Is it time to panic about KC Royals offense? Saturday’s game was latest example
The Kansas City Royals found themselves in a familiar spot Saturday night against the Cleveland Guardians.
The Royals ran into more good pitching. And the offense continued to struggle to score runs and support the pitching staff.
As a result, Cleveland picked up a 6-3 victory and clinched the early April series at Progressive Field.
KC grabbed a brief lead in the fourth inning. First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino hit a solo home run off Guardians starter Luis Ortiz. It was Pasquantino’s second home run and first since opening day on March 27.
Pasquantino drilled a 96.2 mph fastball over the right-field wall. However, the Royals couldn’t damage Ortiz the rest of the way.
Ortiz recorded a career-high 10 strikeouts in 5 ⅔ innings pitched. He dominated the strike zone with his fastball and cutter combination. Both pitches induced weak contact and multiple swings and misses.
“It’s a low slot and the fastball takes off,” Pasquantino said. “If you look at ... the metrics on the fastball, you don’t think it’s going to move a whole lot. Then, based on where he is throwing and the height of it, it really takes off. That can be a tough challenge.”
The Royals registered a combined 29 swings and 11 whiffs on the fastballs. Pasquantino had three of the Royals’ six hits on Saturday.
“We knew he had multiple fastballs with plus (velocity),” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “He’s got a cutter that he was locating. Then, he mixed in his changeup deeper in the outing and he was really tough.”
The Guardians broke the game open late. Gabriel Arias, who has been a thorn in the Royals’ side, hit a solo home run in the sixth inning. He finished with two RBIs.
Guardians outfielder Angel Martinez hit a ground-rule double in the eighth inning off Royals reliever Sam Long to secure the victory.
Royals starter Michael Lorenzen took the loss. He allowed three earned runs in 5 ⅔ innings with four strikeouts.
“It was a frustrating game,” Lorenzen said. “Just kind of stepping back, I think they were 5-for-6 on first-pitch balls put in play with the sac fly. I think when you have games like that, they’re frustrating. But if you step back and say, if I can convert two or three into outs instead of hits, you are looking to go deeper into the seventh (inning).”
The Royals fell to 7-8. KC scored twice in the ninth, but have been held to three or fewer runs in five straight games — and nine times (out of 15 games) this season.
“I think you take the ninth inning and you’re like, ‘OK it’s there,’” Pasquantino said. “Let’s build on it and maybe figure out why — or maybe it was just (stringing) together some better swings. We play at 1 tomorrow. So we have an opportunity to build on that quickly and hopefully we do.”
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Game 1: Royals’ offensive cold spell continue in 7-0 loss
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Here are more notable aspects of Saturday’s game:
Jonathan India exits in 6th inning
Kansas City Royals infielder Jonathan India exited Saturday’s game against the Cleveland Guardians.
In the sixth inning, India reached base on a one-out walk. He advanced to third after first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino hit a single down the right-field line.
India remained in the game for the remainder of the Royals at-bats. However, he was replaced in the bottom half of the inning.
Royals outfielder Drew Waters came into the game to replace India, who has a quad injury.
Sam Long has rough outing
It’s been a tough month for Royals left-handed reliever Sam Long. On Saturday, Long allowed three earned runs and walked two batters in one inning.
The Guardians expanded their lead after outfielder Angel Martinez hit a ground-rule double with the bases loaded. He drilled an 83.6 mph slider that was left over the plate. Later, Long threw a wild pitch that allowed another run to score.
Long has allowed 12 runs (10 earned) in seven innings this season.
“He walked a couple of guys there and you can’t do that,” Quatraro said. “Obviously, he was struggling, especially there with (Steven) Kwan at the end, to get the ball down. Sammy has been battling to try to get through it and probably not at his best right now.”
What’s next: The Royals conclude their three-game series against the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday afternoon. Cole Ragans (0-0, 2.81 ERA) will make his fourth start against Guardians right-hander Ben Lively (0-1, 4.40 ERA) at Progressive Field.
This story was originally published April 12, 2025 at 8:01 PM.
