The KC Royals broke their six-game losing streak, but it took 14 innings for them to defeat the Cleveland indians, 7-6.

Tony Abreu with Omaha via Minda Haas (Royal Blues).

Mike Moustakas walked to lead off the inning. However Indians reliever Scott Maine struck out back-to-back hitters. A wild pitch mixed in moved Moose to second base. Tony Abreu then singled to centerfield to drive in the go ahead run.

The win was nothing but interesting as Kelvin Herrera entered in the bottom of the 14th inning. Ezequiel Carrera reached on a bunt single, Shin-Soo Choo singled, and Jason Kipnis walked to load the bases with no outs. However, ten pitches later, the Royals were celebrating the victory as Herrera retired the next three batters to escape.

How did the game reach the 14th inning?

Clinging to a 6-4 lead in the bottom of the 9th inning, the Royals sent closer Greg Holland to the mound to close out the victory. Instead, he allowed the Indians to send the game into extra innings.

Holland led off by walking the first batter he faced. Lonnie Chisenhall followed with a single. After a sac bunt, Holland struck out pinch-hitter Cord Phelps. That brought up Asdrubal Cabrera, who doubled in two runs to tie the game at 6-6.

Two more walks loaded the bases and brought on a coaching visit. Holland rebounded to get Choo to fly out to send the game into extra innings.

Holland was hardly the only Royals reliever to struggle on Saturday night. Two of their back-end guys, Aaron Crow and Tim Collins, combined to allow two runs in the 8th inning. Crow walked two and allowed a hit before giving way to Collins, who allowed both runs to score on a two out single.

Royals starter Jake Odorizzi didn’t last long enough to even sniff a victory. He needed 65 pitches to get through just TWO innings. At that time, he was losing 1-0. After getting the first batter he faced out, he walked the next two hitters. One scored on Chisenhall‘s RBI double.

The Royals erupted for six runs in the top of the 3rd inning. They sent nine batters to the plate and all the runs scored with two outs. With two outs and no one on base, Irving Falu singled. Following an Alex Gordon walk, Billy Butler drove in one run with a single. Salvador Perez‘ infield single loaded the bases for Moose, who doubled in two. Jeff Francoeur followed with a three-run homerun.

From the 3rd inning on, the Royals picked up just two more hits prior to the extra frames.

Meanwhile, Nate Adcock pitched very well behind Odorizzi. He was a little shaky fielding his position though. Two of his errors cost the Royals one run, the only one he allowed over 3.2 innings. He allowed two hits and a walk while striking out six.

I know. We all already knew that the KC Royals had NO chance of making the postseason, as they were officially eliminated.

With a chance to play spoiler to the second place Detroit Tigers, they lost 6-2. The Tigers needed a great start from ace Justin Verlander and they got that.

Verlander scattered nine hits over eight innings. He struck out eight. He allowed both runs, one coming on a solo homerun by Alex Gordon in the 4th inning. At that time, the Tigers led just 2-1.

After the Tigers’ two-run 2nd inning (one run came via Prince Fielder‘s LONG homerun), Royals starter Luke Hochevar retired seven in a row.

Then the 5th inning happened.

It could have been worse, as Jhonny Peralta singled. However he was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double by centerfielder Jarrod Dyson (his second outfield assist of the game). Alex Avila then worked a walk, Omar Infante singled, and Austin Jackson drove them both in with a double.

The Tigers tacked on another run in the 6th inning on Dirks‘ sac fly before the Royals scored their second run (a Billy Butler RBI single in the 8th inning).

The Royals went down quietly in the 9th inning against Tigers closer Jose Valverde. He finished the game off with two strikeouts.

On offense for the Royals, Billy Butler collected three of the team’s nine hits.

*Nate Adcock, who hasn’t pitched since being recalled after Triple-A Omaha’s season ended in the Pacific Coast League finals (he last pitched on September 14th), finally got into a big league game. He entered with two runners on base and allowed one to score in the 8th inning on Andy Dirks‘ single. Adcock escaped by inducing a double play grounder from Peralta.

