KANSAS CITY -- Something about playing the Red Sox seems to give MJ Melendez an extra edge, because Boston can’t seem to get the Royals outfielder out.

In 12 games vs. the Red Sox, Melendez is batting .444 (20-for-45) with a 1.513 OPS, which is the highest OPS vs. Boston all time (min. 50 plate appearances).

It’s a small sample size of course, but it’s certainly noticeable. Melendez went 3-for-3 with two walks and a home run in the Royals’ 9-5 loss to the Red Sox on Saturday night at Kauffman Stadium, becoming the first Royals player to reach base five times in a game since Carlos Santana did it on June 8, 2022, against the Blue Jays.

“At this point, I feel like it’s kind of a mental thing in my head, in a good way,” Melendez said. “It’s a team I happen to do well against. I don’t know if it’s anything in particular, I just like swinging the bat well against them.”

Melendez’s success against the Red Sox started last year, when he drove in a career-high six runs on Aug. 7, 2022. Since then, he’s dominated them. He went 7-for-16 with three homers in Boston last month, and, after a day off Friday, picked up where he left off Saturday.

“Hopefully he pictures everybody in a Red Sox uniform,” manager Matt Quatraro said.

The Royals have been searching for Melendez’s bat to help add juice to the middle of the lineup all season, and Saturday was a good example of how he can impact the game when he’s right. Melendez singled in the first inning off Red Sox starter Tanner Houck -- who was drafted by the Red Sox out of Missouri in 2017 -- and doubled in the third.

In the fifth and sixth, Melendez drew walks, a sign that he’s seeing the ball well and potentially getting back to a part of his game that separated him from others in the Minors.

“I think it goes back to better balance, better timing,” Quatraro said. “He certainly seemed super focused tonight. Took some really good [plate appearances] for the walks as well. I think that’s a challenge for every young player, is doing it day in and day out. It’s not here and gone, it’s shortening the distance between those rough games.”

Melendez, 24, hasn’t performed up to expectations this season with a higher strikeout rate (29.4%) and lower walk rate (8.6%), along with an 83 wRC+, entering Saturday. But an adjustment in the second half has him slashing .292/.341/.516 with an .857 OPS after the All-Star break.

“When you get to the big leagues and struggle, it’s a lot different than the Minor Leagues,” Melendez said. “When they find something up here, they’re going to expose you, and they’re going to keep going until you make that adjustment. Whereas in the Minors, they may not have all that information, and even if they do, the pitchers aren’t going to execute as well.”

Melendez’s production was needed with Bobby Witt Jr. going 0-for-4 and Salvador Perez going 0-for-5 on Saturday. They were a combined 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position, and the Royals went 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position, including leaving the bases loaded with one out in the sixth inning.

“Those were big spots, especially in the sixth inning there,” Quatraro said. “We sure would have expected them to pick us up, which they’ve always done. It’s going to happen on given nights, and it’s up to somebody else to do it.”

But the Royals were playing from behind all night when starter Alec Marsh allowed six runs in 2 2/3 innings, falling to 0-8 through 12 appearances (eight starts). The Red Sox averaged a 94.7 mph exit velocity against Marsh and hit three extra-base hits -- including Triston Casas’ two-run homer -- in a three-run first inning.

Marsh also saw a slight velocity dip across all his pitches, with a 27% whiff rate, and he wasn’t getting the typical swing-and-miss he usually does.

“Getting behind constantly to these hitters and getting them in hitters counts and throwing something in the zone, you saw I got whacked a little bit,” Marsh said. “... Noticed some of the stuff was down a little bit, even though I didn’t feel any different than I have been. So maybe fatigue. No idea what it is. All we can do is get after it tomorrow and get back to the process and get the next one.”