After one inning, this one was looking pretty good for the Royals, but things went downhill quickly in the second as the Royals fell to the Cubs 6-4.
Daniel Lynch IV got his first true start since 2024 tonight against the Cubs. As predicted, the pregame show and broadcast booth both made copious references to Danny Duffy and Kris Bubic. The first inning went pretty well; Lynch struck out Pete Crow-Armstrong to start the game and then got Seiya Suzuki down 0-2. He finished the inning with just the one
strikeout and also allowed a walk but no runs.
Lynch got a quick two outs in the second with a flyout and another strikeout. But then he allowed a pair of singles and a walk to load the bases. Up came PCA again. This time Lynch got a soft roller to the right side. Jac Caglianone went for it even though it was way too far for him to get it, and that left him out of position for the throw from Massey. Lynch tried to cover first, but for the second time in a week, Michael Massey couldn’t get an accurate throw to the pitcher covering after Jac went too far to the right. Two runs scored.
Now, Jac needs to stay home on those balls, but all Royals first basemen range too far to the right. Massey needs to make a better throw, too. But even if everything had gone right, it was probably an infield single for PCA. This is the problem with a pitcher who doesn’t get strikeouts. And it’s a big part of why Lynch hasn’t pitched more than an innings this year. We’ll see if he does better the next time out – the Royals indicated they plan to stretch him out and leave him in the rotation for the rest of the year. If he continues pitching like tonight, we’ll have to see if they stick with that plan, but they don’t really have a better option unless Lucas Braun is closer to ready than they’ve indicated.
Anyway, Lynch was pulled for Jose Cuas. PCA stole second easily, and then Suzuki smacked a single through the right side to put two more runs on Lynch’s scorecard. His ERA went from 1.96 to 2.64. Cuas pitched another inning without giving up any more runs. Mason Black got something approaching a bulk role, going 5 innings and allowing 2 runs on 2 hits, 3 walks, and 2 strikeouts. Lucas Erceg got a scoreless ninth inning despite allowing a single and an HBP thanks to a double play and a foul popout.
As to the offense, the Royals started quickly there, too. Carter Jensen took a leadoff walk, advanced to third when Salvador Perez smoked a two-out single off of Gausman’s shin, and scored when Isaac Collins smacked a double into left-center. The next Royals hit wouldn’t come until Caglianone hit a grounder down the third-base line in the third. Their final hit off of Gausman was Jensen’s two-out solo shot in the fifth.
The Royals made it interesting in the eighth inning. Tyler Tolbert led off and hit it hard to left-center for a double. With one out, Bobby Witt Jr. smoked an RBI single to right field. Jac Caglianone hit a hustle double into the right-center gap to put runners at second and third with one out. Salvador Perez grounded home Bobby for the game’s final run.
Despite the close score, it never felt particularly close after the second inning until the bottom of the eighth and once the Royals failed to tie it, I think most of us assumed that was it. KC will get a chance to even the series tomorrow evening. Seth Lugo (4.41 ERA, 4.66 SIERA) will face off against the Cubs’ other newly acquired starter making his debut, Clay Holmes (2.39 ERA, 3.97 SIERA). The game will start at 6:15 PM Central. See you then.
