DETROIT ¨C A similar storyline has followed the Royals into their third city on a long 10-game road trip and on the tail end of a 17-game stretch without an off-day.
Little offense and a lot of frustration.
Another quiet night from the bats led to the Royals¡¯ 6-1 series-opening loss to the Tigers at Comerica Park on Thursday night, Kansas City¡¯s fourth consecutive loss and sixth on this road trip so far.
¡°Definitely frustrated,¡± second baseman Michael Massey said. ¡°We come here to win every day, and that¡¯s the expectation we have as a team. Obviously, we¡¯re not doing that right now. It¡¯s been a tough road trip. But I¡¯m optimistic we can get this going. We got the guys in here.¡±
Here are four numbers that stand out with an offense searching for answers:
4
After Thursday¡¯s game, Kansas City has scored 2.95 runs per game, second worst in baseball ahead of the Rockies (2.89 runs per game). The Royals have scored four runs or fewer in 18 of their 20 games.
And they haven¡¯t scored more than four runs since April 4 against Baltimore.
The fact that Kansas City is still 8-12 speaks to how solid the pitching has been. But the Tigers jumped on starter Michael Lorenzen on Thursday with three runs in the third and tacked on late.
¡°Doesn¡¯t matter if we¡¯re scoring 10 runs or not,¡± Lorenzen said. ¡°We don¡¯t want to give up runs. We don¡¯t like giving up runs.¡±
.221
The Royals ranked second in the Majors with a .282 average in scoring situations in 2024. They got on base and came in clutch.
So far this year? Not so much.
After going 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position Thursday, the Royals are hitting .211 in scoring situations.
In the fourth inning on Thursday, they had the bases loaded with one out when Massey singled, Maikel Garcia walked and Cavan Biggio was hit by a pitch.
Drew Waters struck out on three pitches and Kyle Isbel flied out to end the threat.
¡°In those situations, [it¡¯s about] getting the right pitch,¡± Massey said. ¡°Obviously as an offense right now, we¡¯re probably not doing a great job of that. So just trying to focus on getting the right pitch, going back to being simple, and just using the middle of the field and starting to drive those runs in.¡±
89.5
That¡¯s the Royals¡¯ average exit velocity this year, and it¡¯s right around league average (12th best in MLB). They¡¯re hitting the ball hard, and their strikeout rate remains low (21.9% entering Thursday ranked ninth best). Their 19.4% line drive rate was also tied for 12th best.
But it¡¯s also worth noting that the Royals lead MLB in pulling the ball in the air at 24%, yet their 10 home runs are the fewest, and their .101 ISO (entering Thursday) was the worst.
Because it is so early in the season, it¡¯s hard to tell completely if the Royals are unlucky, although the difference between their slugging percentage (.308) and expected slugging percentage (.383) was -.075, second most in MLB. Their .254 BABIP was tied for 26th entering Thursday.
So there is some thought that the Royals¡¯ luck will turn, although by how much remains to be seen. That¡¯s why you hear hitters talk so much about the process rather than results.
¡°If you get caught up in outcomes individually and as a team, I think that¡¯s where you start hitting those peaks and valleys,¡± Massey said. ¡°Come to the park, get lost in the work, and you stay with the process. ¡ You just got to keep fighting and stay in it.¡±
20
That¡¯s the number of games the Royals have played.
It¡¯s by no means a big sample size relative to the whole year.
But it is big enough to think about how the Royals can find a spark at the plate.
¡°This is a game of routines,¡± manager Matt Quatraro said. ¡°It¡¯s a game of consistency. If there was something glaring that we thought we could do, I think we would do that. But I think we have to trust our guys. We believe in this team. These guys are all competitors. They¡¯re all working like crazy to get better, and at some point, the results are going to come.
¡°Everybody wants it yesterday. We do, too. But it hasn¡¯t happened yet.¡±
The schedule has come into play: Six of the Royals¡¯ first seven series have been against playoff teams from last year (Cleveland twice), and the other was against Minnesota, which was 82-80 last year.
But the Royals were one of those playoff teams last year, too, and they¡¯ll have to survive stretches like this to get there again.