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Royals drop game 7 - 5, losing Escobar in Cleveland

Eric Hosmer two-run dong isn't enough. Late rally falls short as Royals drop to second in the Central.

By Josh Duggan
A scare
A scare
Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Yordano Ventura's lifelong fight against forces advancing the cause of racism will have to live to fight another day.

Despite being spotted a lead on two separate equations, Ventura allowed Cleveland to tie the game up at four runs apiece with the second of three consecutive one-out doubles before handing the ball off to Franklin Morales. Michael Bourn followed Roberto Perez and Lonnie Chisenhall before him with a double of his own that barely got past a leaping Eric Hosmer up the line, skittering into the corner in right, plating the go-ahead run. Morales followed with a wild pitch that advanced Bourn to third before Jason Kipnis grounded to first softly enough to plate Bourn before making the second out of the inning.

The Royals started the scoring off early, getting to Cleveland starter Danny Salazar in the first with singles from Alcides Escobar and Mike Moustakas to kick things off before Kendrys Morales--clearly Salazar doesn't know to avoid the Cubanoid--drove them in with a two-out single.

In the bottom of the third, the Racists took the lead after Jason Kipnis followed no-out singles from Roberto Perez and Michael Bourn with a pretty massive dong hanging, his first since July 31st of last year. That put the Racists up 3 - 2.

The Royals suffered a scare in the top of the fifth when Alcides Escobar took a Danny Salazar fastball in the head (more on that here). The 94-MPH offering from Salazar appeared to have glanced off the ear flap on Escobar's helmet before making contact with the left side of his face. After a few worrisome minutes in which Salazar seemed to be praying, horrified on the mound, Escobar made his way off the field with the training staff beside him.

In the sixth, Kansas City seized the lead from Cleveland thanks to a whopping two-run hung dong from Eric Hosmer, a 94-MPH fastball that he throttled into the bleachers over the 19' in left-center field.

Sadly the Royals' 4 - 3 lead wouldn't stand for long, as the bottom of the sixth, which was described above ripped defeat from the claws of victory. Roberto Perez added a solo home run off of Ryan Madson in the eighth inning to pad the Racists' lead at 7 - 4.

Facing Cody Allen, who must have nightmares about him, Alex Gordon hit a flare to shallow right center. Michael Bourn attempted to snare the ball in a diving stab at it, but the fly narrowly escaped being caught and then managed a similar Houdini act when Brandon Moss went to field the ball off the grass only to watch it go by his glove. Alex Gordon strode into third standing up with a double and a one-base error. Salvador Perez struck out, but Omar Infante stroked a one-out single into shallow right, driving in the Royals' fifth run, bringing the tying run to the plate. After Paulo Orlando flew out to left, Roberto Perez gave Infante the gift of a passed ball, moving him into scoring position in one out remaining. Christian Colon worked the count full, but on the sixth pitch of what would end up being the final at-bat of the evening, Escobar's flied out meekly to center field.

The bulk of the Racists' offensive attack came from Perez, Bourn, and Kipnis with the two, three, and five hitters for Cleveland failing to reach base safely once making sure to maroon Carlos Santana each of the three times he walked. The Royals didn't have trouble reaching base necessarily, but only Moustakas and Escobar reached more than once, and Hosmer and Gordon accounted for the only two extra-base hits.

Neither starting pitcher was especially sharp. Salazar struck out seven Royals, with Alex Gordon accounting for three of those Ks. He walked none, but four of the Royals' five runs were charged to him in just six innings of work. Ventura was undone by his inability to limit the free passes, walking four in addition to the six hits allowed. The mercurial Royals ace only struck out one tonight, en route to a short, 5.1-inning start in which he was responsible for five earned runs.

Whether or not a victory over the Royals was enough to prevent the Indians rumored move to Halifax is yet to be determined.

The Royals will play host to the division-leading Detroit Tigers for a four-game series starting Thursday.

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