Noah Cameron made a storybook major league debut, going 6.1 innings before allowing his first hit, leading the Kansas City Royals to a 3-0 shutout of the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday, April 30 at Steinbrenner Field.

The St Joseph native was called up to step into Cole Ragans’ spot in the rotation, and showed why he was among the top five prospects in the minors. Cameron gave up back-to-back walks in the second, only to get Curtis Mead to ground into an inning-ending double play. He wouldn’t have another base runner until the fifth, following a fielding error by Cavan Biggio, but Cameron was able to induce a pair of pop outs and a lineout to cap the damage. It was a one-out walk in the seventh, followed by Mead’s single to left field, that wrapped up Cameron’s scoreline. John Schreiber and Lucas Erceg kept the Rays off the board, as did Carlos Estévez, who earned his ninth save of the season.

The Royals’ bats gave Cameron some breathing room before he even took the mound. Vinnie Pasquantino belted a two-run home run in the first to right field, his fourth of the year. Bobby Witt Jr extended his hitting streak to 21 games with an RBI single to right field in the fifth, scoring Biggio.

The Royals remain third in the AL Central but are back above .500 with a 16-15 record. They have a chance to sweep the Rays when Seth Lugo takes this mound Thursday afternoon. First pitch is at 12:10 p.m., with pregame at 11:30 a.m. on KMMO AM 1300.