Showing posts with label Justin Verlander. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Justin Verlander. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Royals Get Hammered By Tigers As Hochevar Struggles

The Royals entered last night’s game with a chance to turn their season around. They were facing a struggling Detroit Tigers team and a pitcher who had been lit up all season long. So naturally, Kansas City got hammered by Detroit, 9-3. The Royals are now 0-4 against the Tigers this season, and the loss dropped Kansas City to 6-16 for the season and a half game out of last place in the AL Central.

If there is one thing MLB teams can take away from this game, it is that a game against the Royals is the best cure to end any sort of skid. Rick Porcello entered the game with a 15.26 ERA in his last two outings, and held the Royals’ offense in check all game. The Tigers as a team had dropped 10 of its last 12 games and recently lost Delmon Young to a suspension, but Detroit managed to come out hot and cruised to another victory over Kansas City.

Royals’ fans have to be frustrated with Luke Hochevar and his Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde routine. Hochevar has now made a career out of either pitching very well or getting hammered, and this season has been no different. Hochevar has looked like an All-Star in his two wins, and looked like a minor leaguer in his two losses. He gave up five runs in the first inning alone, and by the time he was pulled, Detroit had put nine up on the board against the former first overall draft pick. Hochevar certainly has the potential to be a top pitcher, but he has to find some consistency.

The lone bright spot for Kansas City’s offense was a two RBI game from Alex Gordon and a triple from Jarrod Dyson. Don’t expect the Royals’ offense to fair much better tonight, as Justin Verlander will be taking the mound for Detroit. He will face the Royals’ Jonathan Sanchez, who has struggled this season. The game begins today at 12:05 p.m.

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Monday, April 16, 2012

Royals Swept By Indians - Kansas City News

After surviving a tough road trip out west, the Royals returned home to face one of the worst teams in the league and hopefully gain some momentum in its first division matchup of the season. Unfortunately, everything that could go wrong for Kansas City did, and the Royals were swept by the Cleveland Indians.

After an impressive start in his first appearance of the season, Luke Hochevar got absolutely rocked by the Indians in the Royals' home opener. Hochevar allowed seven runs in the first inning alone, and Kansas City fell to Cleveland 8-3. In the second game of the series, Kansas City fell behind 9-2 before eventually tying the game at 9-9 after a furious comeback. The Royals couldn’t keep the momentum going, and Cleveland prevailed in extra innings, 11-9.

It appeared that the Royals were going to salvage game three of the series early, when Kansas City took a 3-0 lead off of the struggling (and recently suspended) Ubaldo Jimenez. Cleveland erased that deficit in a hurry, scoring six runs in the third inning and cruising to a 13-7 victory. That loss dropped the Royals to 3-6 on the season, and Kansas City current sits in fourth place in the AL Central standings.

The entire series was an ugly one for Kansas City. After a fantastic start to the season, the Royals’ starting pitching was terrible all weekend. The Indians officially have Kansas City’s number, and the Royals will have to find a way to start winning more games against division opponents.

Kansas City starts another AL Central series today against the Detroit Tigers. Danny Duffy (1-0) will get the start for the Royals, and will face one of the best pitchers in the game in Detroit’s Justin Verlander (0-1).

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

2011 All-Star Recap, Game Moves to Kansas City Next Year

After the AL dominated the All-Star game for 14 years, the NL is finally starting to put a streak of its own together. Prince Fielder hit a three run homer in the fourth, propelling the national league to a 5-1 victory.

Roy Halladay and nine other pitchers combined to keep the potent AL lineup off balance all game. The American League's only run came in the top of the fourth inning, when Adrian Gonzalez hit a solo shot to give the AL a 1-0 lead. However, Fielder's blast only a few moments later gave the NL a lead that was rarely threatened. The NL would pad the lead with runs in the fifth and seventh inning.

The victory gives the NL home field advantage for the world series. However, the bigger story seems to be the list of no-shows on the AL side. Derek Jeter pulled out of the game, citing exhaustion fresh off of reaching 3,000 hits for his career. The AL's pitching was also hit hard, as Justin Verlander, C.C. Sabathia and Felix Hernandez did not play. A total of 16 of the 84 All-Stars did not participate in the festivities.

The All-Star game moves to Kansas City in 2012, and will be the first time the Royals have hosted the mid-summer classic since 1973. The team sent representatives to the 2011 game to help prepare for next year, and will reveal next year's All-Star logo on August 2.

Friday, May 13, 2011

Eric Hosmer is the Real Deal

Just when it looked like the Royals' season was starting to slip away, Kansas City rebounded to take a series from the Yankees. Rookie phenom Eric Hosmer led the charge in an 11-5 beatdown at Yankee Stadium last night, blasting two homers to give him three for the series.

Hosmer had a lot of hype surrounding him when he was called up to the major leagues, and rightfully so. He was leading the minor leagues in hitting and had been billed as one of Kansas City's top prospects. How quickly he adjusted to the major leagues has many now billing him as the next big thing, and I am one of them. The guy just destroyed the Yankees in one of the biggest and most intimidating stadiums in all of sports. Clearly, he is ready for prime time, and he could be a piece the Royals build around for the next ten years - if Kansas City can hold on to him.

Hosmer's power has already had a positive effect on the rest of Kansas City's lineup. Billy Butler had four hits yesterday, and he other hitters can expect protection as long as Hosmer is blasting home runs. The Royals had a lot of guys who could hit and get on base, and the addition of a power hitter may be what pushes Kansas City's offense from good to great.

The Royals travel to Detroit today to face the Tigers' Justin Verlander, who is fresh off of tossing a no hitter. Should be a great test for Hosmer and the rest of Kansas City's offense.

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