It’s been weeks since the Royals lost three games in a row, not since June 27th when they completed a six-game losing stretch in game one against the Dodgers. That’s helped them stay in the playoff hunt in an extremely mediocre American League. They were 15-9 in July, which is exactly the kind of month they needed to have. But so far in August, they’ve only been 3-4. They’ve now started a stretch of nine games where, if they hope to make the playoffs, they need to win most of the games. With their only remaining ace on the mound last night, they got shellacked. So tonight they’ll turn to the first of two rookies scheduled for this series and hope the young blood can get things done where the old guard failed.
Noah Cameron has been absolutely sensational for the Royals this year. I think I mention this every time he starts, but if it weren’t for Nick Kurtz, he’d have a serious case for Rookie of the Year. In only four of his fifteen starts has he allowed more than two runs. In contrast, he’s allowed zero runs in six of them. However, two of those starts were in his last three attempts. One versus the Cubs and one versus the Blue Jays last weekend in the only loss KC suffered in that series.
Despite trading away many of their best hitters at the deadline and losing Byron Buxton to injury, the Twins have scored 38 runs in the seven games since. More than five runs per game, including nine in each of their last two contests. The Twins should be demoralized and missing talent, but they’ve gone 4-3 over that stretch, and one of those losses was of the walkoff variety. Perhaps it was wrong of some to take them lightly, but the Royals still need to be better than them if they’re going to sneak into the playoffs. That has to start with winning tonight.
It’s hard to consider any game a must-win in a 162-game season, but as the number of games where losses can be made up dwindles, it becomes more and more important for teams to win. Barring a bunch of incoming sweeps, the Royals need to take the remaining games of this series to keep their hopes off of life support.
Fortunately for KC, Bailey Ober will be taking the mound for the Twins. Ober has been a more than competent starter for the Twins in his five-year big league career, but he’s always struggled against the Royals in nearly a mirror image of what Joe Ryan, last night’s starter, has been. He’s made two good starts against the Royals this year, but those were before the offense had finally started to produce. Additionally, he’s been battling a hip injury of late and that has led to six straight starts where he’s allowed four runs or more. He has a 4.11 HR/9 and 8.74 ERA in 35 innings over that span.
Nothing is guaranteed in baseball, but if the Royals can’t get to a guy they’ve gotten to in the past while he struggles as much as he ever has in his career while pitching in front of a lineup that is greatly depleted of talent and backed up by a bullpen that’s missing almost every pitched it started the season with…that won’t be good.
The Royals will try a new leadoff man tonight after Mike Yastrzemski was unable to lead the Royals to back-to-back victories. New leadoff man, same as the old one, as Maikel Garcia, last year’s primary leadoff man, will take the duties. Randal Grichuk gets into the starting lineup for only the sixth time since the Royals added him. This will be his first start in left field for the Boys in Blue. Nick Loftin gets the start at second in place of Jonathan India, who is the DH again, and Adam Frazier, who failed to reach base as a starter for only the third time since rejoining Kansas City last night.
Meanwhile, the Twins will again send out a bunch of guys you’ve never heard of. Their best hitter is Kody Clemens. After him is Ryan Jeffers. Luke Keaschall has an impressive OPS to be sure, but he’s only played in 10 games for the Twins this season thanks to a fractured right forearm early in the year. He’s certainly talented, but he’s relatively untested. After them, who scares you in this lineup? And yet they keep scoring. Maybe Noah Cameron will have something to say about that.
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