OAKLAND, Calif. — Jonathan Broxton hit Jonny Gomes on the first pitch he threw with the bases loaded in the 12th inning, forcing Jemile Weeks home for the winning run in the Oakland Athletics’ 5-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday.

Moments earlier, Broxton (0-1) plunked new A’s cleanup hitter Yoenis Cespedes on the first pitch to load the bases and the closer received a mound visit from pitching coach Dave Eiland.

It marked the third time the A’s won on a game-ending hit by pitch in Oakland history and first since Olmedo Saenz on July 20, 2002, against Texas.

Coco Crisp’s RBI groundout earlier in the 12th tied it at 4 after Billy Butler doubled home the go-ahead run in top half of the inning against Andrew Carignan (1-1).

A day after rain shortened the Royals’ 3-0 win following seven-plus innings, fans got their share of baseball in the finale.

Kansas City heads home for the first time since the start of spring training in mid-February at 3-3, but without the same momentum it would have had with a second winning road series after taking two of three at Los Angeles.

Oakland closer Grant Balfour pitched a scoreless ninth and 10th. He allowed Alcides Escobar’s leadoff single in the 10th and a two-out walk to Jeff Francoeur on four pitches before striking out Mike Moustakas.

The A’s now head out for their first real road trip — a seven-gamer — considering the two matchups with the Mariners in Tokyo two weeks ago counted as Oakland home games.

Kansas City’s Alex Gordon hit a tying home run off Brian Fuentes in the seventh.

Jose Mijares hit Josh Reddick with a breaking ball in the right shoulder area leading off the eighth, but the ball appeared to ricochet into Reddick’s helmet and he went down for a couple of minutes before leaving the game. Coco Crisp came in to run and Greg Holland relieved Mijares, but the A’s couldn’t capitalize.

Gomes hit a two-run homer in the fourth to put the A’s ahead and starter Brandon McCarthy in position for his first victory of the season before Fuentes gave it up.

Cespedes doubled, swiped third for his first steal and scored on catcher Brayan Pena’s throwing error to make it 1-0 Oakland in the second. Pena threw wildly into left field trying to get Cespedes at third on his steal.

Cespedes hit his first career single in the 11th after his initial five hits went for extra bases. The Cuban rookie wrapped up his first homestand 4 for 16 with two home runs and eight strikeouts.

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Danny Duffy pitched six sharp innings and the Kansas City Royals beat the Oakland Athletics 3-0 in a rain-shortened game on Tuesday night.

Mike Moustakas hit an RBI double in the fourth and Mitch Maier added a solo homer in the seventh for Kansas City, which lost 1-0 at Oakland on Monday night.

The start of the game was delayed 43 minutes by rain, and a steady drizzle continued throughout the night.

A second delay was called after Eric Hosmer struck out in the top of the eighth during a downpour. The bat slipped out of Hosmer’s hands and landed just above the steps in the Royals dugout, prompting umpires to call for the tarp. The game was officially called at 11:07 p.m. local time.

Duffy (1-0) allowed one hit, struck out eight and walked four in his first game of the season. Three of the left-hander’s five career wins have come in Oakland, and he had little problem keeping that streak going despite the wet conditions.

Crow pitched a 1-2-3 seventh for the save, his first in the majors.

Cliff Pennington doubled with one out in third for Oakland’s only hit, and he was picked off. Duffy pitched with runners on base in two other innings and got out of trouble each time with some help from Kansas City’s defense.

Both teams were pressing to get the game in regardless of the weather, since this is Kansas City’s lone trip to Northern California this season and rain is predicted for the Bay Area through the rest of the week as well.

Kansas City pushed across two runs in the fourth against Graham Godfrey. Billy Butler hit a leadoff double, took third on Jeff Francoeur’s bloop single and scored when Moustakas hit a long fly ball that glanced off the glove of center fielder Yoenis Cespedes. The Cuban rookie had turned and was running at a full sprint toward the wall when the ball hit the palm of his glove and bounced off.

Francoeur scored on Humberto Quintana’s sacrifice fly.

Duffy made it hold up, with a little help from the Royals defense.

First baseman Hosmer made a sliding grab of Jemile Weeks’ foul ball in the first, then Lorenzo Cain chased down Daric Barton’s deep fly ball to center to start an 8-4-3 double play in the second.

Even when he had control problems in the fifth, walking a pair of batters, Duffy worked out of trouble by striking out Pennington to end the threat.

