Singer, Salvy secure series, sweep stalls in successive standoff

A doubleheader split but a series win.

The Royals and White Sox split a couple of low-scoring games in today’s doubleheader, with Kansas City winning 4-2 in the first game before losing 2-1 in the second.

The first inning was quiet for each team as batters tried to find their footing. Leading off the second, Jonathon Cannon finished a seven-pitch battle with Salvador Perez with a strikeout for the first of his big league career. He would soon follow with his first hits and run allowed. With two outs, Nelson Velázquez roped a double into the right-center gap. Adam Frazier followed by slapping a changeup into center field, easily scoring Velázquez and giving Kansas City a 1-0 lead.

The White Sox quickly got that back and then some. Eloy Jiménez led the inning off with a walk. Two batters later, Paul DeJong got a middle-middle sinker from Brady Singer on 2-0 and didn’t miss it, crushing it out to center field for a two-run homer. Singer walked Nicky Lopez with two outs but escaped the inning without further damage.

Singer managed to keep the Sox quiet after that inning, but he wasn’t especially sharp. He ran a lot of deep counts and struggled with his command, particularly down in the zone. When Singer missed below the zone, batters didn’t chase. His afternoon was finished after five innings and 93 pitches.

Cannon, meanwhile, was quite sharp in his major league debut, cruising through the third, fourth, and fifth innings with little trouble. He performed exactly as his prospect profile suggested — though he didn’t miss many bats, he attacked the zone, mixed his five pitches well, and got outs in play. Cannon was pulled after the fifth inning have thrown 79 pitches.

In the battle of the bullpens that ensued, Kansas City’s first opportunity to rally came against Jordan Leasure in the sixth. A Vinnie Pasquantino double and an MJ Melendez walk gave the Royals two baserunners with two outs, but Velázquez just missed a fastball middle-middle, flying out to the warning track to end the inning.

Their next chance came in the eighth, when Bobby Witt Jr. beat out an infield single (that would have been a 5-3 for just about anybody else) with one out and promptly stole second. After Pasquantino flew out, Perez played the hero, crushing a first-pitch fastball way over the fence in left-center to give Kansas City a 3-2 lead. Hunter Renfroe went yard in the ninth to give the Royals an insurance run on a dinger that could have been worth two had Garrett Hampson, in as a pinch-runner, not been picked off first base just before the homer.

Throughout all that, Kansas City’s bullpen held firm with Will Smith, Nick Anderson, John Schreiber, and James McArthur each pitching in a scoreless inning, combining for five strikeouts while allowing just two baserunners. The Royals emerged victorious from the first game 4-2.

Brady Singer: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 1 HR

Jonathon Cannon: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 0 HR

Salvador Perez: 1-4, HR, R, 2 RBI

Paul DeJong: 3-3, 2B, HR, R, 2 RBI, BB

Both teams missed out on scoring chances early in the second game. The Royals were unable to capitalize on two walks from Eric Fedde in the opening frame, while the Sox got DeJong to third base in the third but couldn’t bring him home. They broke through in the next inning when Dominic Fletcher singled home Andrew Vaughn, who had doubled to lead off the frame. From there, with runners on the corners and one out, Michael Wacha was able to bear down and strike out the next two batters to end the threat.

With Fedde cruising since the first inning, the Royals finally threatened again in the sixth when a Pasquantino double and a rare Perez walk gave them two baserunnerrs with two outs, but Melendez struck out to end the inning. Gavin Sheets led off the bottom of the inning with a homer to make it 2-0 Sox.

Kansas City finally broke through in the seventh after Nick Loftin singled to lead off the inning. He advanced to second on a groundout and to third on an errant pickoff throw before scoring on a groundout by Renfroe. Unfortunately, much like the rest of the game, the Royals failed to mount much of an offensive from there. Looking like a team hurrying to catch a flight, the lineup offered little resistance with just one baserunner after the seventh inning.

The Royals stand at 13-6 after the doubleheader. They will have tomorrow off before starting a three game series against the Baltimore Orioles in Kansas City this Friday.

Michael Wacha: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 HR

Erick Fedde: 5.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 0 HR

Vinnie Pasquantino: 1-2, 2B, 2 BB

Gavin Sheets: 1-3, HR, R, RBI, BB