Kansas City Royals Sleep Through Series Finale Against Cleveland Indians
By Joel Wagler
Kansas City Royals relief pitcher
Michael Mariot(48) Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
The Kansas City Royals (10-11) started the day Thursday needing a win to earn a series split against the Cleveland Indians (11-11). Instead, they didn’t seem to wake up in time for the game, and lost 5-1 in a lackluster fashion.
On the Mound
Things started out good for Bruce Chen. He allowed a lead off single to start the game, a runner who later thrown out on the base paths, then he retired 11 straight batters. Things fell apart rapidly in the 5th. Chen allowed 6 of the first 7 batters to get on base before Ned Yost was shaken awake from his aftern0on nap. As you might have guessed, Yost was a little late. Five runs had scored, and against the Royals anemic offense, it was plenty.
Michael Mariot did come in and pitch 3.2 scoreless, 1-hit, innings to close out the game. He struck out 4, and didn’t issue a walk. He was pretty darn good.
At the Plate
Let me see. Well, Jarrod Dyson was 2 for 3, and the rest of the team was 2 for 28. There really isn’t much more to say.
This and That
The Royals’ disturbing trend continues. They are 10-0 in when scoring 4 times or more, and 0-11 when plating 3 runs or less.
Do you get the sinking feeling, down in your gut, that this is all this Royals team is – a team that just hovers around .500? I do.
Ned Yost continues to lack a feeling on how to handle pitchers, especially starters. Chen obviously wasn’t fooling anyone in the 5th inning. Get him out of there. He should have been pulled after the walk to the third batter of that inning after the two hits. . I don’t care what his pitch count is. If Yost wanted to give him a chance to get out of it, fine, but when he didn’t get the next hitter, Yost should have pulled him.
KC Kingdom Player of the Game
Tough to have a Player of the Game in a outing like this, but let’s go with Michael Mariot. His 3.2 innings on 1-hit ball was impressive.
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- Salvador Perez
- Jason Vargas – 4
- Alex Gordon – 3
- Bruce Chen
- James Shields-3
- Yordano Ventura – 2
- Mike Moustakas
- Danny Duffy
- Omar Infante
- Mike Moustakas – 2
- Alcides Escobar – 2
- Eric Hosmer
- Michael Mariot
The Indians
Corey Kluber! The Royals made him look like Greg Maddux. He pitched a complete game, and the only run he allowed was an unearned run in the 7th. He gave up 4 hits, no walks, and struck out 11.
Outside of the 5th inning, the Indians only had 2 hits.
Up Next
Kansas City moves on Baltimore for a 3-game weekend series. Yordano Ventura (1-1, 2.65 ERA) will attempt to recover from his worst outing in the majors his time out. Baltimore, who are 11-10 and in second place in the AL East, will send Wei-Yin Chen (3-1, 4.91 ERA) to the mound. First pitch is at 6:05 Central.
| Batting | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nori Aoki RF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .253 | .656 |
| Eric Hosmer 1B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .301 | .722 |
| Billy Butler DH | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .195 | .485 |
| Alex Gordon LF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .275 | .726 |
| Omar Infante 2B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .280 | .715 |
| Mike Moustakas 3B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .153 | .576 |
| Alcides Escobar SS | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .300 | .775 |
| Jarrod Dyson CF | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .368 | .768 |
| Brett Hayes C | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 |
| Team Totals | 31 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | .129 | .258 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
TB: J Dyson 2; O Infante; A Escobar.
Team LOB: 3.
With RISP: 0 for 3.
Fielding
DP: 1. E Hosmer-B Hayes.
PB: B Hayes (1).
E: B Chen (1).
Baserunning
SB: J Dyson (3, 2nd base off C Kluber/Y Gomes).
| Batting | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asdrubal Cabrera SS | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .238 | .690 |
| Nick Swisher 1B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .205 | .608 |
| Jason Kipnis 2B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .244 | .798 |
| Carlos Santana 3B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .137 | .527 |
| Michael Brantley CF | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .296 | .867 |
| Ryan Raburn DH | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .184 | .430 |
| Yan Gomes C | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .269 | .748 |
| David Murphy RF | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .290 | .841 |
| Mike Aviles LF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .238 | .616 |
| Team Totals | 29 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 6 | .241 | .611 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
2B: J Kipnis (6, off M Mariot); A Cabrera (6, off B Chen); C Santana (3, off B Chen).
SH: M Aviles (2, off B Chen).
TB: A Cabrera 3; C Santana 2; J Kipnis 2; Y Gomes; D Murphy; M Brantley.
RBI: D Murphy 2 (17); A Cabrera 2 (7); M Brantley (19).
Team LOB: 2.
With RISP: 4 for 9.
Fielding
E: N Swisher (3).
Outfield Assists: M Brantley (A Escobar at 3rd base).
Baserunning
Pickoffs: A Cabrera (2nd base by B Chen).
| Pitching | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | Pit | Str |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bruce Chen, L (1-2) | 4.1 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7.45 | 75 | 49 |
| Michael Mariot | 3.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2.35 | 40 | 25 |
| Team Totals | 8 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 5.62 | 115 | 74 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
| Pitching | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | BF | Pit | Str |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corey Kluber, W (2-2) | 9 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 3.90 | 31 | 101 | 75 |
| Team Totals | 9 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0.00 | 31 | 101 | 75 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Balks: None.
WP: M Mariot (2).
HBP: None.
IBB: None.
Pickoffs: B Chen (0; A Cabrera, 2nd base).
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