Royals fall to Detroit 6-5 on ninth-inning error

Yohan Pino lasted two pitches. The ending was swift, which did not lessen the pain. A depleted bullpen, a suspended relief ace and the baseball orthodoxy of Royals manager Ned Yost led to the chaotic final moments of Kansas City’s 6-5 loss to Detroit on Friday night.

To protect a deadlock at Comerica Park, on a night when the team coughed up a lead in the seventh inning with Kelvin Herrera unavailable, Yost turned to Pino, a 31-year-old in his second big-league season. He earned Yost’s trust as a mop-up man in four scoreless outings this season. Now Yost asked him to walk a ninth-inning tightrope. The act did not last long.

Anthony Gose raked a double on the first pitch. Ian Kinsler laid down a bunt on the next. Pino fielded the ball, which Yost said was the actual responsibility of temporary third baseman Christian Colon. Pino fired a throw past first baseman Eric Hosmer. Gose scored, the Tigers celebrated and the Royals squandered an opening on the first night of this three-game series.

“It’s always frustrating,” Yost said. “It doesn’t matter if you fight back or you don’t fight back. It was a really good game. And we didn’t win it. That’s always frustrating.”

Yost did not lament saving closer Greg Holland for a save opportunity that never came. He follows this philosophy in road games, and “it’s every manager’s philosophy,” he said. He managed the game with a 24-man roster and without third baseman Mike Moustakas, who departed the club for a family emergency. Friday felt like a receipt for the wounds this club has suffered thus far.

Kansas City, 18-11, bruised Detroit ace David Price, who yielded a career-high 13 hits. Three belonged to Alex Gordon, who had never gotten a hit off Price in his career before Friday. Gordon gave Kansas City the lead with his RBI single in the seventh. Yordano Ventura had provided six useful innings. It was, Yost admitted, “a perfect situation” to utilize Herrera, Wade Davis and Holland for the final nine outs.

This option was not possible Friday. With Herrera suspended, Yost called upon Jason Frasor. Gose led off with a single and swiped second. He took third on an errant throw by catcher Salvador Perez, who blamed himself for “trying to do too much in that situation.”

Frasor walked Kinsler, then fooled Miguel Cabrera with a change-up for a strikeout. Yost did not want to use Ryan Madson, who had pitched the day before, but he turned to him for the last two outs. Madson could only watch as Victor Martinez hit a soft roller that couldn’t be turned for a double play, which allowed Gose to score.

“I thought we’d take a shot with Madson there to get a pop-up or a rollover or a strikeout,” Yost said. “Madson did a great job. (Martinez) just didn’t hit the ball hard enough. We couldn’t do anything but get the force out at second.”

Kansas City rebounded from a four-run hole in the second inning. Ventura recovered from the stumble and lasted six innings. The clubs traded four-run rallies in the first four innings. Detroit hounded Ventura in the second. Perez launched a homer off Price in the fourth, and his teammates tied the score later that inning.

The Royals required an extended outing from Ventura. The previous two days sapped the bullpen. Danny Duffy lasted one inning on Wednesday. Edinson Volquez managed three on Thursday. On Friday they turned to Ventura, their 23-year-old staff leader.

Major League Baseball chastised Ventura for his actions in April. He was fined for plunking Oakland third baseman Brett Lawrie. He was suspended for igniting a brawl in Chicago.

Ventura vowed to lower his emotions. This approach backfired on April 29 in Cleveland.

Kansas City officials sensed hesitation in Ventura. Ventura feared pitching inside against the Indians, pitching coach Dave Eiland noticed. His fastball velocity sank into the mid-90s. Ventura tried to spot his pitches, rather than throw them with conviction. His mechanics broke down and Cleveland battered him for five runs in 5 1/3 innings.

“It was just a mess,” Eiland said.

The next day, Ventura dropped his appeal. He spent the next week preparing for Friday’s start. Eiland advised him to maintain his edge. Ventura requires emotion as fuel on the mound. Without it, Royals officials feel, he becomes more ordinary.

“Obviously what makes him good is his talent,” Eiland said. “But to bring out that talent, he’s got to pitch with passion, with fire in his eye. Fiercely competitive. That’s who he is. He can’t try and be this tame, stoic guy. It’s not who he is.”

Ventura did not require an attitude adjustment in Friday’s second inning. He could have used some good luck, though. He issued a four-pitch walk to outfielder J.D. Martinez to start the inning. The next five batters all singled, a collection of bleeders and rollers that vexed the Royals and boosted Detroit’s early advantage.

“They just found the hole,” Perez said. “A lot of broken bats today, six, seven broken bats. Bloopers.”

The Tigers loaded the bases with hits by third baseman Nick Castellanos and catcher James McCann. Ventura gave up a three-hopper to shortstop Andrew Romine. The hit skipped between second baseman Omar Infante and Hosmer.

The throw from outfielder Paulo Orlando arrived ahead of McCann. Perez bobbled it. The ball popped out when he dropped a tag. Detroit led by two.

The lead doubled two batters later. After Gose laid down a bunt, Kinsler grounded another single into right. Orlando tried again. This time, Perez could not sweep his arm around in time to tag Romine.

At last, some good fortune arose for Ventura. Miguel Cabrera lashed a line drive into the glove of Alcides Escobar. Kinsler drifted too far away from first base. Escobar doubled him up. Ventura escaped the nightmare with a fly-ball out by Victor Martinez.

Down four, Perez halved the deficit in the fourth. Gordon set the table with a one-out double. Price missed with two fastballs to Perez. Perez did not miss the third heater. He powered a two-run shot to left-center field for his fourth homer of the season.

“We were aggressive,” Perez said. “He’s aggressive, too. He likes to throw the fastball, and that’s what we’re looking for.”

Kansas City chipped away at the remaining deficit with a double by Infante and Colon’s RBI single to right. Two batters later, Lorenzo Cain rolled a grounder to third. Castellanos airmailed the throw for an error. Colon tied the game when he sprinted home.

Ventura defused a Tigers rally in the fifth. Kinsler led off with a double and took second on a grounder by Cabrera. Infante saved a run by sprawling across the dirt for the out.

Ventura pitched around Victor Martinez, but induced a grounder to third of Yoenis Cespedes’ bat. Colon spiked a throw home. Perez collected it and tagged Kinsler with the ball in his bare hand. Ventura fanned J.D. Martinez with a curveball that bounced a few feet ahead of the plate for the third out.

“He would have felt better if he pitched the whole nine,” said Colon, who translated for Ventura. “And we got the win. That way the bullpen could get some rest.”

Tigers 6, Royals 5

Umpires:Home, Alan Porter; First, Mark Ripperger; Second, Jeff Kellogg; Third, Brian O’Nora. Time:3:18. Att:39,434.

This story was originally published May 8, 2015 at 9:41 PM with the headline "Royals fall to Detroit 6-5 on ninth-inning error."