Tag: Kansas City Royals

San Francisco Giants starter Blake Snell pitches to the Kansas City Royals in the bottom of the first inning at Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City on Sun Sep 22, 2024 (AP News photo)

Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024

Kauffman Stadium 

Kansas City, Missouri  

San Francisco Giants 2 (77-79)

Kansas City Royals 0 (82-74)

Win: Blake Snell (5-3)

Loss: Seth Lugo (16-9)

Save: Ryan Walker (9)

Time: 2:08

Attendance: 24,189

By Stephen Ruderman

A two-run second inning plus another dominant start by Blake Snell led the Giants to a 2-0 win and a sweep of the Royals Sunday, their first road sweep and sweep of a team other than Rockies this year.

After winning the first two games, the Giants had a chance at their first road sweep of the year. They came close on Thursday in Baltimore, but a walk-off home run by Anthony Santander denied the Giants the sweep. 

The weather was much cooler Sunday at Kauffman Stadium, as it was gray and misty with a gametime temperature of 64 degrees. Or in this writer’s view, a beautiful day for baseball. The Giants would be up against Seth Lugo, and though he would throw a scoreless inning in the top of the first, the Giants were able to get to him in the second. 

Jerar Encarnacion lined a base-hit up the middle into center field with one out in the top of the second. Grant McCray then hammered a triple out into the gap in right-center, and the Giants once again struck first. 

Tyler Fitzgerald struck out swinging, and then Brett Wisely singled in McCray to make it 2-0. The Giants would get three hits this afternoon, and every single one of them came in the top of the second.

Blake Snell made the start for the Giants, and he was once again superb, as he gave up just two hits, and he walked one and struck out nine over six innings. In his 14 starts since coming off the injured list on July 9, Snell had been the best pitcher in Baseball, going 5-0 with a 1.19 ERA and 114 strikeouts.

After Snell was done, Sean Hjelle struck out the side in a one, two, three bottom of the seventh. 

The Royals had a rally going against Tyler Rogers in the bottom of the eighth, as they had runners at second and third with two outs for the white-hot Bobby Witt Jr. Bob Melvin decided to put Witt on to face the struggling longtime Royal, Salvidor Perez, and Perez popped out to end the inning.

Ryan Walker then came in for the bottom of the ninth in his first appearance since giving up the home run to Santander on Thursday. Walker hit MJ Melendez to start the inning, but he settled down and retired the side to complete the save.

Blake Snell got the win; Seth Lugo took the loss; and Ryan Walker got the save.

The Giants have won five of their last six, and they improve to 77-79. They have also made their mark on the American League Wild Card race, as they have gone 5-1 against the Orioles and Royals.  

After the game, Grant McCray said on Giants Postgame Live that after the Giants were eliminated, the pressure was off. McCray said the Giants were having fun, and that they have been chanting “Rally Baby” at Matt Chapman, who has gotten a spark from his newly-born daughter, Alexandra. 

Now the Giants will head to Arizona to take on the red-hot Arizona Diamondbacks for three games, as they will get a chance to play spoiler in the National League Wild Card race. Hayden Birdsong (4-5, 4.74 ERA) will make the start for the Giants in the opener of the series Monday night. Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez (3-3, 5.09 ERA) will take the ball for Arizona. 

As for the weather, it will be hotter than you know what, but don’t worry, they’ve got the roof at Chase Field. First pitch will be at 6:40 p.m.

San Francisco Giant Michael Conforto is caught in a run down with Kansas City Royals catcher Freddy Fermin throwing to third baseman Maikel Garcia (11) after Conforto tried to score on a fielders choice hit by Grant McCray in the top of the sixth inning at Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City (AP News photo)

Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024

Kauffman Stadium

Kansas City, Missouri

San Francisco Giants 9 (76-79)

Kansas City Royals 0 (82-73)

Win: Landen Roupp (1-1)

Loss: Brady Singer (9-12)

Time: 2:14

Attendance: 24,189

By Stephen Ruderman

LaMonte Wade and Matt Chapman both hit two home runs, as the Giants’ offense exploded in a 9-0 win over the Royals on a hauntingly-beautiful late Saturday afternoon in Kansas City.

After an exciting and tense 2-1 win last night, the Giants looked to keep playing spoiler against the struggling Royals. With severe weather moving into Kansas City, this game was moved up two hours. It was a warm and humid afternoon at Kauffman Stadium. It was partly cloudy, and the sun was out at the start of the game.

Royals’ starter Brady Singer retired the first two men he faced in the top of the first inning. LaMonte Wade then came up, and he hit a home run down the right field line to give the Giants an early 1-0 lead.

