Somehow Seven Total Runs Were Scored, but Royals Fall in San Diego

by Old Man Duggan on Jun 28, 2011 1:09 AM EDT in Royals Game Recaps

Sometimes a game happens and, despite the fact that you watched the whole thing, the memory of its actual events cannot be summoned forth to form a cohesive narrative of what transpired. An inning passes and there is the vague recollection of a two-run homer from the opposition. Five more pass and thoughts wander to what $11 might yield you at Taco Bell. Then you remember that a game is on and that you've actually been watching it.

Or have you?

The seventh inning hits and somehow the Royals are down only a run, 4 -3, but the Brayan Pena double plating Alex Gordon and Jeff Francoeur couldn't have happened tonight. No, that was last week, wasn't it? The box score says Jeff Francis pitched, but it can't have been a memorable outing because there were an ordinary four runs scored off of him. A two-error inning could have happened in theory, but that comes as much from the fact that it could happen any time.

An opposing runner was gunned down at the plate on a play to left field, but we've all seen that play this year.

With one down in the top of the ninth in a one-run game, Ned Yost inexplicably elects to pinch-hit Jarrod Dyson for the pitcher-spot in the order when Wilson Betemit sits on the bench with a much more potent bat. After Dyson flails at pitches, two runners get on only to be stranded by Hosmer while heads are still being scratched regarding the Dyson pinch-hit from four batters earlier.

Or did Ned Yost give the game away yesterday?

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whos the girl?

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by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:14 AM EDT reply actions

Yeah. Priorities, fella.

by LaFLamme on Jun 28, 2011 1:16 AM EDT up reply actions

Rhona Mitra, if you missed it over there.

Hating life as a Royals fan 365 days a year at Royalscentricity

by Old Man Duggan on Jun 28, 2011 1:21 AM EDT up reply actions

I am a fan

Nice choice

Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com

by RoyalsRetro on Jun 28, 2011 10:04 AM EDT up reply actions

Oh, right. From...

Okay, I have no idea. Good selection, though, as always. You do good things. Could you manage a baseball club?

by LaFLamme on Jun 28, 2011 1:22 AM EDT reply actions

Could've been Mitch as well as Betemit

Both are left-handed hitters, and Betemit’s numbers are much more impressive from the left side this season.

It’s inexplicable. It’s about as dumb a managerial move as I’ve seen.

You want optimism? My glass is half full of emptiness.

by DanielSmith on Jun 28, 2011 1:26 AM EDT reply actions

but Yost said that he

hoped Dyson would get a hit and then steal a base and then score. A lot of maybes there

by kansasjohn on Jun 28, 2011 1:29 AM EDT up reply actions

indeed...

im not too worried about this…like i said below, its clear ned knows how to utilize dyson, he was just bored tonight

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:31 AM EDT up reply actions

Well that's ok then

He was bored.

Edgar knows best.

by kcbottom9th on Jun 28, 2011 1:32 AM EDT up reply actions 3 recs

how about?

somebody else gets a hit. Then Dyson steals a base and scores?

by higs on Jun 28, 2011 7:56 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

+1

by SagehenMacGyver47 on Jun 28, 2011 12:51 PM EDT up reply actions

Kinda feel bad for Dyson

He was probably as baffled as anybody.

by LaFLamme on Jun 28, 2011 1:27 AM EDT reply actions

^this

pretty damn tough spot to put a guy in – especially a guy you have shown no inclination to use, other than as a pinch-runner, all season.

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:29 AM EDT up reply actions

Wild pitch and throwing error = 2 runs

by kansasjohn on Jun 28, 2011 1:27 AM EDT reply actions

this is why we lost...

not the slim difference b/w dyson and betemit/maier

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:28 AM EDT up reply actions

it is the appearance (or reality) of giving up that pisses me off

if there is a better option than Dyson, Yost should have gone that direction.

by kansasjohn on Jun 28, 2011 1:32 AM EDT up reply actions

fuck it...i want a high draft pick and the young guys to develop...

using dyson doesnt harm either of those things

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by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:35 AM EDT up reply actions

a better plan, if you want Dyson to develop:

Either start him 5 times a week in the bigs, and live with it until you can determine if he will amount to more than a bench player,

leave him in Omaha to do the same.

Seriously, they seemingly have already decided what he is – and pinch-hitting in the 9th against a good closer is MOST DECIDEDLY NOT what the seemingly already decided.

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:41 AM EDT up reply actions

yeah...dumb move...no doubt...

and with cain around…dyson has no place as a potential starter…so, use him as a defensive replacement/pr…thats what their plan is i believe…there’s no reasonable explanation for using him to PH…but whatever, it wouldnt have made a difference and we’re not playing for anything…so i dont care

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by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:42 AM EDT up reply actions

true, it doesn't really matter,

unless, of course, it reflects the potential for flawed logic to be used by Yost in the future, when perhaps it might matter

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:44 AM EDT up reply actions

if he's still doing shit like that when we're competitive...he's gone...

he hasnt made a habit of doing it…so its just a blip in my mind…i’ll forget about it soon…it doesnt change my opinion of him any more than hosmers errant throw changes my opinion of him as a player

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by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:45 AM EDT up reply actions

ned did mention the Hosmer throwing error, 2nd thing he said after the blocked ball comment

BUT

he said perhaps Hosmer was “pushing the issue a bit too much there”

So, in my opinion, he appeared to be coddling Hosmer and being too harsh on Pena. Hosmer’s decision to throw that ball was a hundred times worse than Pena not blocking what was CLEARLY a VERY wild pitch

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:50 AM EDT up reply actions

A mental error a manager makes...

