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Royals Authority
Sweeping Detroit..Again!
Two months ago, chances are no one out there thought a slumping Royals team would get well by sweeping the Detroit Tigers in mid-May. Yet, on Thursday afternoon, that is exactly what Kansas City did by beating up the Tigers 8-4 and notching their second three game sweep of the year over a team many thought would be in the World Series come October.
The Royals managed just five runs in the first two games of the series, but got two very good outings from starters Zack Greinke and Luke Hochevar (not to mention lights out bullpen work) and got two wins. On Thursday, Gil Meche was decent (3 runs in 7 innings), but not great. Of course, for once, he did not have to be great. The Royals erupted for eight runs and cruised, yeah that’s right, cruised to a win.
What had started out as a miserable homestand ended up as a 5-5 split. Again, not great, but decent for a team that has played dramatically better on the road thus far. Kansas City next travels to Florida for three games, then Boston for three and Toronto for four more. If they can come home from that ten game stint with another 5-5 split, the Royals will really be playing pretty good ball.
About Gil Meche
He opened the game by throwing 17 straight fastballs on his way to tossing 79 fastballs out of the 109 pitches he threw. Of the 30 non-fastballs thrown, Gil offered up just three curveballs. I detailed his trouble with curves in his last start and seems apparent that Meche has little confidence in what may well be his best pitch. The good news is that Gil was touching 94 mph on occasion and 92-93 regularly, perhaps indicating that he is on his way to recovering that mysterious lost velocity.
As you can see from this chart, Meche was a regular visitor to the 95-96 mph range in 2007. So far in 2008, he has tossed ONE 96 mph fastball. Slight injury, mechanical flaw, change of approach? Any of the three are possible, but Meche seems to be on the slow road to recapturing his 2007 form.
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18 Responses to “Sweeping Detroit..Again!”
May 16th, 2008 at 5:52 am
It’s actually an 11-game road trip we start today. The series with Boston is a 4 game set.
May 16th, 2008 at 5:58 am
Winning is always good. Meche was okay going seven innings. Peralta gave up a run in the 8th and Ramirez turned out the lights (had they been on) in the 9th. The box score is going to look like we pounded Kenny Rodgers into submission. However watching the highlights on ESPN showed a different story. A lot of our hits were of the blooper, looper, and bleeder variety. They all count, but let’s notget too excited.
On the “What Was He Thinking” front does anyone have a rational explanation for having German sacrifice in the second inning?? We had just gotten three consecutive hits (Gload, Pena and Gathright) to lead off the inning resulting in one run and runners on first and second. We were up 4-1 in the bottom of the second and we giving away an out. Best I could come up with is Hillman was trying to avoid German hitting in to a non-advance out and Butler hitting into a DP.
I hope Hillman is a heck of a leader of men because his in game tactics are awful.
May 16th, 2008 at 6:00 am
As Paul said, there are 4 in Boston — I know because I’m going to three of them! If any other Royals Authority readers will be at Fenway, drop me a line and perhaps we can hang out…gcmarx {at} gmail {dot} com
May 16th, 2008 at 8:54 am
If you bunt in that situation, you gain 2 bases, prevent a double-play, and since German is a good bunter/runner, about a 1 in 3 chance of putting another runner on base. You lose the chance to drive in runners with a solid hit. The bunt there wasn’t that bad.
May 16th, 2008 at 9:25 am
KCDC- Seems a likely rationale on the German bunt. Nice analysis.
Meche’s obsession with his fastball is puzzling to me too. Did someone hit a Meche curveball 600 feet during Spring Training or something?
May 16th, 2008 at 9:39 am
Hey, Gordon. I’ll be at the Monday and Wednesday games at Fenway. I’ll be the dork in the KC jersey and hat sitting in atrocious seats beyond the Pesky pole.
May 16th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Hey Gordon I will be at wednesday game with Laflamme
you will recognize me I will be the one passing tissues to Laflamme after the sox rough up the Royals
May 16th, 2008 at 10:01 am
I should point out that at our workplace, a newspaper, there still hangs on a wall a clip from the Royals sweep over the Red Sox in 2006. The agreement: the clip stays until the Sox return the favor, possibly in the summer of 2018 or so.
May 16th, 2008 at 10:03 am
Gene - I don’t know if someone hit one 600 feet in the spring, but last Friday they tuned up on virtually ever curve Gil offered (see my post from last Saturday).
What I know is that Gil needs to do two things:
- Rediscover the occassional 96 mph heat that he had in 2007
- Get his ‘out’ pitch, the curveball, working.
May 16th, 2008 at 10:11 am
ouch! that was a three game series this will be 4 game series
care to make a wager? Mr Laflamme on the series?
we do owe your boys a sweep but 2018? you better hope that the Royals have won 1 game by the time we get there Wednesday and I have Monday off and I would love to go to that game as well you get some tickets and I will help pay for gas and of course my ticket,,and please something a little closer than the parking lot tickets we have for wednesday game
May 16th, 2008 at 11:50 am
gotta lover the Hochness Monster. Go Hoch!
May 16th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
I have a weird question that is really off-topic. Sometimes, after fouling a ball off, a batter will put the bat up to his face and sniff (kiss?) the spot where the foul occurred.
