Final Score: TOR 2 | KC 3
Overall Record: 15-10
Winning/Losing Pitcher
W: John Schreiber ( 2-0 | 0.75 ERA)
L: Yariel Rodriguez ( 0-1 | 3.86 ERA)
S: James McArthur (6)
Royals Player(s) of the Game
Alec Marsh: 4.1 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 1 K, 2 BB
The final line for Marsh doesn’t jump off the page, but that would be due to him leaving the game early after taking a line drive off his forearm in the 5th inning. Before that, he was dominating the Blue Jays lineup. He was at just 67 pitches with one out in the 5th and had allowed just two hits before the injury. He lowered his ERA to an exceptional 2.70 clip. Luckily for the Royals, MLB.com reported that Marsh avoided serious injury and will likely be day-to-day moving forward. Marsh has been right in the middle of the impressive start for the Royals’ starting rotation, so hopefully he doesn’t miss any time.
Salvador Perez: 2-3, 1 RBI, 1 BB
Perez continues to defy father time this season. Being just a couple weeks away from turning 34 years old, the veteran is tearing the cover off the ball through the first 25 games of the season. He is hitting .348 so far, with half a dozen homeruns and 23 RBI. What may be most impressive however, is the fact that he has struck out just 13 times. After doing so 135 times in 140 games last season, he is on pace for just 88 strikeouts this season. With a couple big bats in front of him in the lineup, him putting the ball in play more often than not has been and will be a huge benefit to this offense.
Other Highlights
Maikel Garcia continued to break out of his slump, adding a pair of hits and an RBI. After going without a hit in eight of nine games, he now has at least one in all but one of his last six games, including multiple hits in three of them. With Bobby Witt Jr. and Perez both hitting well and Vinnie Pasquantino breaking out of his own slump, the top of the lineup is slowly turning into a formidable group to pitch to.
The bullpen had another excellent game, allowing just two runs across 4.1 innings. Both of the runs were allowed by Angel Zerpa, who was rushed into the game after the Marsh injury, so take his performance with a grain of salt. John Schreiber, Chris Stratton, and James McArthur all went an inning a piece of scoreless ball. They combined for four strikeouts and just a single hit. That trio could very well be the 7-8-9 innings guys that we see in hold+save situations.
Summary of the Next Game
The Royals will look for another series win tomorrow afternoon. Cole Ragans will take the mound against Jose Berrios. Berrios has been nearly unhittable in his four starts, allowing just a single run across 25.2 innings. Ragans, although carrying a 4.32 ERA, has had solid or great starts in three of his four games. He is looking to bounce back after allowing seven runs in just 1.2 innings during his last start against the Orioles.
(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
