It was odd to see the starters struggle as badly as they did. It felt like Cleveland was able to work a 3-2 count almost every at-bat, whereas the Royals batters would go down on 3-4 pitches like clockwork, especially after getting past the 1-4 batters in the lineup. It was a bit maddening to watch, but I’m hopeful that the starters will be better the second time around. Also very excited to see Bubic today!!
It's worth noting that the back-end of the bullpen was GREAT...but the rest not so much (Lynch the noted exception). Will be interesting to see how Q will mix-and-match the #1/#2/#3 BP guys to keep them fresh. Having said that, I was kind of surprised to see Hunter pitch the 9th yesterday--unless he just needed the work (the other 2 back-end guys had pitched the day before).
I was a little surprised to see Harvey out there in the 9th as well. He particularly seems like a guy who needs plenty of days off, as evidenced by how he broke down last year after being overused by Washington in the first half.
I do think KC will be quick to pull the plug on Long/Stratton if things continue down this road. Too many quality arms in AAA.
It was odd to see the starters struggle as badly as they did. It felt like Cleveland was able to work a 3-2 count almost every at-bat, whereas the Royals batters would go down on 3-4 pitches like clockwork, especially after getting past the 1-4 batters in the lineup. It was a bit maddening to watch, but I’m hopeful that the starters will be better the second time around. Also very excited to see Bubic today!!
I'm also excited to see Bubic, he's one of my favorite players for this season. Think he's got a huge year ahead of him.
It's worth noting that the back-end of the bullpen was GREAT...but the rest not so much (Lynch the noted exception). Will be interesting to see how Q will mix-and-match the #1/#2/#3 BP guys to keep them fresh. Having said that, I was kind of surprised to see Hunter pitch the 9th yesterday--unless he just needed the work (the other 2 back-end guys had pitched the day before).
I was a little surprised to see Harvey out there in the 9th as well. He particularly seems like a guy who needs plenty of days off, as evidenced by how he broke down last year after being overused by Washington in the first half.
I do think KC will be quick to pull the plug on Long/Stratton if things continue down this road. Too many quality arms in AAA.