I have seen TPJ do this a lot, but other batters also.
What are they doing? Does anyone know?
I have a guess, but it’s only a guess. When the bat makes contact with the ball, it releases some of the smell of the coating or the wood-sap. New wood does have a pleasant smell, but still…
May 16th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Thats what you get for IBB ing TP JR unfreaking believable Tomko at 157 is the same hitter and to load the bases with a wild young pitcher and a bad d is criminal- I may fire the manager on the spot- holy cow
May 17th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
A word of encouragement…
Even though I live in what is supposed to be KC territory as defined by MLB, I rarely get to watch any Royals games on TV (sore subject) and can’t get them online either (even sorer subject…it’s not my fault I live in their territory but they won’t offer me the games, so why won’t they at least let me buy something I am willing to pay for?) Anyway…the bottom line is, the best I can do is catch a post-game show now and then, often on the opposing team’s regional FOX Sports channel. I was fortunate enough to watch about half of the post-game show on FSN Detroit after Wednesday night’s game.
The FSN Detroit staff said that the Royals were a ML-best 15-0 when leading after 6 innings. I haven’t seen that stat anywhere else, and I am not sure how to corroborate it, but I am assuming it is accurate. Since then, the R’s have gone 2-0 in that same scenario, which would make them 17-0 when leading after six, supposedly best in the Majors.
All this, despite the fact that we found out Friday night that our bullpen is, after all, human.
May 17th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Some random thoughts…
Well, just as soon as I said KC was 17-0 when leading after 6 innings, they gave up a 5-spot to the Marlins in the 7th inning of Saturday’s night’s game. There goes that unblemished record.
I am THRILLED to see Joakim “Mexican Tough” Soria locked up in blue for several years. Now if we can just get Greinke signed to an extension…
Is the Royals’ season already over? Apparently one person thinks so. Witness this quote from Bob Davis during the top of the ninth in Saturday’s radio broadcast: “Steve Stewart’s gone downstairs for a postseason visit with one of the players.”
I know he meant “post-game”…but I am NOT a fan of Bob Davis. I know some of you who can actually pick up the games on TV or online (which I cannot do) sometimes complain about Ryan Lefebvre, but I would gladly trade you guys Davis for Lefebvre, any time. I’m not a fan of Fred White either, but I would gladly take him back if it meant I didn’t have to listen to Davis anymore.
May 17th, 2008 at 9:11 pm
Ah, P to R to M, you’re getting royally screwed, if you’ll pardon the word play. I bitch because I have to pay $150 a season to watch the Royals up here in Maine. I’d bitch more loudly if I couldn’t get it, though. You can’t get them on MLB.TV, either? Man, you might have to move.
May 18th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
@ Mark: That’s exactly how I feel. I live in central Arkansas, which is overlapping territory of the Royals, Cardinals, Rangers, and (I think) Astros. I can get most of the games of those latter three teams. But the Fox Sports Kansas City games are blacked out here on Dish Network. As such, obviously I can’t get them on FSN, but I also cannot get them on MLB.com, Extra Innings, etc. because of the territory/blackout rules. So even though guys such as yourself might live, say, 1500+ miles away from KC, you can get the games. I don’t know about AusSteveW, but I’m guessing he can get them outside the country. But I live 400 miles from KC and can’t get the games, whether free or for a charge. Now in general, who is more likely to give a hoot about the Royals: (a) Someone who lives 400 miles away, (b) someone who lives 1500 miles away, or (c) someone who lives in Australia? Something is definitely wrong with the system.
May 18th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
I probably should clarify that I don’t begrudge anyone’s ability to get the Royals’ games, regardless of where they live. Mark, AusSteveW, all you guys who love the Royals no matter where you’re currently stationed, I am glad you are a fan and that you can get the games. I enjoy your contributions to the comments here. This is truly a great blog site, and I’d like to commend Craig, Clark, and all the readers for making it what it is.
But to say I am unhappy with the TV situation is an understatement. I have been a KC fan since 1969, and to thank me for 40 years of loyalty, MLB and/or the Royals have got the rules set up where I can’t get the games. If I’m in their territory, they should offer me the games, but if they can’t or won’t, then there should be a provision that will let me PAY for them.
As mercenary as some executives are, you’d think they wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to make a stinkin’ buck! But they won’t even take my money. It wouldn’t be like letting someone buy the games when a third party has exclusive rights to carry them. That would infringe upon Fox Sports KC’s rights to carry the games. But in my case, it doesn’t infringe on their rights, because they won’t even offer me the games. So I should be able to get them in another manner. MLB.com should remove my ZIP code from the blackout list unless and until FSN starts offering the games here, at which time MLB.com should black out my ZIP code again.
It’s not just Royals fans or Arkansans who get screwed. Fans all around the country have similar problems. I understand that a lot of people in Iowa have problems, or formerly had problems, getting their teams’ games. Iowa has several teams with territories that include all or part of the state: Royals, Cardinals, Cubs, Twins, and possibly White Sox and Brewers. There are many Iowans who aren’t offered their favorite team’s games and who can’t buy them. So I am not blaming the Royals exclusively. I think the problem lies primarily with MLB.
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