Royals snap streak

KANSAS CITY — It was a night of firsts for the Kansas City Royals.

Mike Wood got his first victory as a starter and as a Royal. John Buck got his first major league hit. Shawn Camp earned his first save in the big leagues.

The Royals got their first win in almost a week, beating Baltimore 4-3 on Tuesday night to snap a five-game skid.

“I don’t think I’ve calmed down yet,” Camp said. “That’s the first time I’ve ever gone in to save a game. It’s a fun feeling.”

Camp, usually a middle reliever, pitched a perfect ninth.

Desi Relaford hit a tiebreaking RBI double in the sixth, forcing Sidney Ponson (3-11) to share a dubious honor with Hall of Famer Robin Roberts. He’s the first Baltimore pitcher to lose six games in a month since Roberts in May 1965.

Ponson, who lost his eighth in a row as the Orioles lost for the 12th time in 16 games, is also the only big league pitcher this year with 11 losses. He gave up four runs on nine hits in 5 2/3 innings

“It is hard. I’m 3-11,” he said. “The bottom line, I didn’t like the way I threw the ball today.”

Wood (1-0) earned his first victory since coming to Kansas City in the three-team trade Thursday that sent Royals star Carlos Beltran to Houston.

Since Beltran’s first-inning home run Thursday against Detroit, the Royals had not held a lead in 49 straight innings until Tony Graffanino’s bloop single made it 2-1 in the fifth.