Crow staying stingy against opposing hitters

KANSAS CITY -- On Sept. 6, 2013, Tigers catcher Alex Avila lined a fastball from Royals reliever Aaron Crow down the right-field line to plate a run.

Since that game, Crow had not allowed an earned run with an ERA of 0.00 through 16 innings this season entering Wednesday's series finale with the Rockies. Crow pitched a scoreless ninth inning in the Royals' 5-1 win over the Rockies on Tuesday.

"I think I'm just able to get weak contact early in the count and that's helped me a lot," Crow said. "I'm not throwing very many pitches and that's making me stay fresh if I have to throw two, three, four times in a week, so I feel good every time out."

Crow leads Kansas City with 18 appearances, and he possesses the only sub-1.00 WHIP (0.88) on the staff.

"I'm just getting guys to miss the barrel, and the popups and weak ground balls is what's really been working for me," Crow said.

Despite his unblemished ERA, Crow has not been perfect. Three unearned runs have scored under his watch, and five of the seven runners he's inherited thus far crossed home plate.