Kansas City Royals OFFICIAL GAME NOTES Kansas City Royals (70-82) @ Detroit Tigers (80-72) Comerica Park - Monday, September 24, 2012 - 6:05 P.M
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Kansas City Royals OFFICIAL GAME NOTES Kansas City Royals (70-82) @ Detroit Tigers (80-72) Comerica Park - Monday, September 24, 2012 - 6:05 p.m. (CDT) Game #153 - Road Game #75 KCSP Radio (610 Sports) UPCOMING SCHEDULE AND PITCHING PROBABLES Tuesday, September 25 @ Detroit Tigers: LHP Bruce Chen (11-12, 5.22) vs. RHP Anibal Sanchez (3-6, 4.55), 6:05 p.m. (CDT), FSKC (HD) & 610 Sports Wednesday, September 26 @ Detroit Tigers: RHP Jeremy Guthrie (4-3, 3.00) vs. RHP Rick Porcello (9-12, 4.57), 6:05 p.m. (CDT), FSKC (HD) & 610 Sports Thursday, September 27 @ Detroit Tigers: RHP Luis Mendoza (8-9, 4.44) vs. RHP Doug Fister (10-9, 3.43), 12:05 p.m. (CDT), No TV & 610 Sports Friday, September 28 @ Cleveland Indians: LHP Will Smith (6-8, 4.88) vs. TBA, 6:05 p.m. (CDT), FSKC (HD) & 610 Sports Saturday, September 29 @ Cleveland Indians: RHP Jake Odorizzi (0-1, 5.06) vs. TBA, 6:05 p.m. (CDT), No TV & 610 Sports Sunday, September 30 @ Cleveland Indians: RHP Luke Hochevar (8-14+ tonight) vs. TBA, 12:05 p.m. (CDT), No TV & 610 Sports Tonight’s game is being broadcast in Kansas City on KCSP Radio (610 Sports) and the Royals Radio Network with Ryan Lefebvre and Steve Stewart, while Don Free controls the dials as the producer/engineer...the next telecast on FOX Sports Kansas City will be tomorrow night with Ryan Lefebvre and Rex Hudler describing the action...the pre and post-game show, Royals Live, is hosted by Joel Goldberg. Royals vs. Tigers A CLUNKER ENDS SUCCESSFUL STAND--The good news was that the Royals wound up with a Things started slowly for the Royals vs. the Tigers this year, 5-4 homestand against a trio of clubs, but unfortunately it ended with KC’s worst loss of the season, with KC losing 7 of the first 8 meetings...Kansas City turned the a 15-4 setback to Cleveland, who salvaged the series finale...it was the largest margin of defeat for the tables the last time these clubs met by sweeping a 3-game set in Royals since a 19-1 loss to the same Indian team on May 16, 2011...yesterday started harmlessly enough, Kauffman Stadium, with all decisions coming by one run...KC with highly-decorated prospect Jake Odorizzi making his big league debut and carrying a 1-0 lead into leads the all-time series by a 294-287 margin, but trail in Detroit by the sixth inning...the lone run at the time was thanks to catcher Adam Moore’s first swing in a Royals’ a 141-151 deficit, including a 54-59 mark in Comerica Park. Date Site Score WP LP Att. uniform, slamming a 2-0 David Huff pitch 410 feet to left for his first big league homer since 2010... 4/16 KC L, 2-3 Verlander (C) Duffy 14,039 Odorizzi was then solved for three runs in the sixth, including a 2-run homer by Carlos Santana, his first 4/17 KC L, 1-3 Dotel Chen 13,851 of two shots on the day...things got out of hand after Jake’s departure as KC’s usually stellar bullpen had 4/18 KC L, 3-4 Scherzer Mijares 14,083 4/30 @ Det Rained out - rescheduled for September 24 an uncharacteristically tough day allowing 12 runs over the final 3.0 innings...the Royals were held to 7 5/1 @ Det L, 3-9 Porcello Hochevar 30,159 hits, with Jeff Francoeur picking up 3 of them. 5/2 @ Det W, 3-2 Collins Benoit 33,187 7/6 @ Det L, 2-4 Smyly Sanchez 39,144 ROYALS WILL HAVE A SAY--Tonight kicks off a stretch in which the Royals will play 7 of their 7/7 @ Det L, 7-8 Fister Chen 39,392 remaining 10 games against the Tigers, as Detroit battles the White Sox for A.L. Central supremacy...this 7/8 @ Det L, 1-7 Scherzer Teaford 36,693 8/28 KC W, 9-8 Crow Villarreal 13,601 is the 11th series out of the last 14 in which Kansas City has played a contending club, with the Royals 8/29 KC W, 1-0 Chen Sanchez 13,024 going 20-15 in the 10 previous sets...in that span, KC went 9-3 vs. the White Sox, 3-0 vs. Detroit, 1-2 vs. 8/30 KC W, 2-1 Guthrie Porcello 12,997 the Angels, 2-1 vs. Oakland, 2-2 at Baltimore, 2-5 vs. the Rangers and 1-2 at Tampa Bay. 9/24 @ Det Make up of April 30 rainout 9/25 @ Det KC ON CUSP OF OUTFIELD ASSIST MARK--With Jeff Francoeur picking up his