Butler Comes A Single Short of the Cycle, Royals Win Big in Charm City

Tonight's game was one of those rare games that Royals fans never really needed to worry about anything.

Batting first on the road, Alex Gordon led the game off with a home run. Three at-bats and two base-runners later, Billy Butler hanged some dong of his own. They led 4 - 0 before the home-half of the first even kicked off. Butler doubled and tripled before striking out in his last two at-bats, failing to break the Royals' 22-year cycle-less streak by not managing a single. Every Royal but Salvador Perez and Chris Getz recorded hits, with Francoeur, Gordon, and Moustakas also adding doubles. When the onslaught had finished the Royals had eight runs on the board, and two separate Royals were a hit short of the cycle (Gordon needed a triple).

Will Smith did his part in limiting the damage. He finished seven innings with five strikeouts, three walks, six hits, and two earned runs allowed. It was far from dominant but effective nonetheless. Aaron Crow and Jeremy Jeffress worked the last two innings, each yielding a walk before getting out of their respective innings unscathed.

Seven of the Royals' runs came off the Taiwanese lefty Wei-Yin Chen in 4 2/3 innings.

Following the game, the Royals all gathered 'round the television and watched "The Bicycle Man" episode of Diff'rent Strokes, a team tradition whenever a Royal comes a hit short of the cycle. That Maggie Seaver's father would want to get to Arnold still shakes Chris Getz to his core every time he sees it.