**Salvador Perez returned to the lineup after sitting out the Cleveland series this weekend. He went 1-for-4.

***For more on the Tigers, check out Motown Lowdown.

Leave it to Detroit Tigers closer Jose Valverde to make it interesting in the 9th inning. Down 8-4, the KC Royals mounted a rally. With the tying run on second base, Jeff Francoeur struck out to end the game, as the Royals lost 8-7.

With the bases loaded and nobody out, Billy Butler ripped a two-run single. Two batters later, Mike Moustakas brought home another run with a sac fly. Jason Bourgeois pinch-ran for Butler and put himself into scoring position with a stolen base.

However Valverde and the Tigers escaped with the W.

What is wrong with Bruce Chen? After starting the season 0-4 (though only two of those six starts were poor), he got back on track (for the most part). He had that June start in St. Louis when he didn’t get out of the 2nd inning, but rebounded with two straight wins. Chen struggled against Minnesota in his last start and today was pretty awful.

Today, he lasted just 3.1 innings. After the Royals gave him a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, he quickly gave it back on a Prince Fielder homerun. Then in the bottom of the 2nd inning, Chen allowed five straight hits, with Gerald Laird driving in two with a double. Austin Jackson followed with an RBI single and the Tigers led 5-2.

Chen exited in the 4th inning with the bases loaded, one out, and Miguel Cabrera coming to the plate. Nate Adcock got Miggy to fly out to right field. Though a run scored, Francoeur threw Laird out trying to tag and move to third base to end the inning.

The only thing Chen did well today was get Tigers slugger Miggy out (0-for-2 with a strikeout).

Once the Royals most consistent starter, it seems that all of the other pitchers have rubbed off in a bad way on Chen. If the Royals are to make any movement towards the top of the American League Central following the All-Star break, the starting pitching will need to vastly improve.

» Continue reading “Royals Rally Falls Short in Motown”

The KC Royals offense was shut down by the Toronto Blue Jays on July 4th up in Canada, as they lost 4-1.

What is it about Carlos Villanueva? I have seen him lit up many times in the past, but just four hits off a guy filling into the rotation? That is all the Royals could muster against Blue Jays starter Villanueva, who has moved from the bullpen to the rotation with all the starter injuries. He struck out seven and did not walk a batter.

The Royals lone run came via a two out RBI triple by Jeff Francoeur in the 7th inning against Jason Frasor.

Meanwhile, Luis Mendoza was solid, but took the loss. He allowed three runs on nine hits over six innings. He walked one while striking out nine. All three runs came via sac flies.

Mendoza only allowed two hits after the 3rd inning while striking out six.

Alcides Escobar, Mike Moustakas, and Francoeur each had two hits in the loss. Eric Hosmer saw his average drop to .230 with three strikeouts.

The Royals and Blue Jays finish their series on Thursday as Luke Hochevar takes the mound against Henderson Alvarez, who has been the Blue Jays best starter.

*Vin Mazzaro was sent back to the minors following yesterday’s miserable start and reliever Louis Coleman was recalled to take his place. Outfielder Mitch Maier was designated to make room for Nate Adcock, who frequently makes the drive back and forth from Omaha to Kansas City. Maier played in just 32 games this season for the Royals, including pitching a scoreless inning of relief.

Check out the article on royals.com to hear all the good things manager Ned Yost and his teammates had to say about him. Maier spent 10 years in the system/big leagues.

**Don’t forget you have until tomorrow to vote for closer Jonathan Broxton for the final spot on the American League’s All-Star roster.

Nate Adcock

Yesterday it was Luke Hochevar. Today was Nate Adcock. The difference being that the KC Royals won on Sunday, but lost on Memorial Day. A five-run 3rd inning chased Adcock from the game and the first-place Cleveland Indians held on for the 8-5 win.