career-high tying 9/26 @ Det 19th outfield assist on Saturday night and Alex Gordon establishing a club record with a big league 9/27 @ Det 10/1 KC leading 20 such assists last year, the Royals are 10 games away from becoming the first team since the 10/2 KC 1909-10 Boston Red Sox to have the Major League leader in outfield assists in consecutive seasons...the 10/3 KC ‘09 BoSox had Tris Speaker lead all of baseball, followed in 1910 by Harry Hooper, who tied for the MLB lead...the last team to have two different players lead the majors outright in consecutive years in outfield assists were Dick Harley (1898) and Emmett Heidrick (1899) of the 1898-99 St. Louis Cardinals...Francoeur, 28, has accrued 116 outfield assists since breaking into the Majors in 2005 with the Braves, 32 more than his nearest competition, the Cubs’ Alfonso Soriano with 84...for the second straight season the Kansas City outfield is running away with the assist race in the Majors, collecting 45 this year after recording 51 in 2011...the closest club this season is Oakland with 36. FINAL JOURNEY COMMENCES TONIGHT--This make-up game from April 30 kicks off the final trip of the season for the Royals, a 7-game journey that will conclude with a 3-game visit to Cleveland starting Friday night...Kansas City is 34-40 away from “The K” this year, already a 3-game victory increase over a season ago with 7 still to play...KC has gone 10-10 in its last 20 road affairs, highlighted by a pair of winning trips (4-3 to Chicago & Baltimore and 4-2 to Chicago & Minnesota). TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHERS: RHP Luke Hochevar (8-14, 5.40) vs. RHP Justin Verlander (15-8, 2.74) 2012 2011 Career 2012 2011 Career Luke Hochevar vs. Tigers 0-1 2-1 4-5 Major League Record 8-14 (5.40 ERA) 11-11 38-57 Justin Verlander vs. Royals 1-0 3-0 14-2 Major League Record 15-8 (2.74 ERA) 11-11 38-57 LUKE HOCHEVAR makes his 31st start of 2012 (tying a career high set in 2011), his 131st career appearance (127th start), and his 13th career appearance (12th start) and second of 2012 against Detroit...he was KC’s first-ever first overall pick (2006). Luke’s 2012 starts SOLOS SINK LUKE--Luke didn’t pitch poorly last Tuesday night at home against the WHEN DATE OPPONENT SCORE IP H R ER HR BB SO TP-K LEFT White Sox, earning a quality start but also taking his 14th loss as three solo home runs were 4/7 at Los Angeles W, 6-3 6.1 5 2 2 0 2 4 95-58 5-0 enough for the 3-2 defeat...Alejandro De Aza, Gordon Beckham and Alex Rios connected in 4/13 Cleveland L, 3-8 4.0 9 7 7 0 1 3 70-48 3-7 4/20 Toronto ND, 3-4 5.0 2 1 1 0 2 5 84-52 2-1 the first, sixth and seventh innings; the Rios blast snapping a 2-2 tie...the 3 homers allowed 4/25 at Cleveland W, 8-2 6.1 4 2 2 0 3 4 97-57 4-1 5/1 at Detroit L, 3-9 4.0 12 9 9 0 3 2 75-49 1-9 tied a career high (sixth time) as Hoch did not issue a walk while striking out 4...Luke’s first 5/6 New York L, 4-10 2.1 7 7 7 2 1 0 51-30 1-7 5/12 at Chicago W, 5-0 7.0 3 0 0 0 1 5 101-58 5-0 strikeout of the 4, Rios leading off the second, was the 129th of his season, establishing a 5/17 Baltimore L, 3-5 6.0 7 4 4 1 1 6 98-61 3-3 career high...he last won just two starts ago on September 12 in Minnesota, defeating the 5/22 at New York L, 2-3 6.2 6 3 3 1 3 8 115-68 2-3 5/27 at Baltimore ND, 4-2 4.2 7 2 1 0 1 6 104-67 2-2 Twins, 10-5, snapping a 7-start victory drought in which he was 0-4. 6/2 Oakland L, 3-9 4.2 5 6 6 0 3 3 90-50 1-5 6/8 at Pittsburgh L, 2-4 6.0 9 4 4 0 1 3 98-59 2-4 UP & DOWN SEASON--Hochevar has 13 quality starts, but also has 9 rough 6/14 Milwaukee ND, 4-3 7.1 6 3 3 2 1 5 87-62 2-2 outings that have blown his ERA out of proportion at 5.40...he has allowed 7, 9, 7, 6, 5, 6/19 at Houston W, 2-0 7.2 5 0 0 0 4 6 93-58 2-0 6/25 Tampa Bay W, 8-0 9.0 7 0 0 0 1 8 113-73 8-0 6, 7, 8 and 5 earned runs in 9 of his 30 starts, totaling 60 earned runs over 36.0 innings 6/30 at Minnesota-G2 L, 1-5 6.0 8 5 5 3 1 0 86-60 1-5 7/5 at Toronto W, 9-6 5.0 4 2 2 1 1 3 84-56 5-2 (15.00 ERA)...in his other 21 trips to the hill, Hoch has surrendered just 44 earned runs 7/14 Chicago ND, 6-3 5.0 5 3 3 1 3 4 97-55 3-2 7/20 Minnesota ND, 1-2 (11) 7.0 5 1 1 1 0 6 109-67 1-1 over 137.1 frames for a 2.88 mark.