April 12, 2016
Royals 3, Astros 2
W: Medlen (1-0) L: Fiers (0-1) S: Davis (3)
HR: Cain (2)
Unfortunately, “they” in the headline refers to the Royals.
KC took a 3-0 lead in the first when Fiers had trouble settling in: sharp single, sharp single, laser beam home run… boom. Roasted.
The bottom of the first held promise for the remainder of the game: Altuve and Springer, showing the way by putting men on first and second with nobody out. Just the way we plan it. The plan went awry, with Carlos somehow grounding into a double play, causing a small crisis of faith for this author. But a Rasmus double and a GreatWhite single made the game 3-2.
Yeah, look at the top of the article. It ended there.
Yes, there were chances… 9 LOB plus guys lost on the base paths (like Correa’s unfortunate DP when KC’s 2b dropped a liner) but nothing converted.
In the end, you can look at this one of two ways. HH saw the glass half empty:
Another game you have to win. When you look back in October, 2 game out, this one will hurt.
And yes, it’s tough to lose by 1 when you face a closer that can’t find the plate with the map.
Or, you can just say: The defending champs took a one run lead and turned it over to their shutdown bullpen, just the way they did all through the playoffs. Sometimes you just lose those games.
Let’s get back on the plus side Wednesday as… Scott Feldman faces Yordany Ventura. Oof.