The Definition of a Whoopin'

Series Analysis

Oakland @ Kansas City

Tuesday May 8 KC 1-6 OAK

Wednesday May 9 KC 3-2 OAK

Thursday May 10 KC 3- 17 OAK

If you've ever eaten a leftover sandwich that's the best way to describe this series. The meat in the middle is great, but the bread on both sides is soggy and nasty yet you still eat the damn thing because you know it's a good sandwich. The problem with that leftover sandwich is \ the bread makes it not worth the meat. That's the way this series went...Soggy bread loss on Tuesday-Awesome meat on Wednesday-Nasty, nasty bread on Thursday.

I didn't get a chance to watch or listen to the game on Tuesday, but looking through the box scores, it looks like De La Rosa(4 1/3 IP 6R 5ER 2BB 1K) was all to hittable. He surrendered 10 hits including 2 doubles. It seems like a bit of a regression, but its his first poor start of the season. The Royals offense only mustered 6 hits against the A's and struck out 9 times. The bullpen didn't allow a run in the final 4 1/3 innings, but they weren't very good. The bread...

Gobble 1 2/3 IP 1H 0K 3BB (double)

Musser 2 IP 2H 1K 2BB (double)

Riske 1 IP 0H 1K 1BB

Overall the Royals deserved to lose and lose they did. Also during the game Billy Butler committed his first error of the season, dropping a routine fly ball leading to the unearned run.

The Wednesday night game was a great game for the Royals. They got an excellent start from Gil Meche(6 IP 2R 1ER 4BB 7K) and nailed down the win with a 8th inning homerun from Mike Sweeney. Meche didn't have his best stuff, 111 pitches in 6 innings, but kept the Royals in the game. The unearned run came courtesy of Alex Gordon and his dropped fly ball(for more on Gordon read Joe Posnanski's latest article). Again the Royals bullpen came in a held the lead and even got the win(Gobble). Soria came in and nailed down the save in the 9th inning. The meat...

The series finale. Here's all you need to know. The Royals surrendered 6 homeruns...and got throttled 3-17!

Hudson 2 IP 5R 4ER oK 4BB 1HR- Sweeney error led to the unearned run

Wellemeyer 2 2/3 IP 5R 4ER 3K 1BB 2HR- German error led to his unearned run

Peralta 1 1/3 IP 2ER 3K 1BB oHR

Musser 1 IP 4ER 0K 0BB 3HR - the A's even had a back-to-back

...the bread

That really sucked...

Another thing that came out of this series is the Royals are beginning to entertain the thought that Billy Bulter will never be a major league outfielder and are begining to work him out at first base. He wont play there yet, but the process has begun...as Soren Petro says "if the fat kid can hit, put him at first."

Other Notes

- Both Luke Hudson and Scott Elarton have been reinstated into the starting rotation

- Zack Greinke has been put into the bullpen to make room for "starting pitching relief."

- Todd Wellemeyer's season ERA- 10.34

- After the game Wellemeyer was sent up I-29 to Omaha...see ya!

- But they brought Jason Standridge back up to the bigs with his 9.34 ERA

- Mark Teahen had a good series 5/12 .417BA 2 RBI 2 Doubles 1 Triple 2BB

- Teahen also had 2 more outfield assists, giving him 6 for the season

- David DeJesus is in a bit of a slump 1 for his last 12

- Mike Sweeney hit his 4th homerun of the season

- Soria picked up his 6th save

Royals Fact: Sweeney's homerun on Wednesday giving him 194, good for 2nd on the all-time Royals list

-b

Royals 2007 Record: 11-24