Duffy earned his first major league victory here on June 4 when he held the A’s to two runs over six innings, then won in Oakland again on Sept. 6.

Maier, who entered the game as an injury replacement for Cain, homered off Jerry Blevins in the seventh. Cain left the game with a strained left groin following his double play in the second.

Godfrey (0-1) allowed six hits in six innings.

NOTES: A’s RHP Joey Devine will miss the season after undergoing reconstructive elbow surgery for the second time in three years. Devine was already on the disabled list with biceps tendinitis. ”In instances like this you don’t even consider what it means to the club,” Melvin said. ”It’s all about him right now. There was a time (last year) when he was as good as anybody coming out of the bullpen.” … Melvin plans to rest LF Coco Crisp on Wednesday. … LHP Bruce Chen makes his second start of the season for the Royals on Wednesday after pitching six shutout innings against the Angels on opening day. … RHP Brandon McCarthy (0-1) pitches the series finale for the A’s, his third start in Oakland’s first seven games.

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) – Jeremy Jeffress’ fastball has registered triple digits on radar guns. Where that fastball goes after it leaves his right hand had been anybody’s guess.

   Jeffress showed superb control Tuesday in two perfect innings, striking out two, as the Kansas City Royals beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-5. Alex Gordon and Lorenzo Cain homered for the Royals, while Johnny Giavotella and Eric Hosmer each drove in two runs.

   Jeffress, Milwaukee’s 2006 first-round pick who was acquired in the Zack Greinke trade, began last season in the Royals bullpen, but was sent to the minors May 19 after walking 11 in 15 1-3 innings.

   He threw 16 strikes in 24 pitches against the Reds.

   “I was really impressed with the amount of strikes I threw,” Jeffress said. “Last year was a pretty tough year with the walks.”

   Derrick Lewis, his pitching coach in the Arizona Fall League, made an adjustment in Jeffress’ delivery that could pay huge dividends.

   “He said he didn’t throw hard, but he knew mechanics,” Jeffress said. “I told him, `Get me the mechanics and I’ll do the rest.”‘

   In three exhibition outings, Jeffress has allowed one hit, walked one and struck out four in four innings.

   “Jeffress jumped out at me pretty good,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “We all know his stuff is extremely electric. He does throw 96 to 100 miles per hour. He has a fantastic breaking ball. Command has been what he’s battled in his career to this point. The last five or six outings in the fall league something clicked for him. He got to a point where his mechanics were working for him and he started banging strikes. He’s brought that into spring training. It’s been a real pleasant surprise seeing him command the ball the way that he has.”

   Left-hander Jonathan Sanchez, who was the Royals’ key offseason acquisition in a trade with San Francisco, gave up four runs on three hits, including Jay Bruce’s homer, and two walks in two-plus innings. He threw 51 pitches, 30 for strikes.

   “I was trying to throw my off-speed pitches behind in the count,” Sanchez said. “I’m getting there. It doesn’t matter what happened. I’m good. I’m just getting my rhythm and getting the feel of the game. I missed my spot with Bruce, left a fastball over the middle. That happens once in a while, but it’s not going to happen again.”

   Yost called it “a good step” for Sanchez.

   Mike Leake, the Reds’ starter, allowed four runs on eight hits and two walks in three innings in his third start.

   “Everything was working fine,” said Leake, who led the Reds with 12 victories last year. “It was just dropping the elbow and getting in a few 2-0 counts. I feel strong. I even felt strongest in that last inning. I feel good about where I’m at right now.”

   Many hits off Leake were ground balls.

   “It’s Arizona, so I think all the infields are hard,” said Leake, who was a 2009 first-round pick out of Arizona State. “I’m glad I was getting ground balls, but they were finding holes. A couple of those found their way through the five (third base) hole that they were working.”

   Bruce, who also had a run-producing single in the third, extended his hitting streak to six games, the longest this spring by the Reds. Scott Rolen went 0-for-1 and walked twice, ending his five-game hitting streak.

   Notes: Royals C Salvador Perez left after the first inning with a knee injury. Yost said Perez hurt his knee while warming up Sanchez in the bullpen. He was taken for an MRI. . Royals DH Mike Moustakas was a late scratch with a sore right knee, which was bruised after being hit by a pitch Monday. . Reds LF Chris Heisey struck out in the third and fifth innings and has struck out 10 times in 21 at-bats.