Matheny: ‘Having a Plan and Executing It Are Two Different Things'
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After another loss on Tuesday night, the Kansas City Royals' losing streak sits at six games as their day off on Wednesday arrives.
Each of the club's past three games has started off with hope and optimism. On Sunday, Kansas City got out to a 6-0 lead against the Minnesota Twins before blowing that lead and losing by a final tally of 7-6. On Monday, the Royals struck for four runs in the top of the first inning but lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks by a final of 9-5. On Tuesday, Mike Matheny's bullpen blew a 6-3 lead in a game that ended in an 8-6 defeat.
Despite having three very winnable games in a row fueled by rare offensive mini-explosions, the Royals have found ways to drop all three. Their record is a putrid 14-28 on the year, and things don't show any signs of improving in a major way. After Tuesday's loss in the series finale to Arizona, Matheny addressed his pitching staff's immense struggles.
Apr 12, 2022; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals manager Mike Matheny (22) looks on from the dugout before a game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
"It's another tough one," Matheny said. "You get an opportunity to get back into it and you get a three-run lead, you get into those middle/late innings... those are ones we believe we should put away. Unfortunately, it kind of snowballed there in the sixth and turned into a big inning. It's a shame."
Starter Jonathan Heasley tossed five innings of five-strikeout, four-hit, three-run ball, but that didn't paint a complete picture of his outing. He walked a whopping six batters in the process, and he now has 13 walks issued in just three starts. Control has been very spotty for the 25-year-old despite that not being a glaring issue in the minor leagues (at least, not nearly to this extent). Heasley has avoided attacking the strike zone since being promoted from Triple-A Omaha, and things didn't get much better for the Royals on the pitching front once he handed the ball over to the bullpen.
In a third of an inning of work, flame-throwing Amir Garrett took 16 pitches to record that lone out. After striking out David Peralta and giving up a single to Jake McCarthy, Garrett walked Alek Thomas and pitching coach Cal Eldred switched to Taylor Clarke. Clarke started off by recording a strikeout but then fell apart by surrendering a home run to Jordan Luplow, a double to Daulton Varsho and another home run to Pavin Smith (who had one on Tuesday as well). Matheny touched on Clarke's struggles, specifically.
"Ball to the middle, with the home run," Matheny said. "Had a good idea of what he wanted to do, but having a plan and executing it are two different things — especially when you get into the pressure of the situation."
On Wednesday, the Royals are in Minneapolis and will be preparing for a four-game set against the Twins. This is a much-needed day of rest for them as they just wrapped up a 17-day stretch that featured 19 games played without time off. The bats, despite heating up, are undoubtedly a bit tired. The starters are beginning to show some wear and tear. The bullpen, which started off the 2022 campaign so well, has fallen apart. Heading into a new series, Matheny is counting on Kansas City to continue scoring runs until the pitching woes are resolved.
"I think they've done a nice job in both games of working counts, getting a little deeper and just putting pressure on offensively," Matheny said. "Our pitching has been in a spot where we can shut the door in those situations but right now, we're going to have to continue to put offense on until we get some things figured out — especially in the 'pen."