The Royals took a 2-0 lead against Josh Tomlin in the top of the 2nd inning on Eric Hosmer‘s two-run homerun.

Then the 3rd inning happened for Adcock. Lonnie Chisenhall, who was just promoted from Triple-A before the game, hit a solo homerun to lead off the inning. Luke Carlin followed with a single (he has been forced into duty behind the plate with injuries to the top two catchers on the Indians depth chart). After getting an out, Adcock allowed a single to Shin-Soo Choo and walked Michael Brantley to load the bases.

That brought up Jason Kipnis, who drove in two runs with a single. Jose Lopez followed with an RBI infield single and Casey Kotchman followed with an RBI single. That was all for Adcock.

In came Luis Mendoza and he got out of the inning without anymore damage. The Indians batted around.

The Royals got back into the game in the 5th inning. Brayan Pena hit a solo homerun with one out. Jarrod Dyson followed with a triple and scored on Kipnis’ throwing error.

Kipnis made up for his error with a single, a stolen base, and scored on Lopez’ RBI single.

Tomlin was done after five innings in his return from the DL (5IP, 4H, 4R, 2BB, 4K).

The Royals cut the deficit again, this time to 6-5 in the 7th inning when Dyson singled, stole second base, and scored on Alcides Escobar‘s RBI single.

However the Indians came right back again with two runs in the bottom of the 7th inning. It could have been worse, as the Indians collected four hits and Irving Falu made an error.

Chris Perez blew through the Royals in the 9th inning to record his 17th save of the season. His celebration made me laugh, as he pumped his fist after getting the out at first base, he almost fell down.

*The series continues on Tuesday as rookie Will Smith will make his second career start against the Indians Justin Masterson. The series finishes up on Wednesday afternoon as Bruce Chen faces Jeanmar Gomez.

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The KC Royals begin a three-game series on the road in Baltimore after a day off and losing two of three in New York. The Orioles continue to surprise everyone, as they keep on winning. They are 28-17 and sitting in first place in the American League East (with the best record in the AL). The Royals are still in fourth place in the AL Central (17-26), but just 2.5 games behind the Detroit Tigers for third place.

The O’s have been hitting homeruns (69, which leads all of baseball) and with the heat and humidity this weekend, balls should be flying out of Camden Yards. Adam Jones is tied for second place in the AL with 14 bombs (and there is a rumor that a big deal is about to be announced).

Their pitching has been way better than expected (they have a team ERA of 3.58), though it has been coming back to earth as of late. Closer Jim Johnson has been lights out. He is tied for the most saves with Cleveland’s Chris Perez with 16 (who the Royals will see next), though Johnson has yet to blow a save opportunity.

Baltimore has yet to set a rotation for this weekend’s series outside of Friday’s starter, Jason Hammel.

Friday: Bruce Chen (3-4, 4.17) @ Jason Hammel (5-1, 3.12 ERA)

Chen has won three straight starts and has gone six or more innings in seven of his nine starts this season.

A sore right knee that hasn’t improved has caused short outings for Hammel, despite strong starts. He is expected to keep pitching through the pain because he is more valuable in the rotation than on the DL.

Felipe Paulino (2-1, 1.42 ERA) will get the start on Saturday against the O’s. He has been dominant since coming off the DL. Over four starts, he has just a 1.42 ERA and has beaten the Yankees twice. He held the O’s to five hits in a 15-inning loss on May 16th. Paulino has struck out 29 compared to just seven walks. I will be in attendance for this game, so hopefully I can get some good pics.

Luke Hochevar (3-5, 6.61 ERA) will start the series finale on Sunday for the Royals. He has pitched well of late, despite going 1-2 over his last three starts.

*Nate Adcock will be skipped in the rotation this series, but will be back in the rotation to start Monday’s series opener in Cleveland.

**For more on the Orioles, check out Charm City Yakyuu.

Despite a four hit day by Jeff Francoeur and a solid start from Nate Adcock, the KC Royals lost to visiting Arizona 2-0.

