Cubs blanked by Royals |
KANSAS CITY - When you talk about some of the most surprising teams in baseball this season, the Kansas City Royals (57-47) come to mind. Following their win against the Chicago Cubs (49-56) Friday night at Kaufmann Stadium, they now have as many wins as they had all of last season, and they are right in the midst of making the playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade.
Cubs fans wish they could say the same about their team, as you could make the case that the Cubs are one of the biggest disappointments in baseball this season. A big reason for their struggles this season has been an offense that has been downright putrid most of the season, but it has been offensive since the All-Star break. “You could kind of point to everything,” manager Craig Counsell said. “We haven’t slugged enough, we haven’t got enough hits, we haven’t hit with runners in scoring position. So there hasn’t been anything that’s been really good about it.” Entering Friday's game, the Cubs offense had scored seven runs in six games, and things only got worse with Brady Singer on the mound for the Royals. The young right-hander was as locked in as he has been all season as he handcuffed the Cubs in his seventh inning, striking out five and allowing just two hits to lower his ERA to 2.82. A six-run fifth inning was all the Royals needed to take down the Cubs 6-0. Opposing Singer was Professor Kyle Hendricks, who seems to be going backward again on the mound after putting together a string of solid starts heading into the All-Star break. He was charged with all six runs allowed in five innings, and his ERA continues to be the worst of his career at 6.95. Looking at the final score, you would think that the Cubs fell behind early and couldn't find a way to battle back. That was far from the case, as this was a great pitcher's duel early on. Not only was this a scoreless game through four, but both teams managed to pick up just one hit with the Cubs also adding a walk. Then came the fifth inning, when the Cubs were set up with the first and their best scoring chance of the day. Mike Tauchman led the inning off with a hit-by-pitch before moving to second on a Dansby Swanson single. Hoping to cash in with a clutch hit, it was the Royals who came up clutch, as Singer got Miguel Amaya to ground into an inning-ending double play to keep the Cubs off the board. It was that play where all of the momentum shifted in favor of the Royals, and you saw them use that momentum swing in a big way during the bottom half of the fifth. After retiring the first two hitters he faced to begin the fifth, Hendricks quickly came unglued as a pair of singles from Garrett Hampson and Kyle Isbel put runners on the corners. “Just getting outplayed," Hendricks said about the Cubs' recent play. "Just getting beat, and that’s the bottom line. Not doing the right things to win ballgames, and those teams we are playing against, they’re really good teams. They’re doing the right things right now. “Going the wrong direction right now, but again, there’s nothing we can do about that,” Hendricks said. “We focus on what we can control -- coming to the ballpark tomorrow. Luckily, we got Shota [Imanaga] out there, so set the tone and just try and get that one tomorrow.” Isbel went on to steal second to put a pair of runners in scoring position, only to have Adam Frazier make it three straight singles to give the Royals the lead for good, 2-0. Kansas City continued to single the Cubs to death, with Bobby Witt Jr. following suit with a fourth straight single. Another one from Vinny Pasquantino extended the Royals' lead to 3-0, and they were still threatening. The big blow in the fifth inning came off the bat of Salvador Perez, who uncorked his 10th homer of the season to cap off a six-run inning as the Royals took a 6-0 lead. All six of those runs came with two outs, and it would be Kansas City's only offense of the day. They wouldn't need more offense, as the Cubs' offense has been non-existent since the All-Star break, to the point where it looks like they have quit on their manager at times or have waved the white flag for the season. Even with Seiya Suzuki leading off the seventh with a single and then advancing to second on another walk, the Cubs simply couldn't buy a run, as another inning-ending double play killed another scoring chance. It was the Cubs' final scoring chance, as Suzuki added a two-out double in the bottom of the ninth in what was another rough outing for this offense. You can't win a game if you don't score, and being held to four hits doesn't make things easy for your offense. Suzuki led the way with two hits for the Cubs. Swanson and Patrick Wisdom picked up the remaining hits for Chicago. Even though the Royals scored six times in that one inning, the Cubs' pitching was otherwise very good. They tossed seven shutout innings around that ugly frame. That includes three more shutout innings from an ever-improving bullpen, as Jesus Tinoco and Jorge Lopez combined to throw those innings. The Cubs will look to even the series on Saturday when they turn to Shota Imanaga against the surprising Seth Lugo.