…is a different animal than an error a player makes in a split-second. The former is worse because it has no physical dexterity component and ostensibly, came after ‘deliberation’, if that’s what Yost, in his NASCAR/Jeff Foxworthy lovin’-brain is doing.

If women only slept with nice guys...guys would only be nice. And they don't. And we're not.

by setupunchtag on Jun 28, 2011 8:17 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs

That also sucked.

by LaFLamme on Jun 28, 2011 1:28 AM EDT up reply actions

FIRST thing Ned mentions in the post game:

“we didn’t block a ball”

Really?

Don’t want to mention the two error inning that gifted a run?
Don’t want to mention giving up a leadoff double to a pitcher who was 1 for 22 on the season?
Don’t want to mention that, perhaps, I made a mistake pinch-hitting with Dyson in the 9th.

For a guy with the reputation of developing young players, Ned sure has a bad habit of throwing them under the bus after a loss.

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:32 AM EDT reply actions

the WILD pitch by Francis that Pena did not block

was so far off the Fox Trax that it looked like a joke.

by kansasjohn on Jun 28, 2011 1:34 AM EDT up reply actions

that's what had me shaking my head

Ned actually did make it sound like Pena’s fault, and not Francis’

Francis, to his credit, blamed himself for the WP in HIS post game interview.

Honestly, you would think Ned would not publicly blame the younger catcher, and instead let Francis take the blame (or better yet, not mention the play at all)

Personally, I think they simply don’t believe in Pena, and he will be gone as soon as they have a viable alternative on hand…

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:37 AM EDT up reply actions

we're considering 29 year old brayan pena a developing young player now?

he’s far from a guy that needs to be coddled

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:39 AM EDT up reply actions

he is young in terms of ML experience

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:41 AM EDT up reply actions

do you think theres a chance that he's an important part of the future?

or that he’s really going to develop anymore than he already has?

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:42 AM EDT up reply actions

good point - he is most likely a stop gap;

however, he didn’t deserve the comment tonight – and I DO have a problem with that.

Remember, I was pissed at Pena myself earlier in the year for that bonehead play in Texas; Ned defended him there, and throws him under the bus here. Hell, to me, I think he’s got the two instances backwards

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:47 AM EDT up reply actions

Do you think theres a chance that Francis is an important part of the Royals future?

Pena has a better chance than Francis.

Do these effectively hide my thunder?

by splitty on Jun 28, 2011 1:48 AM EDT up reply actions

personally, i think that it doesnt really matter either way...

i defended ned on his hosmer comments as well…if you cant take criticism, even occasionally misplaced, you’re not going to go very far as a professional athlete

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by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:49 AM EDT up reply actions

I agree

but the criticism has to be warranted. Can’t just be thrown at anyone. Francis past ball was Francis fault. Not Pena

Do these effectively hide my thunder?

by splitty on Jun 28, 2011 1:54 AM EDT up reply actions

notice how I rejected the easy joke here:

Of course he’s young. He’s a half decade or more younger than both Kendall and Treanor!

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:42 AM EDT up reply actions

nah...he's cuban...ask scott...there's zero chance that he's actually 29...

fuck, he may be older than kendall and treanor

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by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:43 AM EDT up reply actions

who'd he throw under the bus and how?

i didnt see the post game….

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by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:36 AM EDT up reply actions

Pena

his first comment on the post game, in describing the game in general, was “we didn’t block a ball in the dirt”

I shit you not – that’s what he said.

"We're gonna win with pitching and defense" General Manager Dayton Moore, circa winter 2009

"Where did all these Indians come from?" General George Armstrong Custer, circa summer 1876

by loyal2sdad on Jun 28, 2011 1:38 AM EDT up reply actions

Thanks for the update

In a morbid looking-in-the-coffin way, I wish I could see the postgame stuff. I never think to look for a link.

by LaFLamme on Jun 28, 2011 1:33 AM EDT reply actions

anyone watch weeds tonight?

anyone still watching weeds at all?…i think i missed the 2nd half of the last season

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:37 AM EDT reply actions

Nice writing OMD

I liked the concept. I liked the execution. Made my day that much better.

by KSinDC on Jun 28, 2011 1:39 AM EDT reply actions

Gracias.

Hating life as a Royals fan 365 days a year at Royalscentricity

by Old Man Duggan on Jun 28, 2011 1:47 AM EDT up reply actions

duggan...i thought you'd enjoy this...

The real R.A. Wagman (Not related to R.A. Dickey): Kevin – love the chats. Two part question. 1) For those of us who like to play scout, is it fair to say that the more process related we can watch the better, the more result oriented, the worse? 2) How would you compare sandals and flip-flops on the 20-80 scale? Bonus third question – how do you go about weighing low-level minor league performance in terms of the competition? In other words, a towering homerun hit off a fringe org guy – do you discount it much? Thanks for the entertainment.

Kevin Goldstein: 1. There is always a balance between WHAT a guy is doing and HOW he is doing it. The lower you go level wise, the more important the HOW becomes. 2. 20. I don’t trust any man who wears sandals or flip flops. 3. Very fun question. There are some discounts made due to park, opponent, whatever, it’s always tough. It’s more extreme in the draft, where, for example, you could go see Bubba Starling at his high school in Kansas, and you could see Starling hit a 78 mph fastball 425 feet, but what can you really learn from that?

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Jun 28, 2011 1:48 AM EDT reply actions