It's hardly the end of the world when on a crisp July night with a Northern California feel, the Red Sox lose sole possession of first place in the American League East for the first time since June 9 after an 8-6 loss to the Kansas City Royals at Fenway. From the moment the Sox took the field Thursday night they knew their solo hold on first place was at stake after the surging Yankees completed a sweep of the Minnesota Twins in the afternoon. However, with the Royals (12 games under .500 coming in) in town, it seemed the stars were aligned for the Sox to finish the first half strong. So much for the stars. The Sox, who led the East by five games June 23d, had no trouble getting their share of early hits against Luke Hochevar, who entered with a 4-3 record and a 5.08 ERA. The only question was could Sox starter Brad Penny keep the Royals at arm's length on a night when he didn't have his best stuff? There was still some hope, even trailing, 7-5, in the eighth that a comeback could be in the offing, but then Willie Bloomquist tripled in the eighth run with a drive to right-center against the third Sox reliever, former Royal Ramon Ramirez, the Fenway crowd quieted. Penny, who came in with nine quality starts, kept his mates in the game. The Sox were 9-7 in his starts, not bad for a No. 5 starter. But while his velocity continued to peak at a lofty 97 miles per hour, there wasn't much else. Penny lasted only five innings and wasn't involved in the decision after his 97 pitches were thrown hard and hit even harder. He left with a 4-3 lead, but the Royals scored four times in the sixth against relievers Manny Delcarmen and Justin Masterson. The Sox were in a strong position entering the series because Royals ace Zack Grienke pitched Wednesday. Instead they were scheduled to face the ineffective Hochevar, Brian Bannister, Gil Meche and former Boston lefthander Bruce Chen. It all seemed like a good scenario that could lead to a happy weekend before the All-Star break. Hochevar was making his first start at Fenway since May 19, 2008 when Jon Lester spun a 7-0 no-hitter against the Royals. He struggled, allowing three runs in the first inning, though he did make it through six innings, allowing five runs and nine hits. Alberto Callaspo was a spark plug for the Royals. He doubled in a run in the fourth off Penny and doubled in another off Delcarmen with two outs in the sixth. After Delcarmen left, Masterson allowed a bloop single to center by Ryan Freel for another run, followed by a two-run homer to right by David DeJesus, giving the Royals a 7-5 lead. The Red Sox seemed somewhat disinterested after they mounted a 4-0 lead after three innings. But that lead shrunk to 4-3 after four. Penny started leaving his fastball on the fat part of the plate and the Royals weren't missing. Mark Teahen and Callaspo both drove in runs while another run scored on Jason Varitek's overthrow on Teahen's steal of second. Even the last two outs of the fourth inning - line drives to right and left respectively by the recently acquired Freel and DeJesus were stung. Penny rebounded with a quick 1-2-3 fifth, but those outs were loud, too. Dustin Pedroia had eased the anxiety somewhat with a one-out homer over the Monster in the fifth, and then Sox manager Terry Francona lifted Penny for Delcarmen. Quick hook? It seemed Francona didn't have enough gumption to keep Penny in the game based on how hard the Royals were connecting. But the bullpen couldn't quiet the Royals. The Sox scored three runs in the first inning with one-out back-to-back doubles by Pedroia and Youkilis, setting the stage for David Ortiz's two-run homer, his second long ball in as many nights and 11th of the season. It was Ortiz's 300th career homer. The Sox added to that in the third inning when Jason Bay knocked in Youkilis (double) with a single to center field. The Sox chipped away in the eighth against Juan Cruz, who had retired 17 straight batters before he walked Ortiz and Bay to lead off the inning. The Sox loaded the bases on a fielder's choice and a throwing error by Callaspo, and scored on Mark Kotsay's long sacrifice fly. But Royals closer Joakim Soria came on to strike out Nick Green to end the threat. 