning-ending forceout. To get out of that situation was big for Bubic, but to do it using a curveball was even bigger for his development. It’s a pitch he’s worked tirelessly on since he was drafted by the Royals, gaining the trust and confidence to throw it in games and in big situations.

“It’s going to be a difference maker for me,” Bubic said the day after he shut down the Yankees. “There’s another level within me, but it’s easier said than done. And bringing in the curveball is the next step.”

Fast forward to Tuesday night against the Reds, when Bubic made his eighth start of the year. He’s been in a versatile role for the Royals this season, appearing both as a starter and a reliever, but during a 20-game stretch without an off day, Kansas City has relied on the left-hander for the fifth spot in the rotation the last two times it’s come up. Bubic wasn’t perfect in the Royals’ eventual comeback win -- he allowed five runs on eight hits in 4 1/3 innings. But when digging into the numbers a little bit more, one stands out.

Of his 100 pitches Tuesday night, Bubic threw 29 curveballs (29 percent). He threw the pitch more than his signature changeup (19 percent) and far more than he had in any start this season. Of the 14 swings Bubic got on his curveball, five were whiffs, including swinging strikeouts of Nick Castellanos (third inning) and Aristides Aquino (fourth inning).

“There’s a reason you put all that work into a pitch: To see it kind of come to fruition in a game,” Bubic said. “You give up your hits here and there, but for the most part, I’m pleased with the progress I’ve seen with it. I know it’s only going to keep getting better.”

The results weren’t perfect on the pitch -- Kyle Farmer launched one out of the ballpark for a two-run homer in the fourth inning -- but as the 23-year-old Bubic develops at the Major League level, showing the confidence to throw it that much in games is another step in the right direction.

“Going forward, I’m going to have to earn the changeup because, like I’ve talked about for awhile, that's the book on me,” Bubic said Tuesday night. “The use of the other two will become key here going forward. The results are still not great and not what you want to see, but at the same time, there’s a lot of positives in that, a lot of small victories tonight. I’ll take it going forward.”

Bubic has been encouraged by Royals coaches and officials to throw the curveball more, in part because he’s not going to get deep into games with his fastball and changeup mix, especially not when one or both pitches feel off on a particular night. Bubic has struggled with commanding his fastball or leaving his changeup in the middle of the plate, leading to lopsided scores and high pitch counts.

“It’s all going to come down now to fastball command,” Matheny said. “Because he’s got two -- and buying into the fact that he has two -- very good offspeed pitches. Curveball we saw all day long against some very good hitters. You saw some of the approaches they had and the swings they took on it. If he can get to that next level, which we’ve seen it so many times when he throws a bullpen -- this guy can locate all day long.

“It’s just a matter of making good pitches with his fastball so that those other two pitches can be thrown in any count. That’s elite ability. It’s just a matter of putting it into play when he gets between the lines on a Major League field.”

Worth noting
• The Royals’ five-run comeback win Tuesday night was the first time they won despite allowing six runs or more since April 28 in Pittsburgh. That snapped a streak of 28 consecutive losses in such games. It also was the first time they’ve overcome a deficit of at least five runs in the eighth inning or later since May 28, 2016, against the White Sox, when they scored seven runs in the ninth inning.

• Pitching probables for this weekend’s series in Cleveland include lefty Danny Duffy on Thursday, Brad Keller on Friday and Mike Minor on Saturday. The Royals have yet to announce a starter for Sunday’s series finale.