Houston ? Miguel Olivo had some inside information when he went to the plate against Jeff Fulchino in the 11th inning Wednesday night.

And he used it to his advantage.

Olivo homered on the first pitch from the former Royal, whom he caught last season, to give Kansas City a 4-3 victory over the Houston Astros.

“I know what he’s got,” Olivo said. “But I was not expecting he’d throw me a fastball in that situation. He usually throws sliders. But I was glad to see it.”

Olivo’s shot off Fulchino (2-3) ricocheted off the railing in center field and bounced back onto the field. It was his 11th homer and gave the Royals their second straight win after they broke a five-game losing streak with Tuesday’s win in the series opener.

“It was a wild ride,” Royals manager Trey Hillman said.

Joakim Soria (2-0) blew a save chance but got the win. John Bale pitched a perfect 11th for his first save.

An error by Houston first baseman Lance Berkman and a call the Astros disputed — the umpires had it right — helped the Royals get the tying run in the ninth.

Brayan Pena homered in the 10th inning to put the Royals ahead, 3-2. Houston tied it in the bottom half when Ivan Rodriguez just beat the throw home on single by pinch-hitter Matt Kata.

The Astros took a 2-1 lead into the ninth behind Jose Valverde. Mitch Maier reached on Berkman’s one-out error and pinch-hitter Mike Jacobs followed with a deep drive. Left fielder Jason Michaels claimed he caught the ball, but replays showed it caromed off the wall into his glove.