The Giants turned to Landen Roupp, who took the ball for his third big league start. Roupp escaped a one-out double by Bobby Witt Jr. in the bottom of the first, and he escaped another jam in the bottom of the second.

Singer pitched a scoreless top of the second and a one, two, three top of the third. Roupp then pitched another scoreless inning in the bottom of the third.

As the game reached the middle innings, it became overcast for the most part at Kauffman Stadium with a beautiful touch of blue skies off in the distance.

On the first pitch from Singer in the top of the fourth, Wade hit a towering drive down the right field line that went out for his second home run of the day. Matt Chapman, who returned to the team today after the birth of his daughter, Alexandra, came up to the plate.

Chapman got a hold of one, and hit a fly ball deep to center that got out. Wade and Chapman went back-to-back, and it was now 4-0 Giants.

Roupp survived a leadoff ground-rule double by MJ Melendez in the bottom of the fourth, and he pitched another scoreless inning in the bottom of the fifth. Roupp was done after five.

Roupp allowed a base-runner in every inning he pitched, and the Royals had a runner in scoring position in each of the first four innings, but he kept his focus in every single inning to pitch five scoreless. Roupp gave up three hits, and he walked three and struck out three.

Singer pitched a scoreless top of the fifth and retired Wade to start the top of the sixth. Chapman then came up and golfed out a slider at the knees to the Giants’ bullpen in left for his second home run of the game.

It was Chapman’s 26th home run of the year, and he is now four home runs away from becoming the first Giant to hit 30 in a season since Barry Bonds hit 45 all the way back in 2004. He will have seven games left to do it, so while it may be a tall order, it is certainly doable.

Michael Conforto immediately followed up Chapman’s second home run with a double to right, and Tyler Fitzgerald singled him over to third. That ended the day for Singer, and the Royals Manager Matt Quatraro brought in Carlos Hernandez.

Grant McCray reached on a weird fielder’s choice that saw him get to second, while Conforto was out at the plate. Donovan Walton was hit by a pitch to load the bases, and Curt Casali singled to left to knock in a pair and make it 6-0. Those would be the only two runs for the Giants to score on something other than a home run.

Mike Yastrzemski then hit a three-run home run to right to make it 9-0. It was the fifth home run of the day for the Giants, and the third for Yastrzemski in the first five games of this road trip.

It was now a blowout, and as you would expect, there would be no drama the rest of the game. Spencer Bivens pitched a pair of scoreless innings in the sixth and seventh, and Tristan Beck threw a pair of one, two, three innings in the eighth and ninth.

Landen Roupp got his first major league win, and this was the second game in a row in which a Giants’ rookie would get their first major league win after Mason Black got his first Thursday night. Brady Singer took the loss.

The Giants have now won four of their last five, as they improve to 76-79. They can now get that first road sweep of the season with a win Sunday. Blake Snell (4-3, 3.31 ERA) will make the start for the Giants, and he will be opposed by the veteran right-hander, Seth Lugo (16-8, 3.08 ERA).

The only question is with the wild weather in Kansas City expected to persist into , whether Sunday or not the game will be played. If it starts on time, first pitch will be at 1:10 at Kauffman Stadium, and 11:10 a.m. back home in San Francisco.

San Francisco Giants Heliot Ramos hits for an RBI single in the top of the first inning one of three hits against the Kansas City Royals on Fri Sep 20, 2024 at Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City (AP News photo)

Friday, Sept. 20, 2024

Kauffman Stadium

Kansas City, Missouri

San Francisco Giants 2 (75-79)

Kansas City Royals 1 (85-68)

Win: Mason Black (1-4)

Loss: Michael Wacha (13-8)

Save: Camilo Doval (23)

Time: 2:42

Attendance: 22,117

By Stephen Ruderman

Heliot Ramos hit for three legs of the cycle; Mason Black threw a solid outing en route to his first major league win, as the Giants survived some ninth-inning drama from Camilo Doval to beat the Royals 2-1 in an oddly-familiar 2014 World Series rematch at Kauffman Stadium Friday night.

The Giants were officially eliminated Thursday after Anthony Santander hit a walk-off home run. With nine games left to finish the season on a good note, the Giants came into the hot 80 plus degrees confines of Kansas City for a 2014 World Series rematch. This was only the second time the Giants came into Kansas City since that fall classic.

While the Giants are not going to the playoffs, they were thrown right into the middle of the American League wild card race. The Royals came into Friday night in possession of the second wild card spot.

