Final Score: CWS 1 | KC 4

Overall Record: 55-45

Winning/Losing Pitcher

• W: Seth Lugo (12-4 | 2.38 ERA)
• L: John Brebbia (0-5 | 5.12 ERA)

Royals Player of the Game

Seth Lugo

9.0 IP, 3 H, ER, 0 BB, 6 K

You go, we go, Lugo, as Rex would say. Seth Lugo was remarkable on Sunday afternoon. He had everything working with that nine pitch repertoire, as he kept the White Sox hitters guessing and missing. It was truly impressive to see him get up and down the lineup with that many pitches as well. 

He had 89 pitches going into the bottom of the ninth. He was on the verge of a “Maddux”, almost completing the game with less than 100 pitches. It took him 103 to get the job done, tying a bow around it all with a strikeout of Luis Robert for the final out. Sure, you could say it’s the White Sox, but you can’t control who you face, and it is a major league lineup after all. Lugo picked up the baton of the Royals starters the entire series. Where the three starters of Wacha, Singer, and Lugo, pitched 23 innings only allowing one run. A true knockout punch, only forcing the bullpen to pitch four total innings in the series. That’s dominance. Back to Lugo, who is the man who threw a complete game after all. He did give up the one run, but he went the distance, which means way more to me. Think about it. He is an All-Star, Cy Young candidate, 12 game winner (so far), and the best free agent signing of the offseason. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Of course it’s how you finish, so we’ll see how he continues it moving forward. But he has absolutely made a name for himself as a key piece in the turnaround for Kansas City. And I can’t wait to see how it plays out down the stretch.

Key Highlights

It was a pitchers duel throughout the beginning of this game, with Seth Lugo and Drew Thorpe swapping blows. With only one hit allowed by both pitchers through the first five innings. It was pretty quiet at the K on Sunday afternoon. Important to note that the Royals could literally get nothing going against Drew Thorpe. Had a couple baserunners based on walks occasionally, but still very dominant against one of the better offenses in baseball. Not looking forward to seeing him in Chicago the new few years. Seth Lugo was the first to blink in this one, giving up an RBI single to Tommy Pham in the sixth. Lugo was able to get out of the inning with a fantastic play by Maikel Garcia at third. Showing off his incredible arm strength at third, with Vinnie Pasquantino giving him a pretty good pick in the process. Just a phenomenal play. Shades of Manny Machado. 

The Royals got some momentum finally going in the seventh when Drew Thorpe exited the game. Maikel Garcia and Dairon Blanco had back to back singles, which had runners on the corners for Kyle Isbel. Isbel then puts down a safety squeeze! Scoring the run and getting thrown out in the process. But he succeeded and tied the game in the process.

While Seth Lugo kept dealing, the Royals headed to the bottom of the eighth where fortunately they had Bobby Witt Jr. to lead off the inning. He lasered a base hit to the right side, giving him his third hit of the day, and NINTH of the series! That is absolutely ridiculous. He has his average all the way up to .337 at the plate. Bobby is truly one of the best young baseball players I have ever seen. Up there with A-Rod, Jeter, the OTHER Junior, Ken Griffey Jr. This guy is “out of this world” good, nothing else to it. Anyway, back to the game. Where Vinne Pasquantino singles and gets Bob to third. Salvador Perez strikes out, continuing his tough day at the plate. That’s okay though, cause Hunter Renfroe comes through with a single to right. Finally giving the Royals and Seth Lugo the lead. He has been very good recently for the Royals and I think you’ll see a different Renfroe in the second half of the season. Lord knows they need him. 

But you know that this offense doesn’t stop at one, when they get going, it’s tough to stop. Maikel Garcia continued his stellar day with an RBI single to left, and then Dairon Blano singled to score another run. 

Which was able to score because Tommy Pham lackadaisically threw the ball in and didn’t really care if another run scored, which honestly turns me off to the idea of him on this Royals team. I know it would be different if he was on a winning team, blah blah blah, but that kind of player is selfish, and I want nowhere near this team. I think that’s a very legitimate thing you need to consider: who you bring into the clubhouse for these young players. You don’t want someone coming in and completely messing up the culture that’s already there. Anyway, that’s all the Royals will get and they head to the ninth. Where Lugo heads out to complete the game. These are the games good teams win. The ones where you’re held scoreless for a while, your pitching keeps you in the game, and you can squeak a couple runs by in the end. But a win is a win is a win every time. It’s exciting to watch this young core continue to grow as hitters, and I think the second half is going to be some fun as a Royals fan. So strap in and enjoy the show.

Summary of the Next Game

New week, new series as the reigning NL Champion Arizona Diamondbacks come to town. With the D-Backs getting back over .500 recently, catching some fire down the stretch. They’ll send out their 16th ranked prospect, Yilmer Diaz, who’s making his third career major league start. He’s been really solid to start, only allowing two runs through twelve innings. The Royals will have one of their All-Stars on the mound, with Cole Ragans making his first start since the All-Star break. We all know he’s been pretty good this year, placing himself fourth in all of baseball in strikeouts. While keeping that ERA low at a 3.16 mark. The Royals will try to continue their good start after the break, against one of the hotter teams in the NL wild card race. We don’t see Arizona often, so it should be a good one. 7:10 at Kauffman Stadium on Monday night, as we’ll see two of the better young teams in all of baseball.

Photo Credit: Reed Hoffmann/AP Photo