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The Kansas City Royals enjoyed plenty of fine moments over the past few weeks, but their latest road series with the Oakland Athletics was not one of them. KC lost their last two against a club that lost six more games in 2015 than any other team in the American League. I’m making it sound worse for effect, but the Royals and their fans shouldn’t be phased by this.
Chris Young had his second straight bad outing, which is something Chris Young simply does not do. He hasn’t allowed more than two runs in any start following an outing in which he allowed more than four since May 21 of 2014.
If Chris is finally reaching the end of his rope as a starting pitcher, KC has other viable options for a fifth starter. If he can right his wrongs in the next outing, which is demonstrably possible, KC will go back to being a rotation with five capable, trustworthy starters.
That wasn’t the only disappointing moment for Royals fans this weekend, though. For the first time this season, Kansas City lost consecutive games, this time by blowing a late-inning lead to a subpar offensive team. I’ve said my piece about Joakim Soria in high-leverage situations, but it goes without saying that KC won’t often lose games in that fashion, regardless of their bullpen structure.
Yordano Ventura takes the mound in KC’s next game, which is yet another reason for Royals fans not to worry. Ventura’s coming off a six-inning, six-strikeout performance in which he allowed just one run and half as many walks as he did in his prior start (which was still three walks.) If Yordano struggles against the still-daunting Detroit Tigers lineup on Tuesday, I will still refuse to be scared, and so should Royals fans. Fans have four losses to shake their heads at, and eight victories that suggest just how good KC can be this year.
Oh, and the 8-4 Chicago White Sox should definitely fade, but that’s another story.
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