Karns delivers a gem, Royals’ offense awakens late in 6-1 victory

The artificial fog hung in the air inside the Royals clubhouse late Wednesday night, the gaseous residue from a postgame party, the remnants of a 6-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox.

The music was earsplitting as reserve catcher Drew Butera stepped to the controls of the play list. He selected another song and pressed play. The Royals toasted a second victory in three nights.

“It was a really, really good night,” Royals manager Ned Yost.

It was also needed. On a night in which the offensive fog had held for five innings, threatening to prolong a season of misery at the plate, it finally broke late Wednesday night. The Royals’ bats came to life, breaking through against White Sox starter Mike Pelfrey. The onslaught gave a hand to starter Nathan Karns, who allowed just one hit in six innings while securing his first win.

“That’s where we got to start,” first baseman Eric Hosmer said.

On the whole, it was a strange night, all quiet for five innings, before a thunderclap late. That the performance came against Pelfrey offered another element of early anxiety. A 33-year-old native of Wichita, Pelfrey began the 2017 baseball season on his third team in three years. Released by the Detroit Tigers on March 30, his career adrift after a run of mediocre years, he signed with the White Sox on April 8 and returned to the American League Central, where he had formerly served as a yearly punching bag for the Royals.

In 2016, he surrendered 11 runs in 8  2/3 innings across three appearances against Kansas City. In his career, he had posted a 6.51 ERA in nine outings. So there was context for Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium, where Pelfrey took the mound for another start, and the Royals’ offense threatened to deliver another low point … before a flash of life in the sixth inning.

Mike Moustakas broke the seal, snapping a 15-inning scoreless drought with an RBI double to right-center. Lorenzo Cain lashed an RBI triple to the same grassy patch. Hosmer settled for a sacrifice fly on a blast that was projected to travel 410 feet.

Off the bat, Hosmer believed he had cracked his third homer of the season, yet it would not matter. He finished 2 for 2, raising his average to .242. Moustakas’ double had taken the edge off inside the dugout. The Royals spent the next three innings on the attack.

“It definitely lets you exhale a little bit,” Hosmer said. “From that point, you could just see the offense start to swing it a lot better.”

The sixth-inning blitzkrieg chased Pelfrey and sent the White Sox bullpen scurrying into action. The outburst proved to be the decisive moment in another victory, setting up the chance for a series victory in the finale on Thursday afternoon. The Royals cannot dig out of large hole in one week. But they can begin by winning series, Hosmer said. That is the plan.

“I think we like where we are as an offense as of tonight,” Hosmer said.

Before the offense stirred, Karns shouldered most of the load, allowing just one hit in six scoreless innings. The Royals, 9-17, won for the second time in three nights following a nine-game losing streak.

For close to six innings, the evening offered a duel between Pelfrey and Karns, an unlikely “mano a mano” tussle between two back-of-the-rotation starters. Karns emerged victorious, rebounding from consecutive laborious starts. In his two previous outings, he yielded 10 earned runs in 10  2/3 innings, suffering losses in Texas and Chicago. On Wednesday, he struck out seven — including four in the sixth inning — while throwing 95 pitches, notching his best performance of 2017.

“It was just one of those days where everything was kind of clicking,” Karns said. “And I just kept going after them, and they couldn’t really put a good swing on the ball right now.”

Karns (1-2) lowered his ERA to 4.97 in six appearances. If you subtract an ugly relief outing on April 5 in Minnesota, he has posted a 3.81 ERA in five starts. Acquired in the offseason in a trade that sent outfielder Jarrod Dyson to Seattle, he has offered the traits of a classic fifth starter: Inconsistent at times, prone to inefficient moments, yet a talented and solid piece of the rotation.

“He stayed locked in the whole game, really,” Yost said.

The Royals still believe Karns can be more. But that will come with time. On Wednesday, his most important test came in the top of the sixth inning. As his pitch count crept toward 90, he struck out the first two hitters of the inning before a third-strike curveball bounced away from catcher Salvador Perez and allowed Yolmer Sanchez to reach base. Moments later, Melky Cabrera walked, putting two runners on in a 0-0 game. But Karns remained in control, striking out Jose Abreu on a 1-2 curveball.

By his recollection, he had never struck out four hitters in one inning.

“Now I can say I’ve done it,” Karns said. “I had a lot of confidence out there. Salvy and I really worked well. I think I had two pitches the last game I really regretted. And this time, I was able to squeak by without having any of those pitches to regret.”

The strikeout would represent his final hitter of the night. The Royals finally broke through in the bottom half of the inning, turning Pelfrey into Pelfrey. Whit Merrifield opened the inning with a one-out single to center field. Moustakas drove a 1-0 splitter into the gap in right-center, sending Merrifield sprinting around the bases.

The Royals had not scored since Monday’s 6-1 victory in the series opener, a win that stopped the nine-game skid. They stayed on the offensive the rest of the night, tacking on two runs in the bottom of the seventh and one in the eighth against the Chicago bullpen.

“I think after just seeing a couple of pitches (from Pelfrey), we got a better look,” Hosmer said.

So now it’s on to Thursday, where the Royals can secure their first series victory since finishing off a sweep of the Los Angeles Angels on April 16. Starter Ian Kennedy will take the ball, facing off against left-hander Derek Holland. A three-game series with Cleveland awaits on Friday. The long, steep ascent from a April crater will continue.

“That’s how we’ve all said we’re going to break out of this thing — one at a time,” Hosmer said. “Try to win each and every series.”

Royals 6, White Sox 1

This story was originally published May 3, 2017 at 10:04 PM with the headline "Karns delivers a gem, Royals’ offense awakens late in 6-1 victory."