The Kansas City Royals finally ended their longest losing streak of the season Wednesday night.

Tommy Pham’s three-run home run in the fourth capped a four-run inning for the Royals, proving enough for Kansas City as they defeated the Cleveland Guardians 4-1 to avoid the sweep and snap a seven-game losing streak that cast a shadow on the Royals’ playoff ambitions. The Guardians had started the scoring in the third with their only run coming off the bat of José Ramírez. The Royals tied the game with a Michael Massey single that brought in Paul DeJong. The next two batters were unable to advance the runners, setting Pham up for his first home run in Royals blue.

The fourth-inning offensive outburst allowed Seth Lugo to go seven innings in a quality start, allowing just the one run on six hits and one walk while fanning four. Lucas Erceg returned to form with a scoreless ninth, including one strikeout, for his ninth save of the year.

Coupled with Minnesota’s loss Wednesday night, the Royals (76-65) move into a tie for second in the AL Central as well as the second wild card spot. There’s more breathing room for Kansas City on an overdue day off as Boston and Detroit both lost last night, putting the Royals 5.5 games ahead in the wild card race. The Twins will play Tampa Bay today before paying a visit to The K for a three-game series starting Friday.