Offense a No-Show Again

Game Date: April 30, 2007
Angels 3, Royals 1 / Box Score
WP: Lackey (4-2), LP: Perez (2-3), SV: Rodriguez (9)
Royal Home Runs: None
Royals Record: 8-18

The Royals had a runner in scoring position ten times last night. They only got two hits. That's been the story of the 2007 season for the Royals thus far. They got a decent start from Odalis Perez (3 ER, 10 H, 1 BB, 4 K, 6.0 IP) and he kept them in the game, but in the end the offense couldn't get it going.

Perez recently started throwing a sinker that breaks toward the first-base side of home plate. So he's throwing his cutter in on the hands of right-handers and his sinker inside to left-handers. He added it four starts ago after getting hit hard in Toronto on April 9. He's 2-1 since then with a 5.72 ERA--which is certainly better than his overall numbers: 2-3, 6.91. But I'm hoping that the days of the Royals keeping a guy with a 5.72 ERA in the rotation are done. We'll see.

Bob Dutton points out that the Royals focused on improving their rotation during the off-season thinking that if they could get their rotation turned around, then maybe they could turn the entire team around. And for the most part, our starting pitching has been good. Dutton points out that the Royals are 7-7 when they get a quality start this season and just 1-11 when they don't. Imagine how much better their quality start record would be if the offense could actually hit with runners in scoring position?

Tonight, Zack Greinke (1-2, 3.51) goes against Bartolo Colon (2-0, 1.93). Greinke is 0-1 in his career against the Angeles with a 9.00 ERA. Colon is 13-7 against the Royals with a 4.74 ERA.