There goes the winning streak. The Royals fell flat last night against the Brewers, dropping a 7-2 decision before 18,000+ at the K.
Dave Bush captivated a hacktastic Royals team for 7.1 innings, allowing just 9 hits and 2 earned runs, against 8 strikeouts and no walks. On the other side, Bobby Keppel couldn't escape the third inning, failing in every facet of the game: control, homers, etc. Keppel's postgame quotes seem a strange blend of truthful evaluations of his game and excuse-making:
"The last hitter I faced was kind of indicative of how the game went for me," Keppel said. "It was a changeup and he hit a three-hopper that found the hole. If it is 2 feet to the left, it's a double play. That's how the game went. The home run was not a bad pitch. It was down. I'll take that first pitch to him all day." In his first two starts, Keppel gave up three runs in 14 2-3 innings. In his past three starts, he has allowed 12 runs in 10 2-3 innings.Does he understand that if he wasn't as bad as he looked last night, that he also wasn't as good as he looked before by the same logic?"Nothing is different," Keppel said. "I would say the percentages of the game kind of went against me today. I threw 64 pitches and 42 were for strikes. I was attacking the zone. Some balls were hit hard and other balls found holes. The first couple of games, they were at people. Today they found holes."
I'm not sure what to make of Keppel, really. Sometimes a harmless playerspeak non-quote is better. Something of the "I didn't have it today. The Brewers hit me hard. I've got to get better for the next start." And we could all move on. Quit whining Bobby, at least until you reach the esteemed Elarton-status, at which point we'll accept you calling out your teammates, complaining about run support and all the rest.
Today its Royal semi-ace Brandon Duckworth (0-1, 3.18 ERA, thats him in the picture) fresh off the scrap heap and into the heart of the Royal pitching staff. Duckworth is 0-1 with a 9.26 ERA in 11+ innings against the Brewers in his career, not that that means much, considering the years and player turnover in between.
The Brewers counter with Doug Davis (4-4, 4.69 ERA), another generic Brand X pitcher that should dominate the Royals.