KANSAS CITY, Mo. (Interstat) – Noah Cameron pitched into the seventh inning and the Kansas City Royals hit back-to-back home runs to edge the Toronto Blue Jays 2-1 on Saturday night at Kauffman Stadium, delaying Toronto’s playoff clinch.

In a crisp pitchers’ duel that took just 2 hours and 21 minutes, the Royals (78-77) evened the series in front of a crowd of 25,774 a day after being routed 20-1 by the Blue Jays (89-66).

The game was decided in a swift, powerful sequence in the bottom of the fourth inning. With one out, shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. tied the game by launching his 23rd home run of the season, a fly ball to center field off Toronto starter Shane Bieber. On the very next pitch, first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino followed by crushing his 31st homer, a shot to right-center field that proved to be the decisive run.

That outburst was all the support Cameron (9-7) would need. The rookie left-hander delivered his third consecutive quality start, allowing one run on three hits over 6 2/3 innings. He walked two and struck out five. Cameron, who allowed one base runner in every inning except the first and sixth, matched Bill Butler’s 1969 record for the most wins by a Royals rookie left-hander.

His only mistake came with two outs in the seventh inning when Toronto center fielder Daulton Varsho cut the deficit in half with his 19th home run, a solo shot to center field. Cameron then walked Ernie Clement, prompting manager Matt Quatraro to call upon John Schreiber out of the bullpen. Schreiber needed just one pitch to retire pinch-hitter Addison Barger on a flyout to left field, stranding the potential tying run.

Bieber (3-2), the veteran right-hander for Toronto, was nearly as effective in a hard-luck loss. He worked 6 1/3 innings, surrendering two runs on four hits while striking out four and walking one. The two fourth-inning homers were his only significant blemishes.

The Royals’ bullpen navigated the final 2 1/3 innings to preserve the narrow lead. Taylor Clarke worked a perfect eighth inning, and Carlos Estévez closed the door in the ninth for his 41st save of the season. Estévez allowed a one-out single to Ty France but induced a sharp flyout from Varsho and a lineout from Clement to end the game.

Both teams finished with four hits. For Kansas City, Witt Jr. went 2-for-4 with the home run and an RBI, while Pasquantino was 1-for-2 with a walk, a home run and an RBI. Varsho accounted for Toronto’s lone run, going 1-for-3 with the solo homer and a walk.

The game was a stark contrast to the series opener and defied pregame projections. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a 7-5 Toronto victory, and its ELO system gave the Blue Jays a 52.9 percent probability to win. Toronto was also installed as a -1.5 run favorite, and the pregame over/under was set at 8.5 runs, a total the teams fell well short of with a combined three runs.

The loss snaps a two-game winning streak for the Blue Jays, who saw their magic number to clinch a postseason berth remain at one. They will have another chance to secure their spot in the playoffs in the series finale on Sunday.

Kansas City, playing the role of spoiler, improved to 78-77, keeping its faint hopes of reaching .500 for the season alive. The Royals will conclude their home schedule Sunday before embarking on a final road trip to Los Angeles and Oakland.