Francoeur went 4-for-4, but the team collected just seven hits. The Royals went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.

Adcock, who was sent to the minors and recalled over the last few days, pitched well. He allowed one run on five hits and a walk over five innings.

DBacks starter Wade Miley was better. He allowed six hits and two walks over seven shutout innings.

The Royals dropped to 1-2 in Interleague Play, which starts up again in June.

Wednesday night’s game looked so promising for the KC Royals, but closer Jonathan Broxton struggled with his command and a blew a save. Then the game went into extra innings and they lost to the Baltimore Orioles, 4-3.

Adam Jones hit a bomb into the left field seats with one out in the top of the 15th inning to give the O’s the win. Nate Adcock took the loss, as he allowed that one run over five innings of relief.

So why did the game look promising for the Royals?

They received another stellar start. Felipe Paulino left the game with the win, as he pitched seven shutout innings. He allowed just five hits and two walks while striking out nine.

But then Kelvin Herrera allowed a run in the 8th inning. That led to Broxton’s implosion in the 9th inning. Wilson Betemit hit a solo homerun with one out. Chris Davis followed with a single. Broxton did get Robert Andino to fly out for the second out. Then rookie Xavier Avery singled. Then JJ Hardy drove in pinch-runner Ryan Flaherty to tie the game at 3-3.

The Royals had their chance in the bottom of the 9th inning. Alcides Escobar singled to lead off the inning and Irving Falu sacrificed him to second base. O’s reliever Darren O’Day struck out both Humberto Quintero and Jarrod Dyson to send the game into extras.

The Royals collected 12 hits, but scored just three runs. They went just 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and hit into two double plays.

The worst part about the loss was that Billy Butler wasn’t around. He was pinch-run for in the 8th inning. Mitch Maier ran for Butler in the 8th inning and was pinch-hit for in the 10th inning by Johnny Giavotella (who picked up three at-bats).

*Chris Getz left the game with a rib injury, after Orioles first baseman Chris Davis collided with him. Hopefully the Royals don’t lose another player to the DL.

**For more on the O’s, check out Charm City Yakyuu.

An MRI today showed that KC Royals starter Danny Duffy has a torn UCL in his elbow and most likely needs Tommy John surgery.

He would be the second Royals pitcher to succumb to the surgery this year (closer Joakim Soria has already had the surgery).

Apparently, Duffy has had a tear since 2010, but pitched with it. If Duffy has the surgery, he will miss a year.

Nate Adcock has been recalled to take his place.

Jonathan Sanchez‘ last start was too good to be true. He lasted just one batter into the 4th inning tonight, as the KC Royals were pounded by the Boston Red Sox, 11-5.

Sanchez threw 73 pitches, just 35 for strikes. He allowed six runs on six hits and three walks.

The Red Sox jumped ALL over him in the very first inning. They scored four runs, three of which came via rookie Will Middlebrooks‘ three-run homerun.

Remember the 17-inning affair that the Red Sox lost yesterday? Well, that meant that Boston starter Felix Doubront had to pitch longer than he probably should have. He still ended up with the victory, despite allowing five runs (four earned) on seven hits and three walks over 7.1 innings.

Outside of the two-run homerun he allowed to Dustin Pedroia in the 4th inning, Nate Adcock pitched well over his three innings of work.

The Royals had cut the deficit to 7-5 heading into the 8th inning, but the Red Sox offense struck again, this time against lefty reliever Tim Collins. The four-run inning was capped by another homerun from Middlebrooks (his third of his short career so far).

The Royals had ten hits, but went just 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position. They also hit into two double plays. Alex Gordon and Mike Moustakas each went 2-for-4 with a run scored. Jarrod Dyson continues to hit from the leadoff spot, as he went 3-for-5.

*Former Royal Mike Aviles returned to Kansas City and went 1-for-6 from the leadoff spot.

**For more on the Red Sox, check out Fenway Fatales.