ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Royals righty Zack Greinke was one strike away from keeping it a tight game in Friday night’s fifth inning. Instead, a base hit slipped through the infield, kick-starting an avalanche that allowed the Rays to run away with an 11-3 victory over the Royals at Tropicana Field.

For the Royals (21-55), it was another example of how little moments often lead to much larger game-losing sequences. In all, four Royals pitchers gave up a combined 17 hits.

And it was yet another opportunity to ponder the seemingly unanswerable question: Why can’t Greinke win a road game?

The Royals have lost each of the last six road starts by Greinke (1-8) this season. But it goes deeper. Greinke hasn’t won a road game since Aug. 13, 2021 -- nearly two years ago -- and he’s 0-14 with a 6.23 ERA in the 25 road starts since that victory.

“I was not aware of that [road winless streak],’’ Royals manager Matt Quatraro said.

“I guess I haven't really thought of it,’’ Greinke said. “I don’t get a lot of wins -- period.’’

For a player with Greinke’s brilliant career path (224 victories), which could lead to Cooperstown, it’s a puzzling statistical oddity. Another oddity: Greinke moved to 0-5 at The Trop (eight career appearances), one of five parks where he has never won (after pitching in 36).

Greinke was haunted by Rays center fielder Jose Siri (three-run homer in the second inning, then an RBI single in the fourth), but the Royals trailed by just one run (4-3) in the fifth because of homers by Nick Pratto and Salvador Perez, who exited early with a right hamstring cramp.

In the fifth, Greinke had runners on the corners with two outs. Against Rays cleanup batter Harold Ramirez, Greinke got ahead with an 0-2 count, but then nibbled with two pitches outside the zone. Ramirez connected on Greinke’s 2-2 cutter, hitting a soft liner to center, to end Greinke's outing. 

“Just a ground ball that found a hole,’’ Greinke said. “I never feel like I’m completely in control anymore. The stuff is just not nasty enough for that to be the case. I felt I could get [Ramirez] to put some soft contact or try to strike him out, but it was just a base hit.’’

“I mean, not every ball is going to be hit on the screws,’’ Quatraro said. “They put balls in play with two strikes, got some up the middle, good placement. You can’t take anything away from a hitter who gets the ball in play with two strikes.’’

Quatraro went to right-hander Jose Cuas, who worked 1 1/3 innings (27 pitches) as the opener in Thursday night’s series opener, to record the final out in the fifth, but things got worse.

Cuas walked Isaac Paredes, then surrendered a two-run single to Taylor Walls and an RBI double to Christian Bethancourt, giving the Rays an 8-3 lead in a three-batter sequence that ignited Tampa Bay's offense.

With the game separated, Rays’ starter Zach Eflin (9-3) cruised to the victory after the early homers from Pratto and Perez.

“[Eflin] has good stuff, a cutter he can get in on lefties, a big sweeping breaking ball, a fastball he locates,’’ Quatraro said. “He keeps the ball down. He has the weapons to beat anybody.

“I thought Zack [Greinke] was good early on. We got victimized there in his last inning. But other than that, he gave us a chance.’’

But when Ramirez’s fifth-inning hit snuck through the infield, that chance evaporated quickly.