Blind Quarterback Plays Baseball: Week 2

 

Royals Roundup:

“The Boys in Blue” had a two game series at the "K" against the Minnesota Twins and a 3-game road series against the Detroit Tigers. Unfortunately all 5 of those games would fall into our loss column, bringing the Royals record to a mere 2-6.

Home Series against the Twins:

The evening game against the Twins at the K pushed into extra innings, the score tied 4-4, but the struggling bullpen would not be able to gain a lead, allowing the Twins to score a run in the top of the 10^th inning. On the bright side, Whit Merrifield extended his hit streak and stole a base. The second game almost mirrored the game before. The Royals scored 6 runs (5 of them coming in the bottom of the fifth inning) with the Twins having only 3. This gave the Royals a 3 run cushion roughly half way through the game, a cushion the bullpen was unable to hold onto. Merrifield extended his streak and propensity for base stealing.

Road Series against the Tigers:

The first 2 of the 3 games in the series were lost by a bullpen that is now known to have the highest ERA in the American League. Between Merrifield’s continued hit streak, Alex Gordon’s bat on fire and Adalberto Mondesi’s doubles and triples - the offense stored enough runs for the win. But the bullpen struggled to maintain the lead. On Sunday however, the bats of the Royals had quieted down, only achieving 1 run. A less polished Brad Keller allowed the Tigers to score all the runs they needed for the win in the first six innings. Relievers Jake Diekmen and Brad Boxburger each pitched a scoreless inning.

Ahead:

The Royals host one of the hottest teams in the league, the 9-2 Seattle Mariners in a 4 game series. Immediately after, divisional rivals, Cleveland Indians will crash into the K for a 3 game series.

Week 2 Top 2 Hot Batters:

Whit Merrifield:
Merrifield’s bat caught fire back in September of last season and continues to burn. Merrifield is currently on a 28 game hitting streak - matched only by George Brett in Royals history with 30 games. Until the streak is broken – Merrifield remains at the top of your BQB’s list.

Tim Beckham:
Seattle Mariners’ shortstop, Tim Beckham has a .400 batting average . He is 16-40 with 11 RBIs. Beckham and the Mariners face the Royals for the next 4 days. My fellow Royals’ fans and I are hoping that the Royals’ pitching staff might throw some ice water on Beckham’s red hot bat.

Around the League Drama:

It all began in the fourth inning of the Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Cincinnati Reds game on Sunday afternoon. Pirates’ pitcher, Chris Archer threw his first pitch to Reds’ batter Derek Dietrich. Archer’s 93 mph fastball flew behind the waist of Dietrich as the batter stood still.
Reds’ manager, David Bell leapt from his dugout and argued with the plate umpire that Archer should have been ejected. This caused an insane chain reaction and tempers flared – especially in Reds’ right fielder, Yasiel Puig. Puig attempted to put Pirates’ bench coach, Tom Prince in a headlock but was held back by his teammate, Joey Votto. The Pirates’ 7-5 victory over the Reds ended with five total ejections including Puig, Reds’ pitcher Amir Garrett and Pirates’ pitchers Keone Kela and Felipe Vazquez.
What dramatic story will happen next week?
Your BQB will keep you informed.

Ask the Old Dog:

“Seattle comes into Kansas City with a 9-2 record leading the Western Division. Tonight Homer Bailey brings his 5.49 ERA against Seattle’s Hernandez who is 1-0 and a 1.69 ERA. Seattle’s has a 5-1 home record and 4-1 road record do are playing pretty good baseball right now. Royals starters are going to have to go 6 or more innings and hold them. Our bullpen needs to settle into a routine and improve their numbers. Important week and home stand. Cleveland comes in as another division opponent we must beat. Key is the starters going deep, bullpen settles down and our offense keep improving.” - @kcolddog

What are your thoughts on Week 2 of 2019 Baseball Season? 

Stay tuned for more BQB Plays Baseball.