Brad Keller, Vinnie Pasquantino lead way as Royals beat Tigers in doubleheader opener
Kansas City Royals pitcher Brad Keller squelched the Detroit Tigers offense for the vast majority of seven innings to earn his third consecutive win and start his club off on a high note in the first game of a doubleheader.
Keller held the Tigers to one run and three singles and he struck out a season-high eight in his 100th career start in the majors as the Royals defeated their AL Central Division rival 3-1 on Monday afternoon in front of an announced 11,084 at Kauffman Stadium.
The Royals have won three of their last four games heading into the second game of the doubleheader.
“A great team win,” Keller said of the outing. “I felt pretty good out there. I felt like I had really good command with my fastball and my slider. So we just tried to run with it as long as we could.”
Keller (5-9) ran with it to the tune of seven full innings on 91 pitches even with his eight strikeouts. He walked just one, his lowest total in a start since June 12.
Similar to his most recent outing, against the Astros last Wednesday, Keller featured his four-seam fastball — which reached 97.5 mph — and complemented it with his slider, sinker and changeup.
Keller said he and pitching coach Cal Eldred broke down his mechanics as well as the metrics of certain pitches in recent weeks in order to create more consistency.
“I feel like whenever you’ve got a good feel for your fastball, you can just go after guys,” Keller said. “Especially on a hot day like today, I didn’t want the defense standing out there too long. I just tried to go after guys. Honestly, strike one was really important today. I felt like I did a pretty good job with that and just staying ahead in counts the whole time.”
In three starts against the Tigers this season, Keller has allowed three runs, 11 hits and five walks with 18 strikeouts in 20 innings.
Keller became the 25th pitcher in Royals history to reach 100 starts, tying him with Gil Meche for 24th on the franchise’s career list.
Keller’s 100 starts are also the most by a Royals pitcher since he debuted in 2018.
“I saw up there it’s his 100th start,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “And it seems like he’s starting to trust his stuff. We talk about it all the time, but just pitching with aggressiveness and trusting that his stuff is better than average and to be aggressive in certain spots.
“And then to stretch the zone, he did exactly what he needed to. The changeup was good at times. The slider was good to get swing and miss. But it was all about using both sides with the fastball and the movement that he has. It’s unique.”
Pasquantino sparks the offense
Royals rookie first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino went 2 for 4 with a home run and two runs scored, and he also drove in two of the team’s three runs.
Rookie shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. went 2 for 4 with a run scored and two stolen bases for the Royals (33-52). Witt’s second stolen base of the day moved him past Whit Merrifield for the team lead. Witt now has 15 steals this season.
The Royals played their first game without Merrifield (foot injury) getting on the field since June 24, 2018.
Royals left fielder Andrew Benintendi went 0 for 4 to snap his consecutive games on base streak at 19.
The Royals took a 1-0 lead on Pasquantino’s first home run of the season at Kauffman Stadium, the second of his major-league career and second against Tigers pitcher Michael Pineda.
“I saw the ball pretty well today, I felt like,” Pasquantino said, wearing a T-shirt that read “Michael A. Tater” in homage to teammate Michael A. Taylor. “I will say, my first at-bat, I wish I would’ve swung at that outside fastball because it was a little too close to take. I wish I would have tried to foul that off or do something with it.
“But the second at-bat, I felt like I saw it pretty good and was able to get a good swing off.”
Keller gave up the tying run in the sixth after a leadoff single, a groundout and another single put runners on the corners with one out. Keller got Tigers star Miguel Cabrera to strike out on a pitch in the dirt, but the ball caromed away from catcher Cam Gallagher and the runner at third scored on the play.
The Royals took the lead back when Pasquantino smacked an RBI single to the opposite field with one out in the sixth. That hit drove in Witt, who singled and stole second base.
“Vinnie putting up so many RBIs at Triple-A and all through the minor leagues, it’s not a fluke,” Matheny said. “There’s certain guys that thrive in those situations when they get guys on base, and I’m thinking more about the single.”
Pasquantino, who had his first multi-hit game since coming to the majors on June 27, also pointed to his RBI single as a particularly encouraging at-bat.
“I was really happy with being able to stay on it and go the other way because it’s something I’ve been wanting to do,” Pasquantino said. “It’s something I know I can do, and I finally did it. I’m happy about that.”
Pasquantino came around to score on a bases-loaded grounder by Gallagher that led to a throwing error by Tigers shortstop Javier Baez. That gave the Royals a 3-1 lead after six innings.
Royals relievers Taylor Clarke (one inning) and Scott Barlow (one inning, 14th save) closed out the win for Keller.
This story was originally published July 11, 2022 at 3:48 PM.
