KANSAS CITY -- Royals rookie Eric Skoglund found out in a hurry that you simply can't groove pitches at the Major League level.
Skoglund, making his second career start, left two pitches up in the second inning and both were drilled for two-run doubles in the Royals' 8-0 loss to the Indians on Sunday.
Skoglund went two innings before rain delayed the game 1 hour, 58 minutes. He did not return after giving up four hits, two walks and four runs.
The key moment was Roberto Perez's two-run, two-out double in the second inning. Skoglund fell behind Perez, 2-0, and threw a fastball right down the middle.

"I made some mistakes on pitches up that you won't get away with up here," Skoglund said. "[Against Perez], you don't want to get to a 3-0 count. That's how important first-pitch strikes are here. I didn't take advantage. I didn't execute."
With the inning extended, Daniel Robertson also drilled a two-run double and the Indians had more than enough runs.
Skoglund's outing was a far cry from his debut on Tuesday when he threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings against the Tigers.
Skoglund said he took one lesson from Sunday's loss.
"Up here, you have to get ahead in the count," he said. "You have to throw first-pitch strikes."
Skoglund tried to stay loose during the rain delay, but knew once it got past the 30-minute mark, he wouldn't return.
"Yeah, I definitely wanted to come back," he said. "I did everything I could to stay warm, but they just shut it down."
Royals manager Ned Yost indicated Skoglund likely will get another start.
"I need starters," Yost said. "I don't have [Nathan] Karns. I don't have [Danny] Duffy. So, I imagine he's going to get another start. That's not fair judgment right there [today]."