Game 27 vs. Texas

In retroactive honor of Retro Night

Um, wow.

We got off to a heck of a start this afternoon. Luke Hochevar threw ten pitches for three straight outs, and we got to Derek Holland in the bottom of the inning with a double steal and a bases-clearing double.

Then the fourth turned out to be that most dreaded of Royals defensive events: The Luke Inning. A lead-off double. A single and an error by Billy Butler (who for some strange reason was playing first). A hit batter. And so on. The Rangers scored five before the pain finally stopped.

And the very next inning he went right back to work as if he hadn’t just given it up, getting the next six batters in a row.

For our part, usually when The Luke Inning puts us behind by a substantial margin, we just roll over and play dead for the rest of the game. Amazingly, this time we decided to fight. In the bottom of the fourth Jeff Francoeur smacked one over the wall, which caught us all completely by surprise because he’d been struggling at the plate and in the field lately. In the fifth Chris Getz led off with a double and later scored. Then in the sixth DH Brayan Pena (yeah, Ned Yost was feeling a little wacky with the line-up today) hit a two-run blast that put us back on top.

The Rangers scored again in the seventh, but that one was on the bullpen. They might have scored two, but Elvis Andrus tried to score from first on the same double that drove the run in, buying himself an 8-6-2 put-out that wasn’t even close.

Texas seriously threatened in the top of the ninth. Future crossword clue Mike Olt drew a lead-off walk, stole second and reached third on a bad throw by Salvador Perez. Then for some strange reason the call went out for the suicide squeeze. It’s consistent with the principle that you play for the lead on the road, not to mention the sort of thing that makes the manager look like a genius when it works. The down side is that it makes the manager look like an idiot when it doesn’t. And this time it didn’t.

We made it to scoring position but no farther in the bottom half, so off to extras we went. The Rangers loaded them up in the tenth but once again couldn’t cash in, thanks in no small part to an amazing line drive snag by Alcides Escobar.

Billy Butler walked to lead off the bottom half of the inning, and pinch runner Eric Hosmer practically made it to the bag before Butler did. Perez hit into what looked like a certain double play, but substitute shortstop Alberto Gonzalez bobbled the ball and both runners were safe. Up comes Francoeur, who similarly grounded into what would no doubt be an easy twin killing. But Olt flung the throw far wide of the bag at second, allowing Hosmer to score easily. The team and remaining fans went wild.

How many times have I used words such as “strange,” "wacky” and “bizarre” so far in this entry? As insane as the game was, it had nothing on Yost’s post-game press conference. Clearly in a high state of agitation, he announced that Yuniesky Betancourt had been complaining about not getting enough playing time, so the team had designated him for assignment. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a manager so candidly criticize a player, or in this case a former player. So at long last we’re rid of the guy, maybe this time for good.

Even Escobar’s post-game interview was charming.

The box score:

RANGERS (6) AT ROYALS (7)

RANGERS              AB  R  H BI  ROYALS               AB  R  H BI
Elvis Andrus          5  0  2  2  Jarrod Dyson          4  1  1  0  
 Alberto Gonzalez     0  0  0  0  Alcides Escobar       3  0  0  0  
Michael Young         5  0  2  1  Lorenzo Cain          3  1  1  0  
Josh Hamilton         5  1  1  0  Billy Butler          4  0  1  1  
Adrian Beltre         4  1  3  1  Salvador Perez        5  0  1  2  
Nelson Cruz           4  1  1  0  Jeff Francoeur        5  2  2  2  
David Murphy          5  1  0  0  Yuniesky Betancourt   4  0  0  0  
Mike Napoli           4  0  0  0  Brayan Pena           3  1  1  2  
Mitch Moreland        4  1  0  0  Chris Getz            4  1  1  0  
Mike Olt              2  1  0  1  *Eric Hosmer          0  1  0  0  
TOTALS               38  6  9  5  TOTALS               35  7  8  7

RANGERS                       000 500 100 0 -- 6  
ROYALS                        200 112 000 1 -- 7  

LOB--RANGERS 9, ROYALS 8. ERR--Alberto Gonzalez, Mike Olt,
Billy Butler, Alcides Escobar, Salvador Perez. 2B--Adrian
Beltre, Michael Young, Josh Hamilton, Chris Getz, Salvador
Perez. 3B--Elvis Andrus. HR--Jeff Francoeur, Brayan Pena.
HBP--Nelson Cruz. SACF--Mike Olt. SACB--Alcides Escobar,
Jarrod Dyson. SB--Mike Olt, Lorenzo Cain, Jarrod Dyson.

 RANGERS                         IP    H    R   ER   BB   SO   HR
Derek Holland                     6    8    6    6    2    7    2
Roy Oswalt                        2    0    0    0    0    4    0
Robbie Ross                       1    0    0    0    2    1    0
Michael Kirkman                   0    0    1    1    1    0    0
 ROYALS                     
Luke Hochevar                     6    4    5    5    1    4    0
Aaron Crow                    0 1-3    2    1    1    1    0    0
Tim Collins                   1 2-3    0    0    0    1    1    0
Greg Holland                      2    3    0    0    2    2    0

WP--Luke Hochevar. SO--Mike Napoli (3), Michael Young, Josh
Hamilton (2), Mike Olt, Jeff Francoeur, Yuniesky Betancourt,
Billy Butler, Chris Getz (2), Brayan Pena, Alcides Escobar
(2), Jarrod Dyson (2), Salvador Perez (2). BB--Mike Napoli,
Adrian Beltre, Mitch Moreland, Mike Olt (2), Billy Butler,
Brayan Pena, Alcides Escobar, Lorenzo Cain (2).

LOCATION: The K

CONDITION: Dry

WEATHER: Warm, Clear

Buck Seat: W- (another volleyball coach)
Guard: USN
Anthem: Off key

Umpires:
H - Barrett, Ted
1 - Hudson
2 - Baker
3 - Mr. Pine Tar

Time: 1:10
Temp: Very nice, somewhere in the 80s