Eric Hosmer’s two-run homer helps lift Royals over Angels 4-1

Greg Holland said he rose on Friday morning as he does most mornings, with his mind not cluttered by the events of the previous night. Even after a ninth-inning meltdown, one which cost the Royals a series opener against the Angels, Holland insisted his mood was not altered.

“I’ve never put too much into a good outing or a bad outing,” Holland said. “When you start doing that, you end up getting too emotional, I think. I thought about it a little bit last night, what I didn’t do well, and woke up this morning expecting to pitch in a big-league ball game with a lead in the ninth inning.

“And it worked out that way.”

Indeed, in the final inning of a 4-1 victory Friday, Royals manager Ned Yost called for Holland to record the last three outs. Holland responded in encouraging fashion. He notched three strikeouts and reminded observers of his recent past as a two-time All-Star.

The triumph followed a pair of late-game meltdowns at Kauffman Stadium. On Wednesday, Yost let starter Edinson Volquez blow a two-run lead, despite a rested bullpen. On Thursday, in the first game of this four-night series, Wade Davis and Holland combined to waste a four-run lead.

Davis did not pitch on Friday. Ryan Madson gave up a double and two walks, but still navigated through a scoreless seventh. Kelvin Herrera buzzed through three batters in the eighth. Then Holland entered the fray.

“He wanted to get back on the horse, bad,” Yost said, adding, “He’s got a lot of confidence in his abilities. He wants the ball in those situations.”

The lead stemmed from a sixth-inning rally against Angels right-hander Jered Weaver. Eric Hosmer snapped the deadlock with a two-run homer against Weaver. In the eighth, backup catcher Drew Butera added an RBI single.

The Royals, 69-46, have now won six of the eight games on this homestand. They will play a pair of nationally televised games to close it out, first on Fox Sports 1 on Saturday and then on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball.

Danny Duffy, 6-5 with a 4.03 ERA, gave up one run in six innings. He felt frustrated about his inability to finish at-bats, but he trusted his fastball to guide him through trouble. He rebounded from an abbreviated outing in his last start.

“I thought Duffy did a great job,” Yost said. “That’s a scary lineup over there. They’ve got a lot of power. They can hit. And Duff did a great job of getting us through six with one-run ball. Kept us in the ballgame.”

The Royals trailed three batters into the game. Duffy allowed a sharp liner by recent Angels addition Shane Victorino that rattled around the left-field corner. The bouncing ball gave Ben Zobrist trouble. The additional time allowed Victorino to land at third, and he was awarded a triple.

The extra base proved inconsequential. That’s because reigning American League MVP Mike Trout bested Duffy soon after. Duffy tried to pound Trout inside with fastballs. Trout still managed to slice a 97-mph fastball, which arrived down and in, into right for an opposite-field, RBI double.

“It was shin-high,” Duffy said. “But he’s that strong.”

Through the first three innings, the Royals did not record a hit against Weaver, the veteran righty. Weaver was making his only his second start since June 20. He missed extended time due to an injured hip. But even with his fastball hovering in the mid-80s, Weaver can still frustrate opponents.

For the first portion of the evening, the lone drama centered around a succession of hit batsmen. Duffy clipped a pair of Angels in the second inning, but escaped with a scoreless inning by leaving the bases loaded. Weaver hit Butera in the third. He hit Mike Moustakas in the fourth. In the fifth, Duffy opened the inning by losing the handle on a curveball that hit outfielder Kole Calhoun.

“Working in really helped tonight,” Duffy said. “The fastball was getting in on people. It was working out pretty good.”

Weaver did not respond. Instead, he allowed Kansas City to claim the lead. The sixth started with a double to right by Zobrist, who pulled a change-up for only his team’s second hit of the night. The Royals did not need a hit to tie the game.

Lorenzo Cain shortened his swing, trying to shoot a single to right field. Instead, he chopped a grounder toward first baseman Albert Pujols. The ball skipped by Pujols, who was charged with an error. Charging in from right field, Calhoun did not attempt a throw home.

There was nothing Calhoun could do. And there was nothing the Angels could do when Hosmer’s blast took flight.

“We let one go last night,” Hosmer said. “That really never happens with our bullpen. We wanted to give those guys another chance tonight.”

Royals 4, Angels 1

a-grounded into a fielder’s choice for Victorino in the 7th. b-struck out for Featherston in the 9th.

1-ran for Zobrist in the 7th. 2-ran for K.Morales in the 8th.

E: Pujols (5), Weaver (3). LOB: Los Angeles 10, Kansas City 9. 2B: Trout (22), Gillaspie (15), Zobrist (22). 3B: Victorino (2). HR: Hosmer (14), off Weaver. RBIs: Trout (71), Hosmer 2 (69), Butera (5). SB: A.Escobar (11), L.Cain (22).

Runners left in scoring position: Los Angeles 6 (Cron, Calhoun 3, Pujols 2); Kansas City 5 (Zobrist, Rios, Butera, Hosmer, A.Escobar). RISP: Los Angeles 1 for 9; Kansas City 2 for 13. Runners moved up: L.Cain. GIDP: Pujols. DP: Kansas City 1 (D.Duffy, Infante, Hosmer).

C.Ramos pitched to 2 batters in the 8th.

Holds: Madson (13), Herrera (16). Inherited runners-scored: C.Ramos 1-0, J.Smith 2-1. HBP: by Weaver (Butera, Moustakas), by D.Duffy (Featherston, Victorino, Calhoun).

Umpires: Home, John Tumpane; First, Lance Barksdale; Second, Quinn Wolcott; Third, Gary Cederstrom. Time: 3:00. Att: 36,926.

This story was originally published August 14, 2015 at 10:21 PM with the headline "Eric Hosmer’s two-run homer helps lift Royals over Angels 4-1."