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artoodeetoo · 02-07-2019, 12:38 PM

ROYALS TREK BACK TO HOUSTON FOR GAME 5
Kansas City attempts to go 3-0 in elimination games
By artoodeetoo
10/11/2019

Tonight, the Royals will try to pull off what seemed extremely unlikely just a few days ago -- needing three straight wins after falling into a two-loss hole in the ALDS against the Astros. They completed the easiest part, winning both home games -- one by a comfortable margin, and the other by the skin of their teeth in fourteen innings -- but the results were the same in the win-loss column.

Peter Alonso has had a rough series, but delivered the penultimate hit in the 14th -- a single laced down the right-field line that scored Billy Hamilton with the winning run. The other big performance in Wednesday night's game was that of the bullpen, which put together a regular-length's game worth of scoreless innings in relief of starter Jimmy Nelson.

Jorge Lopez threw two scoreless innings while fanning two, while Drew Smith topped him with three scoreless innings, fanning four in the process. He picked up the victory, an important one. It was a win eerily reminiscent of the wins that the Royals had in the 2014 and 2015 postseasons; utilizing a dominant bullpen performance, even if it hasn't been sharp all series long.

"I think these guys are just scratching the surface of how good they can be," said manager Ned Yost. "One thing with young teams like this is, they don't realize how good they are, or can be. They just go out and have a lot of fun playing the game. It reminds me more of the 2014 team than the 2015 team, because that 2015 squad was just so driven and business-like. These guys have a ton of fun playing, and it rubs off."

Houston manager A.J. Hinch faced some tough questions from the media after the loss on Friday, and much of it was deserved -- why go with Collin McHugh in Game 4 instead of Lance McCullers? Hinch's reasoning was understandable. McHugh has had regular and postseason success against Kansas City, and he didn't want to blow his hottest pitcher on the road in a tough environment in case they lost; but now the pressure's really on, as they face a Royals squad full of confidence heading back to Minute Maid Park.

"It was a risk that I was willing to take," he said. "I had a meeting with my staff about it; there was some disagreement, but said it was up to me. I went with Collin, who has done well in the past against this team in this stadium, and it didn't work. That's the game, sometimes."

Trevor Oaks will make the biggest start of his young career tonight, and he'll be going up against the likely AL Cy Young winner in McCullers with a trip to the ALCS against Boston on the line.

"I'm ready, this is why I play the game," he said. "Win or lose, we're going to leave it on the field."

02-07-2019, 12:38 PM	#286
artoodeetoo MVP OVR: 0 Join Date: Dec 2015	Re: Royal Rebuild [OOTP 19] ROYALS TREK BACK TO HOUSTON FOR GAME 5 Kansas City attempts to go 3-0 in elimination games By artoodeetoo 10/11/2019 Tonight, the Royals will try to pull off what seemed extremely unlikely just a few days ago -- needing three straight wins after falling into a two-loss hole in the ALDS against the Astros. They completed the easiest part, winning both home games -- one by a comfortable margin, and the other by the skin of their teeth in fourteen innings -- but the results were the same in the win-loss column. Peter Alonso has had a rough series, but delivered the penultimate hit in the 14th -- a single laced down the right-field line that scored Billy Hamilton with the winning run. The other big performance in Wednesday night's game was that of the bullpen, which put together a regular-length's game worth of scoreless innings in relief of starter Jimmy Nelson. Jorge Lopez threw two scoreless innings while fanning two, while Drew Smith topped him with three scoreless innings, fanning four in the process. He picked up the victory, an important one. It was a win eerily reminiscent of the wins that the Royals had in the 2014 and 2015 postseasons; utilizing a dominant bullpen performance, even if it hasn't been sharp all series long. "I think these guys are just scratching the surface of how good they can be," said manager Ned Yost. "One thing with young teams like this is, they don't realize how good they are, or can be. They just go out and have a lot of fun playing the game. It reminds me more of the 2014 team than the 2015 team, because that 2015 squad was just so driven and business-like. These guys have a ton of fun playing, and it rubs off." Houston manager A.J. Hinch faced some tough questions from the media after the loss on Friday, and much of it was deserved -- why go with Collin McHugh in Game 4 instead of Lance McCullers? Hinch's reasoning was understandable. McHugh has had regular and postseason success against Kansas City, and he didn't want to blow his hottest pitcher on the road in a tough environment in case they lost; but now the pressure's really on, as they face a Royals squad full of confidence heading back to Minute Maid Park. "It was a risk that I was willing to take," he said. "I had a meeting with my staff about it; there was some disagreement, but said it was up to me. I went with Collin, who has done well in the past against this team in this stadium, and it didn't work. That's the game, sometimes." Trevor Oaks will make the biggest start of his young career tonight, and he'll be going up against the likely AL Cy Young winner in McCullers with a trip to the ALCS against Boston on the line. "I'm ready, this is why I play the game," he said. "Win or lose, we're going to leave it on the field."