KANSAS CITY -- Every start Luinder Avila makes this season as a rookie is going to bring something new to experience, and he faced a good test Sunday against a Phillies lineup full of All-Stars. By the end of it, he was passing with a pretty good grade.
In search of their first win on this homestand, Avila led the Royals to a 5-2 victory over the Phillies at Kauffman Stadium with five strong innings, allowing one run on three hits with one walk and four strikeouts.
“They have some good hitters on that team, and you can watch and tell that he made them a little uncomfortable,” center fielder Lane Thomas said. “It was cool to see, maybe give him a little confidence that, ‘Hey, my stuff plays in the zone.’”
Sunday marked the Royals’ first win since a week ago in Chicago, when Avila was also on the mound, but allowed four runs in four innings against the White Sox. Avila was happy about the team win that day, but he was clearly frustrated with his performance, in which he needed 86 pitches through the four innings, had to navigate three walks and put a lot on the bullpen to hold onto that 5-4 win.
This time out, Avila was more efficient, and even when he was wild -- like the second pitch of the game sailing over Trea Turner -- Avila was able to get back in the zone and execute. He was at 69 pitches by the time the bullpen gates swung open in the sixth inning, the Royals likely not wanting Avila to face the Phillies' lineup a third time through with the order flipping over. Plus, the Royals held onto a slim lead that their bullpen kept intact until Salvador Perez, playing in his first game since Wednesday due to right elbow soreness, lined a two-run double in the bottom of the eighth to provide needed insurance.
“Even going back to [Avila’s] last start, we talked about how many first-pitch strikes, how many early and ahead you can get,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “Those are just words, right? You got to go out and execute. And that’s a really good lineup. So I’m really proud of the way he did that.”
In between starts, Avila worked with pitching coach Brian Sweeney about attacking in the zone. While his mechanics are certainly part of how effective he is, Avila said getting and staying in the zone is more of a mindset. During his bullpen, Avila set up two dummy batters on either side of the plate as he threw his pitches and tried to think just one thing: Middle.
“My pitches move a lot,” Avila said. “If I try to throw in, it’s too in, and I miss. In the game, I don’t want to miss in the middle -- I want to miss on the corners -- but if I’m thinking middle, I can move the ball.”
That mindset worked for Avila on Sunday, as he used his 96 mph four-seamer heavily the first time through the order before relying on his sinker and secondary stuff the second time through, generating weaker contact.
“It was about keeping their eyes looking at different spots,” Avila said. “My fastball cuts, and the other one moves in on righties. I was just trying to move pitches and keep them guessing.”
Avila didn’t allow a hit until the third inning, a leadoff double from Gabriel Rincones Jr., whom Avila stranded at third base to get out of the inning. Avila’s one walk of the day to Alec Bohm in the second inning was quickly erased by a nifty double play that the right-hander started on a ball back to the mound. The Phillies scored on Rincones’ sacrifice fly in the fifth, but Avila got out of the inning without further trouble.
“Kind of a little bit effectively wild for me… [threw] some balls all over and then he's throwing strikes,” Phillies manager Don Mattingly said. “Kind of strangled our top pretty well."
The Royals are putting a lot on Avila as he navigates through his first stint in a big league rotation. Avila has much to learn and adjust to, and Kansas City needs him every fifth day because of its lack of pitching depth. Avila is leaning on his rotation-mates, especially All-Star Michael Wacha, to help him through the grind.
“He knows he has the stuff to beat guys,” Quatraro said. “It’s a matter of executing. He’s still a rookie in this league. He’s got a lot to learn. Sometimes those growing pains are hard sometimes, and you fight through it.”