Royals Drop Series, Show Improvement

Dice-K vs. Greinke was a good match-up. I don't think it was fully appreciated by non-Royal fans, but it wouldn't be surprised to see both of those guys in the top 10 in ERA this year. Matsusaka was all that was advertised (well, except for the gyroball--I saw no gyroball), and Greinke was all that he portended out of Spring Training.

Zack seems to have transferred his former passion for throwing trick pitches into a passion for hitting his spots exactly. He K'd David Ortiz three times--twice looking and once on a very feeble swing. The ump had a wide outside corner today--and I think both teams were upset by it--I read a lot of Royals fans complaining that their hitters were getting jobbed, but tell that to Ortiz, no doubt he thought those strike three's he was taking were going to be called balls.

Greinke struck out seven--four of them were looking. He struck a lot of guys out this Spring as well--I doubt he'll all the sudden become a strikeout pitcher, though, since generally you've got to miss bats than Zack does. Zack doesn't exactly "pitch to contact" (one of those ridiculous baseball phrases that doesn't even make sense) but he's a few miles per hour short of the kind of overwhelming stuff that blows guys away. Zack changes speeds well, and if yesterday's start is any indication, possesses great control and that's going to result in a lot of soft contact.

Greinke missed most of the season last year after bolting during Spring Training. And, though he tried to explain what his Social Anxiety was, it's difficult to really pinpoint the problem. It seemed like a combination of too much losing, too much too fast, a sense that he wasn't really earning his place on the team, lack of direction, lack of fun, perhaps a little isolation because of an inability to relate to his teammates. It's hard to say for sure.

After he returned from his home in Florida, the Royals sent him to AA Wichita to play with their best prospects, including Alex Gordon and Billy Butler, and Greinke thrived. The Royals brought him up in September for a couple relief innings, but I'm sure they were in no way counting on him come Spring Training. But I bet they're starting to count on him now.

The time in Wichita seemed to help. That, and perhaps the medication that Zack began taking. But in Wichita they were in a pennant race, he was playing with young men around his age, he was no longer being treated with kid gloves--and he really responded.

Greinke really showed toughness amid the glare from bright lights that follow Dice-K around last night. It's tempting to say he's back to 2004 form, when he finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting--but it's even more tempting to say he'll better than that now.

The Royals faced three excellent starters from Boston, but still, nearly getting shut out twice isn't going to get the job done. Unfortunately for them, Justin Verlander is on the mound tonight. Actually Detroit's weather postponement yesterday hurts the Royals, because they don't get to face their former flame-out Chad Durbin, who's in the Tigers rotation because of Kenny Rogers injury. Durbin got hit hard with the Royals, I don't see why that should change just because he's wearing an Olde English "D" on his cap.

But the chance to beat up on Durbin must wait 'till later. It's Verlander, Maroth and Bonderman this weekend. Verlander dominated KC last year: 3-0 in three starts, an 0.68 ERA and a .178 BAA. It's going to be another cold night in KC, so a hard thrower like Verlander really has an advantage. On the other hand, KC might be featuring its hardest thrower in this game--Juan De La Rosa. The concern with De La Rosa is whether or not he can throw strikes. In general, he probably can't. But the Tigers are a pretty aggressive team, so that might work in his favor. Unfortunately their big off-season acquisition, Gary Sheffield, has great plate discipline, and if he faces De La Rosa three times, you can pretty much chalk him up for at least one walk.

Final thoughts on the Boston series. Buddy hasn't pinch hit for anyone yet. Not even Tony Pena, Jr. Not even leading off the eighth, down by two, against a lefty last night. Now, it's not that Pena is particularly bad against lefties--I don't know that he is. I just know that his best OBP in the minors was .312, and the Royals had four righties sitting on the bench. Mike Sweeney, Reggie Sanders (who hasn't gotten a plate appearance yet), Mark Grudzielanek and Jason LaRue--any of those guys would have been more likely to to get on base than Pena.

Gordon's struggling defensively and hitting into some bad luck offensively. He may not have millions of Japanese watching his games at three in the morning regularly, but there's a lot of pressure on Gordon. He looks to me like he'll handle it. All he needs is one good game to realize he's still just playing ball. It's almost gametime now--maybe that good game will be tonight.