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Lack of hitting makes Kansas City pitchers look Royal in past three games
By Sheldon Ocker Beacon Journal sportswriter
Beacon Journal sportswriter
Published on Sunday, Sep 16, 2007
CLEVELAND: Are the Indians falling into another batting slump just in time for the Detroit Tigers' final invasion of the season?
Either that or the Kansas City Royals suddenly possess three of the most dominating starters in the American League.
Sunday at Jacobs Field, Billy Buckner followed lodge brothers Brian Bannister and Zack Greinke in defusing the Tribe attack as the Royals salvaged the finale of the three-game series with a 4-3 decision.
Bannister, Greinke and Buckner (1-1, 4.30 ERA) held the Indians to three runs in 171/3 innings for a 1.56 ERA.
In the past four games, the Tribe has scored only 18 total runs, 14 earned, an average of 31/2. Over this same span, the club is batting .237, posting a 2-2 record.
Of Buckner's performance, Tribe manager Eric Wedge said, ''He did a good job, but we didn't take advantage of our opportunities, especially when there were two outs.''
While not wanting to denigrate Kansas City's starters, Wedge wasn't about to treat them as if his team had just faced Tom Seaver, Sandy Koufax and Roger Clemens in their prime.
''I don't want to take anything away from them,'' Wedge said. ''They threw good ballgames. They threw good pitches against us. But I definitely feel like we weren't as good as we can be offensively.''
With the Tigers trailing the first-place Indians by 41/2 games in the Central Division, the three-game series at Jacobs Field that begins tonight probably is the Tigers' last chance to make a race of it, though they certainly remain in the wild-card race.
On the other hand, even the chance to administer a death blow to its primary rival hasn't budged the Tribe off its one-game-at-a-time, every-game-is-just-like-every-other-game approach.
''There's no difference between games in April and May and games now,'' Ryan Garko said. ''Every game is the same. It's a long season.
''It doesn't matter if we sweep the series with Detroit if we lay an egg against Oakland (the next opponent). We have to take the same approach we've taken with every other game and stick to our routines.''
Actually, it would make a difference if the Indians won all three against the Tigers, because their lead would be 71/2 games. That means if the Tribe won only two of its final 10 games, Detroit would have to win all nine to tie.
It appears that the Indians will be catching the Tigers in the midst of a resurgence. Detroit has won 14 of its past 21 games and five in a row.
At any rate, both teams will play them one at a time.
The Tribe didn't quite measure up Sunday, because Aaron Laffey was vulnerable enough to need help from the offense. He gave up all the runs in 61/3 innings, though that is hardly an indictment.
''Overall, I think I pitched well,'' he said. ''But I had a little bad luck and made a couple of bad pitches.''
Laffey's ill fortune occurred in the sixth inning. Esteban German led off with a single and stole second. Alex Gordon drew a walk and the runners advanced to second and third on a wild pitch.
Emil Brown followed with a broken-bat grounder to second that turned into an infield hit on an extremely close play at first. The hit drove in the Royals' third run, but the wild pitch enabled German to reach third.
''That bad call changed the game for me,'' Laffey said.
Labeling it ''a bad call'' might not have been accurate. It was difficult to tell even after watching a replay.
Laffey (3-2, 5.35 ERA) gave up two runs in the second on three consecutive hits plus a sacrifice fly, and that forced him to change tactics.
''I was trying to get ahead with my four-seamer, and they were putting good swings on the ball,'' he said. ''After that, I changed my game plan and started throwing sinkers.''
The Tribe had two on and one out in the third against Buckner, but Asdrubal Cabrera struck out and Travis Hafner flied out. In the seventh, the Indians scored twice against the Royals' bullpen, but with a runner on first and nobody out, the rally fizzled.
Jhonny Peralta singled to lead off the ninth and was replaced by pinch runner Josh Barfield, who was sacrificed to second. When Franklin Gutierrez slapped a hard ground ball to short, Barfield was caught making a dash to third, killing the Tribe's final opportunity.
Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com.
CLEVELAND: Are the Indians falling into another batting slump just in time for the Detroit Tigers' final invasion of the season?
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