Kansas City Royals drop opener to Angels despite breakout game from Hunter Dozier
The Kansas City Royals’ first West Coast trip of the season started off with a brutally tough debut for a highly regarded prospect and the team’s third consecutive loss.
Royals right-hander Jackson Kowar didn’t make it through the first inning of his MLB debut and his club never quite recovered as they fell 8-3 to the Los Angeles Angels in the first game of a three-game series in front of an announced crowd of 9,481 Monday night at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California.
The loss dropped the Royals back to .500 with a record of 29-29.
The most encouraging development for the Royals came in the form of infielder/outfielder Hunter Dozier’s first three-hit game of the season. Designated hitter Jorge Soler, who hit his fifth home run of the season, and Dozier entered the day struggling to produce on any sort of a consistent basis, though both have done so in the past.
“Two big pieces we’ve been talking about a lot, probably too much,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said of Dozier and Soler. “We’ve been talking about it instead of just letting them go do their thing. But when they do their thing, it looks special.
“They both are special hitters. It’s just a matter of getting them into a place where they’re comfortable. Doz certainly took a great step in that direction. It was good to see the ball jump off of Jorge’s bat too.”
Salvador Perez also collected two hits, while Whit Merrifield drove in a run and extended his hitting streak to eight games.
Kowar gave up four runs, three hits and two walks in 2/3 of an inning. He also uncorked three wild pitches. Kowar gave way to veteran right-hander Ervin Santana after having thrown 39 pitches to record two outs. Santana began his major-league career with the Angles in 2005.
The Royals got two runs to cut the deficit in half in the second inning thanks to Soler’s home run, his first since May 19, and Dozier’s RBI double that scored Michael A. Taylor, who reached when he got hit by a pitch.
“I just keep telling myself the stuff I’ve been working on in the cage, it’s going to transfer over,” Dozier said. “Just keep taking it day-by-day and don’t get frustrated by results, stay focused on the stuff I’m working on. In the long run, it’s going to help me out.”
Santana gave up three runs, one in the fourth and two in the fifth. Angels catcher Max Stassi hit a two-run homer in the fifth to make it a 7-2 deficit for the Royals.
The Royals’ third run came in the seventh after Dozier hit his second double of the night and then scored on a Merrifield RBI single.
Dozier also singled to right field in the fifth inning, his first hit to the opposite field this season. He came into the night batting .146 with a .217 on-base percentage and a .354 slugging percentage with seven home runs.
“Going right-center, that’s kind of my game,” Dozier said. “I know I haven’t done it this year. I’ve been thinking that way. Just for whatever reason when I step in the box it just hasn’t played out that way. Tonight, I felt good in the box.”
Dozier enjoyed a career offensive year in 2019, that included a .279/.348/.522 slash line along with 26 homers, 84 RBIs and 75 runs scored in 139 games.
Last season, he got a late started to the pandemic-shortened season after he contracted COVID-19 right at the end of Spring Training 2.0/Summer Camp in Kansas City. He played in 44 games and posted a slash line of .228/.344/.392 with six homers, 12 RBIs and 29 runs scored. His average exit velocity and barrel percentage were lower than previous seasons.
The Royals are now just two games shy of the 60-game mark, which was the total number of games in the 2020 season. This year, players like Dozier still have more than 100 games remaining to try to turn around their slow starts.
“Knowing that this year is a normal year, which seems like a very long year compared to last year, it definitely gives you a little peace,” Dozier said. “... Don’t let the first 150 (at-bats) dictate the rest of the season.
“Whereas last year, it was a sprint. If I did this last year, my season would be over. I’d be hitting (.146), but thankfully we have a full season. I have time to continue to work and try to keep getting out of this.”
Wade Davis pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings, and Greg Holland gave up a run on two hits in the ninth inning. The run scored from third base on a balk.
This story was originally published June 8, 2021 at 12:27 AM.
