KANSAS CITY, MO. - Heads were down, hands were on hips. Twins players stood around Kauffman Stadium looking at each other and wondering if things could get any worse.

"What is happening?" Twins second baseman Michael Cuddyer said. "Those were the sentiments out there."

The Royals took it to the Twins on Saturday night by scoring eight runs in the eighth inning while rolling to an 11-2 victory. The result ended an April that has been one of the cruelest to the Twins. They are 9-17, setting a club record for the most losses in April and looking as bad as they ever have looked in 10 seasons under manager Ron Gardenhire.

Cuddyer and Justin Morneau committed errors -- Morneau when he missed a catchable throw at first that would have ended the eighth, enabling Alex Gordon to come up and hit a three-run homer estimated at 422 feet. Jim Hoey walked in a run in that inning. Rookie left fielder Rene Tosoni dived after a ball in the seventh -- one for which he had no business diving -- and missed it for a triple.

Twins batters drew seven walks -- seven -- off Royals starter Sean O'Sullivan and scored only two runs off him. And those runs came without the Twins hitting the ball out of the infield, thanks in part to two Kansas City errors.

Twins lefthander Brian Duensing said what many were thinking after the game: "Things are kind of hitting rock bottom for us, and we have to find a way to turn it around."

Indeed. Rock. Bottom. Baseball.

The Twins have the worst record in the American League and have a minus-57 run differential, meaning their problems are deeper than simply who is on the disabled list.

Cuddyer and Duensing wondered immediately after the game what Gardenhire would do, or say, to them. Gardenhire didn't disappoint, being firm, but also supportive of his team.

"It's not the way we planned to start out," Gardenhire said. "As I told the boys tonight, we're starting out 0-0. We're 0-0 tomorrow. It's time to start getting busy and start playing the way we know how.

"That stuff, I think, is old for everybody. There a lot of disappointment out there, and a little frustration, too. It has been that way, but tonight kinda topped it off.

"We don't like to lose around here. We haven't done it very much. It can't go on. Our fans don't deserve it. And we plan on trying to do something about it."

Cuddyer wanted Gardenhire to speak up Saturday.

"Not wondering, hoping," Cuddyer said. "And everything he said was to a 'T,' and we needed to hear it. He also said we are going to pull for each other. The only people who can change this is us. That's it. The people in the room right now."

Actually, only a few players were at their stalls as Cuddyer spoke. The clubhouse was closed after the game about 10-15 minutes longer than it was supposed to, as Gardenhire did his thing and players began to dress and leave.

Sunday is a new day. The Twins actually might be in a good spot now.

When you're at rock bottom, you can't fall any farther.

"No one is getting down on each other," Duensing said. "Hopefully we can turn it around and start playing some better baseball."