Royals 5, Diamondbacks 4
PHOENIX, Apr. 25 — Brady Singer tossed six one-run, five-hit innings to lead the Kansas City Royals past the Arizona Diamondbacks, 5–4, despite a valiant late comeback attempt. Scott Barlow pitched 1 2/3 scoreless relief innings to close the game for the Royals, who survived a big night from rookie Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll. Carroll was a home run short of the cycle, also scoring two runs and stealing two bases.
“He had that comeback two-seamer,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said of Singer. Lovullo added, “I feel like our left-handers got bullied in there a little bit. They started to get a little worried, and he started having an effective changeup off that two-seam fastball.”
Singer, who had an effective start against the Toronto Blue Jays April 3, had been lit up in his last three starts. On April 8 against the San Francisco Giants in a road game, he allowed five runs on eight hits across six innings. The Atlanta Braves shelled him on April 14, clubbing ten hits and four homers while scoring eight runs across five innings. His last start, against the Texas Rangers on April 19, saw him give up five runs on six hits while walking three over five innings. But against the Diamondbacks, he picked up where he left off on August 24, 2022, when he last faced them. In that game, he allowed one run on four hits in seven innings.
Royals Score Early, Diamondbacks Try to Play Catch-up
The Royals opened the scoring in the top of the first off Ryne Nelson. Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. led off with a single to left and advanced to third on a one-out single to left by catcher Salvador Perez. Left fielder Edward Olivares followed with a third single to left, plating Witt with the first run of the game. Nelson struck out second baseman Michael Massey and retired the side when designated hitter Franmil Reyes grounded into a 6–4 force play. In a recent trend with Diamondbacks starters, Nelson had a long first inning — 27 pitches, 18 strikes. Singer retired the Diamondbacks in order in the bottom of the first.
Kyle Isbel led off the second with double off the left-field wall. Two batters later, he tried to steal third, but Diamondbacks catcher Gabriel Moreno gunned him down. An infield single by third baseman Nicky Lopez kept the inning alive for the Royals, but it ended with a whimper on a fly to the second baseman in shallow right by Witt.
More Scoring
The Royals extended their lead in the top of the fourth. With two outs, right fielder Hunter Dozier doubled to center. He scored on a follow-up single to center by Lopez, making the score 2–0. The Diamondbacks slashed the lead in half in the bottom of the inning. Carroll led off with a deep drive high off the wall in center, slamming on the brakes at third for a triple. He scored when Walker followed with a grounder to second. Left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. doubled to the left-field corner but was left stranded. After Smith popped to second, Moreno smashed a low liner toward right, threatening to tie the game. However, a leaping Vinnie Pasquantino snatched it out of the air, ending the inning with the Royals leading, 2–1.
The Royals made it a 4–1 game in the top of the fifth on three straight one-out hits and a sacrifice fly. Perez started the rally with a single to left and advanced to third on a hustle double to shallow center by Olivares. Massey scored Perez with a single that also advanced Olivares to third. Reyes belted a deep drive to center, where Alek Thomas made a leaping catch at the wall. It robbed Reyes of a double but was still a sacrifice fly, as Olivares had no trouble scoring on the tagup.
Nelson left the game after five. He allowed four runs on eleven hits while walking none and striking out three. Lovullo said he was “in a little bit of a fistfight all day.” He added, “(Nelson) was battling the command of his secondary stuff. I thought he got into a good rhythm with his fastball. When he spotted up, I thought he was in charge of the at-bat.”
Diamondbacks Cut Lead but Royals Get Run Back
The Diamondbacks made it a 4–2 game in the bottom of the seventh off reliever and former Diamondback Taylor Clarke. But they missed an opportunity to make the game even closer. Moreno got it started with a one-out single to left. Consecutive walks by Alek Thomas and Geraldo Perdomo loaded the bases for Josh Rojas. He hit a sharp drive to right, but it was too close to Dozier to be anything other than a sacrifice fly for the second out. Ketel Marte followed with an inning-ending strikeout.
Another Royals run came in the top of the eighth, this time off left-handed reliever Anthony Misiewicz. With two outs, Isbel hit a low bouncer up the first-base line past a diving Christian Walker. It trickled all the way into the corner, allowing Isbel to hustle into third with a triple. He scored on a wild pitch to the next batter, Hunter Dozier, who ultimately walked. Lopez ended the frame by grounding into a 4–6 force play, but it wasn’t a routine play by any means. Marte dove, knocked it down, and shoveled it backhanded to second, retiring a sliding Dozier by a narrow margin.
Rally Attempt Falls Short
The Diamondbacks made it a 5–4 game in the bottom of the eighth off new pitcher Aroldis Chapman. Carroll led off with a medium bouncer to first, but Pasquantino — while not playing all that deep — was still deep enough for the fleet-footed Carroll to win the footrace to the bag. After Walker struck out, Gurriel stroked a sharp single to left. Carroll and Gurriel successfully executed a double steal as pinch-hitter Emmanuel Rivera batted. Rivera ultimately hit a bouncer up the middle. A diving Witt kept it from going into center. He sprung to his feet and threw wide to first, the ball bouncing into his own dugout. Both Carroll and Rivera scored on the play. Scott Barlow relieved Chapman and faced Moreno, who struck out. Thomas followed suit, stranding the tying run in scoring position.
Kevin Ginkel tossed a scoreless top of the ninth. Perdomo led off the bottom of the ninth against Barlow with a double to the gap in right-center. He advanced to third on a grounder to second by Rojas. That brought up Marte, who popped to short on a first-pitch slider for the second out. Carroll drew a walk and stole second, putting the tying and winning runs in scoring position for Walker. However, one pitch after the stolen base, Walker hit a rollover grounder for third for the final out.
Starters Must Pitch Deeper
This most recent cycle through the pitching rotation, every starter except Zac Gallen has thrown 22 or more pitches to get through the first inning. Gallen threw 16 pitches with 10 strikes on Friday. But since then, Merrill Kelly threw 26 on Saturday, Drey Jameson threw 43 on Sunday, and Tommy Henry threw 22 on Monday. This has contributed to the Diamondbacks starters’ struggles to pitch deep into games. Going into Tuesday night, they have averaged 4.9 innings per start. Only the Cincinnati Reds (4.8) and Colorado Rockies (4.70) are lower. “It’s taken its toll on the bullpen,” Lovullo said with a hint of frustration. “I want those starters to take responsibility and try to pitch deeper into the game.”
More on Singer
Lovullo, while not wanting to take away from Singer’s performance, was frustrated with the strike zone he received from plate umpire John Libka. “Salvi (Salvador Perez) was doing a good job of squaring up that ball on the inner half,” Lovullo recalled. “Looked like (Singer) was getting about two and a half inches off the plate. It happens. You got a good catcher with experience working the umpire, expanding that zone a little bit. It’s part of the game. But I think he was getting that two-seamer to cut back on the plate. He made some real good pitches. I don’t want to make it sound like he was getting pitches that were off the plate.”
Looking Ahead
Singer (2–2) earned the win, while Nelson (1–1) took the loss. Barlow notched his third save of the season — half of the Royals win total in the young season. The Royals (6–18) and Diamondbacks (13–12) close out their three-game series Wednesday afternoon. Royals left-hander Ryan Yarbrough (0–2, 7.62 ERA) will face Diamondbacks right-hander Zac Gallen (3–1, 2.59 ERA), who has an active scoreless inning streak of 21 2/3. First pitch will be at 12:40 pm Arizona Time.
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