Just as the Giants took advantage of a struggling Orioles’ team in Baltimore, they would have that same advantage this weekend. The Royals came into Friday night with a four-game losing streak, which included a three-game sweep at the hands of the surging Detroit Tigers and wound up extending it to five games after the loss to the Giants.

While the Giants were facing their counterparts from the 2014 World Series, they would be up against the former St. Louis Cardinal, Michael Wacha, who Travis Ishikawa hit his legendary home run off of to win the pennant for the Giants.

The Giants pounced on Wacha in the top of the first inning. Mike Yastrzemski lined a base-hit to center field to begin the ballgame, and Mark Canha drew a walk to put runners at first and second with nobody out. Michael Conforto then flew out to center to move Yaz over to third.

Up came Heliot Ramos, who despite some of his recent struggles, was about to have a night reminiscent of the Ramos we saw in May and June. Though sometimes when you’re struggling, you need a break. Ramos got that break when he hit a chopper out in front of the plate that took a high hop back to Wacha, who had no time to make a play. Everyone was safe, and Yastrzemski scored to give the Giants a 1-0 lead.

With the focus now turned to 2025, Bob Melvin is going to give a lot of the young guys a looksie in these final nine games. Friday night, it would be Mason Black, who took the ball for the Giants. Hjelle pitched a scoreless bottom of the first, and then he had to wiggle out of a jam in the bottom of the second.

From there, Black settled down to throw a pair of one, two, three innings in the third and fourth. Wacha also settled down, though the Giants were unable to do anything with a leadoff triple by Ramos in the top of the fourth.

Wacha threw a one, two, three inning in the top of the fifth and retired the first two hitters he faced in the top of the sixth. Ramos then doubled with two outs, and Patrick Bailey singled to right to knock in Ramos and make it 2-0.

Black had pitched a scoreless bottom of the fifth. He then allowed a leadoff base-hit to Bobby Witt Jr. in the bottom of the sixth, but he retired the next two. Still, Bob Melvin came out and pulled him for Sean Hjelle, who got the third out.

Black ended up going five and two thirds innings after throwing 84 pitches. He gave up four hits, and he walked just one and struck out four.

Erik Miller and Tyler Rogers got the Giants through the seventh and the eighth, and then Melvin would give his old closer, Camilo Doval, a chance to get the save in the bottom of the ninth. After two dominant seasons that earned him a cool ninth-inning intro at Oracle Park, Doval has had a nightmare season that not only cost him the closer’s role, but also cost him his spot on the roster.

After Ryan Walker pitched in the final two games in Baltimore, Doval would get his shot Friday night. Unfortunately, the nightmare continues for Doval, who walked the first two guys, both on four pitches.

Yuli Gurriel was at second, and Dairon Blanco came in to pinch-run for Robbie Grossman at first. Doval then settled down to strike out the veteran, Adam Frazier, for that much-needed first out.

However, Doval was not out of the woods yet, and he was about to catch a tough break. Maikel Garcia hit a ground ball right to Tyler Fitzgerald that seemed like it was going to be a game-ending double play, but Fitzgerald hesitated, and everyone was safe.

The bases were loaded with one out for Garrett Hampson, who lined a ball just foul past the bag at third. Nevertheless, the Royals wanted the play reviewed, quite possibly to rattle Doval. Hampson then hit a sacrifice fly to right, and Gurriel scored to put the Royals on the board and make it a one-run game. Blanco moved to third on the play

It was now 2-1. The tying run was at third with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, which was a familiar position for the Giants at Kauffman Stadium. The veteran, Tommy Pham—also a member of the 2014 Cardinals—was at the plate. With a 1-1 count, Doval threw a pair of sliders off the outside corner, and Pham chased both. Someway, somehow, Doval locked down the save. Well, barely.

Mason Black got his first major league win; Michael Wacha took the loss, just as he did when the Giants won the pennant in 2014; and Camilo Doval picked up his first save since Aug. 7, his 23rd of the year.

Of course, Ramos had the big night offensively for the Giants. Though I might add that his leadoff triple in the bottom of the fourth had a chance of being an inside-the-park home run, just like Alex Gordan’s two-out triple in the bottom of the ninth of Game 7.

Anyway, the Giants improve to 75-79, and the Royals have now lost five-straight. With severe weather expected Saturday night in Kansas City, the game has been moved up two hours to 4:10 p.m. in Kansas City, 2:10 p.m. back in San Francisco. Landen Roupp (0-1, 3.02 ERA) will take the ball for the Giants, and Brady Singer (9-11, 3.53 ERA) will go for Kansas City.