As bad as it is, Royals fans, there’s still Zack Greinke. And that’s still enough to turn an ordinary Tuesday night in this lost season into something extraordinary. Greinke set a franchise record with 15 strikeouts in a 6-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians at Kauffman Stadium. That knocked Mark Gubicza out of the Royals’ record book and offered a respite from the usual dismal happenings. The record fell when Andy Marte swung through a 1-2 slider for the second out in the eighth inning. That brought the crowd of 17,353 to full roar — which baffled Greinke. “I don’t know why,” he said, “but I thought (Luke) Hochevar had 15 and no walks (earlier in the season). So I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I was wondering, ‘Why are they cheering so much?’ “It didn’t really make sense to me. I thought Hoch had 15. Obviously, I was wrong.” Yes, obviously. Hochevar had 13 strikeouts and no walks June 25 in a 6-3 victory over Texas. Gubicza’s record 14 was nearly 21 years ago to the day: Aug. 27, 1988, in a 4-1 victory over Minnesota. Asked to assess his achievement, Greinke all but shrugged. “Strikeouts are easier now than they were in the past,” he said. “It’s a different story. It’s definitely nice to do it, but strikeouts are a lot easier now. At least, I think they are.” He was the only one so unimpressed. “That’s about as good as I’ve seen any pitcher in my time here at this level,” Indians manager Eric Wedge said. “He had special stuff tonight. I mean, he always has special stuff, but everything was on the plate. He had everything working. “For a young pitcher, he pitches smart. I saw him as a young pitcher, and he was still trying to figure some things out. Now he’s a full-fledged pitcher with stuff, composure. He did a great job tonight, obviously.” That word again: Obviously. “Zack had one of those days,” catcher Miguel Olivo said. “Today, he was like he was in April. Today, he had everything together. Even the change-up.” Equally important, the Royals backed Greinke with sufficient support so that, for a change, he wasn’t delivering every pitch with the game on the line. In fact, they built an early cushion with one run in the first inning and two more in the third against Cleveland starter Justin Masterson. The Royals then turned on a little power with two notable home runs. Olivo made it 4-0 with a one-out bomb in the fourth inning. It was Olivo’s 17th of the season, which leads the club and marks a career high. He had 16 in 2006 and 2007 while playing for Florida. After Greinke lost his shutout by surrendering a leadoff homer in the sixth inning to Marte, the Royals struck back with Mitch Maier’s first career homer, a two-run drive in the seventh. “I’ve hit home runs before so I knew when I hit it,” said Maier, who hit 63 homers in seven minor-league seasons. “I just tried not to smile the whole way around the bases. I was pretty excited.” Maier’s homer extended the lead to 6-1. Greinke improved to 12-8 by winning for just the second time in his last 10 starts. He also lowered his league-leading ERA to 2.43 by limiting the Indians to two runs and five hits in eight innings. But he had also thrown 117 pitches, which forced manager Trey Hillman to summon Robinson Tejeda from a combustible bullpen that had compiled a 6.70 ERA since the All-Star break.

Posted on Tue, Aug. 25, 2009 11:50 PM

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Greinke strikes out 15 as Royals end skid with 6-2 victory over Indians

By BOB DUTTON

The Kansas City Star

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As bad as it is, Royals fans, there’s still Zack Greinke. And that’s still enough to turn an ordinary Tuesday night in this lost season into something extraordinary.

Greinke set a franchise record with 15 strikeouts in a 6-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians at Kauffman Stadium. That knocked Mark Gubicza out of the Royals’ record book and offered a respite from the usual dismal happenings.

The record fell when Andy Marte swung through a 1-2 slider for the second out in the eighth inning. That brought the crowd of 17,353 to full roar — which baffled Greinke.

“I don’t know why,” he said, “but I thought (Luke) Hochevar had 15 and no walks (earlier in the season). So I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I was wondering, ‘Why are they cheering so much?’

“It didn’t really make sense to me. I thought Hoch had 15. Obviously, I was wrong.”

Yes, obviously.

Hochevar had 13 strikeouts and no walks June 25 in a 6-3 victory over Texas. Gubicza’s record 14 was nearly 21 years ago to the day: Aug. 27, 1988, in a 4-1 victory over Minnesota.

Asked to assess his achievement, Greinke all but shrugged.

“Strikeouts are easier now than they were in the past,” he said. “It’s a different story. It’s definitely nice to do it, but strikeouts are a lot easier now. At least, I think they are.”

He was the only one so unimpressed.

“That’s about as good as I’ve seen any pitcher in my time here at this level,” Indians manager Eric Wedge said. “He had special stuff tonight. I mean, he always has special stuff, but everything was on the plate. He had everything working.

“For a young pitcher, he pitches smart. I saw him as a young pitcher, and he was still trying to figure some things out. Now he’s a full-fledged pitcher with stuff, composure. He did a great job tonight, obviously.”

That word again: Obviously.

“Zack had one of those days,” catcher Miguel Olivo said. “Today, he was like he was in April. Today, he had everything together. Even the change-up.”

Equally important, the Royals backed Greinke with sufficient support so that, for a change, he wasn’t delivering every pitch with the game on the line.

In fact, they built an early cushion with one run in the first inning and two more in the third against Cleveland starter Justin Masterson. The Royals then turned on a little power with two notable home runs.

Olivo made it 4-0 with a one-out bomb in the fourth inning. It was Olivo’s 17th of the season, which leads the club and marks a career high. He had 16 in 2006 and 2007 while playing for Florida.

After Greinke lost his shutout by surrendering a leadoff homer in the sixth inning to Marte, the Royals struck back with Mitch Maier’s first career homer, a two-run drive in the seventh.

“I’ve hit home runs before so I knew when I hit it,” said Maier, who hit 63 homers in seven minor-league seasons. “I just tried not to smile the whole way around the bases. I was pretty excited.”

Maier’s homer extended the lead to 6-1.

Greinke improved to 12-8 by winning for just the second time in his last 10 starts. He also lowered his league-leading ERA to 2.43 by limiting the Indians to two runs and five hits in eight innings.

But he had also thrown 117 pitches, which forced manager Trey Hillman to summon Robinson Tejeda from a combustible bullpen that had compiled a 6.70 ERA since the All-Star break.

To reach Bob Dutton, Royals reporter for The Star, send email to bdutton@kcstar.com. Follow his updates at twitter.com/Royals_Report.

Posted on Tue, Aug. 25, 2009 11:50 PM

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