On the road, or even at home for that matter, the Royals have a hard time putting their offense, defense, and pitching together to get a win. Sometimes, one will show up. Maybe, two will show up. Almost never will all three show up. In Monday’s 4-1 loss to the Mariners, it was the offense that failed to travel with the team to Seattle.
Starter Mike Wood (3-1) did his part in trying to stay unbeaten on the year. He held the Mariners to just two runs on six hits in 5 1/3 innings. If only the Royals could’ve mustered up more than four hits in the game, things might’ve been different.
David DeJesus, Shane Costa, and Matt Stairs were the only Royals to get a hit in the game. Stairs had half of the team total. Kansas City struck out 10 times and left 10 runners on base in the game. Most of the Royals regulars sat out the game and it showed. The highest batting average of those who played for Kansas City Monday was .266. Third baseman Mark Teahen finished the game batting .191.
Wood was making just his second start of the season. He was put into the rotation after Denny Bautista struggled and was moved to the bullpen. Wood left the game with two runners on and the game tied 0-0. Reliever Jimmy Gobble allowed those runs to score on a two-run single to Raul Ibanez.
The Royals are happy to finish a 10-game road trip that saw them win more games (4) than they did on the road all year beforehand. Kansas City begins a six-game home stand against Texas tonight.
