The top of the ninth inning couldn’t have started much better or ended much worse. Down 4-3 to the Indians, needing a run to tie the game and two runs to win; the Royals got the first two batters on base. David Lough and Mike Moustakas singled. Things started to go wrong when Chris Getz—normally a very good bunter—took the first pitch for a strike, bunted the second pitch foul and struck out on a slider.
With one down and runners still at first and second, Alcides Escobar hit a line-drive single into the right field corner. Cleveland outfielder Drew Stubbs had to move laterally and come around the ball to line up a throw. Stubbs is right-handed: catch the ball on the glove side and his feet would be in the wrong position, so he took an angle that allowed him a better catch and throw, but all that takes time.
David Lough—the tying run—got a good jump off second base and it appeared he would score to tie the game. Afterwards, Lough said he thought he was going to score and didn’t pick up third base coach Eddie Rodriguez’ stop sign as he ran through third base. It appeared Rodriguez got very conservative on the play, but he did have the stop sign up when Lough hit third. Lough had two choices that would have been OK: pick up his base coach and stop at third or run through the stop sign when he got so far down the line and saw the throw home was off-line. (Catcher Carlos Santana was pulled away from home plate and would have been unable to make a tag.)
He shows up early and lifts weights, takes extra fly balls in batting practice and runs out every bloop hit, just in case one drops in. When he plays defense, Gordon turns doubles into singles on a regular basis—he does it with hustle, good routes and a strong and accurate arm. Next time you’re at the ballpark and the Royals are playing defense, watch Alex when someone on the other team hits a single to right field: the throw will come in to second base and Alex Gordon will be backing the play up—just in case.
Monday night, with the Royals up 2-1 against the Cleveland Indians, Greg Holland came in to close the game. He got the number nine hitter, John McDonald, on a fly ball to center. Then the Indians centerfielder, Michael Bourn hit a 1-0 fastball off the wall in left-center. Lorenzo Cain chased the ball, got too close to the wall and the carom got past him. A ball off the wall is a pretty sure double, a ball off the wall that gets away from an outfielder can be a triple or worse.
The Royals have now won 10 of their last 12 games; that’s an .833 winning percentage—nobody stays that hot throughout a season. Immediately before this streak started, the Royals had lost 15 of 18; that’s a .167 winning percentage—it’s also very unlikely that a team will stay that cold over 162 games.
Ballplayers strive to keep an even keel; they’ve got six months of baseball to get through and emotional ups and downs aren’t helpful—many fans and media members aren’t so calm. Look at this way: if your team is terrific, you’re still going to see 60 to 70 losses over a season. If you’re team is horrible, you’re still going to see 60 to 70 wins. Being a baseball fan is not for the faint of heart.
All teams have streaks; good teams have shorter losing streaks and longer winning streaks, bad teams have the opposite. Fans—and general managers—generally have no idea where teams will wind up and that’s part of the fun. A team that spends a ton of money can flop and, once in a while, an underdog outperforms expectations. It’s like a soap opera and every day is a new episode. When things are going well, enjoy it. When things are going bad, endure it. I’ll leave you with a baseball saying that fans can also use: "You’re never as good as you think you are, you’re never as bad as you think you are."
In the bottom of the first inning umpire Laz Diaz missed two calls. Tampa Bay Rays second baseman, Ben Zobrist, was on first base and got picked off by Jeremy Guthrie—but Diaz called him safe. Replays revealed it was close, but Zobrist was out. Zobrist then advanced to second base on an E3 (another pickoff attempt that got away from Eric Hosmer). Zobrist then moved over to third on Diaz’ second missed call of the inning—Luke Scott was called safe at first on an infield hit, but replays showed he was out and it wasn’t that close. Evan Longoria then drove Zobrist home with a sacrifice fly. Longoria would not have been at the plate except for the missed calls by Diaz. Had the calls been made correctly, Ben Zobrist would have never scored.
In the sixth inning Alcides Escobar tripled with one out. With a runner on third and one out, the man at the plate has to find a way to get the ball in play; a routine fly ball or groundball—hit to the right spot—will drive in a run. Alex Gordon struck out looking. (Granted, the guy on the mound, Jake McGee, was getting the ball to the plate at 97 miles an hour—when he backed off, it was 96.) But the Royals had to find a way to get the ball in play with one out.
And here’s the biggest reason: Jeremy Guthrie gave up three home runs. In his last start Guthrie got 14 fly ball outs, but he was pitching in Kauffman Stadium—a bigger, more forgiving ballpark. Guthrie has now had six multi-home run games, but four of them have come on the road. Bottom line: if you’re going to leave a ball up in the zone, do it in Kansas City. Rays win, 5-3.
Judging the Royals is an inside look at baseball and the Kansas City Royals. Lee Judge watches every game, talks to the players and brings their point of view back to the fans.
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