CHICAGO – As Friday night’s beatdown loss to the White Sox progressed and the Royals rolled through relievers just trying to get to the end of the game, it was not hard to start thinking about how it would impact Saturday’s pitching availability. Simply put, the Royals needed a productive and deep start from Michael Wacha.
They got both and then some from their most reliable starter this season, with the right-hander providing 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball against the White Sox. They did not, however, get the win they were looking for in their 2-1 walk-off loss at Rate Field, their 50th loss of the season in their 84th game of the year, just past the halfway mark.
Wacha was exactly what the Royals needed Saturday, allowing just one run that didn’t come until the seventh inning, and he’s been brilliant pretty much all season for this club with a 3.31 ERA across his 17 starts and 108 2/3 innings.
“Every time his name gets called, or his start comes up, the bullpen is in a tough spot,” reliever Daniel Lynch IV said. “And he has delivered time and time again. He goes out, he’s a pro, he fills up the zone and is giving us seven or eight innings. I don’t know what kind of spot we’d be in without him.”
That’s why the way Saturday’s game ended was so disappointing. Scoreless entering the seventh inning, the Royals were able to put one run on the board but were left wanting more because of a baserunning error from Nick Loftin, who blew through a clear stop sign from third-base coach Vance Wilson on Carter Jensen’s RBI single to right field. That was after Loftin’s safety squeeze bunt attempt failed because it went back to pitcher Sean Newcomb, who threw out Tyler Tolbert at home.
The baserunning blunder ended the frame with Bobby Witt Jr. on deck.
“You got to pick up Vance,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “It’s clear to me he had the stop sign. … Just regardless [of who’s up], that ball is a one-hopper to the right fielder.”
“Not ideal, for sure,” Jensen added. “You wish you could have gotten a couple more there.”
The White Sox immediately tied it in the seventh, but Wacha was able to get out of the inning. He recorded two outs in the eighth, including his career No. 1,500th strikeout to pinch-hitter Kyle Teel with a fastball on the black. A single and a walk ended his outing, but it was another dominant display from the veteran.
“I appreciate Q letting me ride out there for that long,” Wacha said. “Was just trying to make pitches to one of the hottest hitters out there [in Miguel Vargas], and just missed the zone on a few of those pitches. It was a spot where I wanted to pitch him tough. I wasn’t going to let that guy beat us in that moment.”
Lynch got him out of the jam but found trouble in the ninth. The White Sox loaded the bases with no outs on three singles, including a bunt single from Braden Montgomery that went to the third-base side of the mound.
Lynch attempted to make a play at third, but the throw hit Loftin in the worst possible spot of his groin area, causing him to leave the game.
“It was literally a perfect bunt,” Lynch said. “The only play I had was at third. I think we might have had a chance to get him. But going to that side of my body, having to throw it back across was just tough.”
The Royals brought a five-man infield in and turned to John Schreiber in hopes of getting a ground ball and somehow escaping a situation that left no room for error. Schreiber struck out Junior Perez and got the ground ball.
But it skipped past Witt for the game-winning hit.
“Bringing in the five-man infield, that’s what you’re expecting,” Witt said. “Schreiber made a good pitch. Those are the situations I want to be in. Those are the times I want the ball hit at me. Got to make the play.”
This has been a season of frustrations for Kansas City, with underperformance and injuries and not much going their way. Saturday summed it up well: A great start from Wacha wasted by a lack of run support, mistakes and a ninth-inning collapse that led to another loss.
“These last starts from Wacha, he’s been throwing it well,” Witt said. “We just haven’t gotten him any run support. We’ve got to get there, because when we get runs on the board with him on the mound, I like our chances.”