Baseball, it makes no sense. Somehow the Angels offensive ineptitude extended so far and deep that they got two-hit over six innings by Jeremy Guthrie. This is the same Jeremy Guthrie who might literally be the worst starting pitcher in all of baseball this year. He hasn’t had a game even close to this good all season, sure enough, he tamed the Angel bats with no problem.
So once Kansas City took the lead in the bottom of the sixth, it seemed that a loss was inevitable, what with Kansas City’s super elite bullpen. After they extended the lead in the seventh, it didn’t even feel like the next two innings were really necessary.
Oh, but they were.
Because baseball makes no sense, the Halos inexplicably scored two runs off Wade Davis, arguably the best reliever alive right now. He’d allowed three runs total this entire season entering the game. Alas, those insurance runs that Cory Rasmus coughed up in the seventh loomed large now as there was surely no way lightning would strike twice and allow the Halos to score more runs against top closer Greg Holland.
Once again, baseball made no sense and the Angels not only scored off Holland, they scored FOUR runs without Holland recording a single out. It was a rally sparked by David DeJesus(!), Carlos Perez drawing a walk(!!) and C.J. Cron going the other way with a pitch(!!!). There was even a sac bunt attempt that turned into a hit(!!!!!!!!!!!!!).
The Angels, after some bullpen drama of their own, won the game. They won a game against a Royals team that they seemingly didn’t know how to beat and they won it in a way that makes no goddamn sense.
Angels 7, Royals 6
Run Expectancy Rundown
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Mike Trout and Kole Calhoun led the comeback charge but most of the team chipped in. We even got the interesting defensive alignment in the ninth inning that had Kole Calhoun playing first, Albert Pujols playing third and Conor Gillaspie playing second. Kole made a nice little play at first, but let’s not resort to this arrangement again if we can help it.
Starting Pitcher Scores
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It was another “meh” start for Garrett Richards. Once again, he generated a lot of weak contact, but KC soft linered him to death. I still can’t believe the Angels only got one run and two hits of Guthrie. Before you go calling this comeback a turning point for the team, just remember that they couldn’t touch Guthrie for six innings to make the comeback possible.
Bullpen Battle
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Cory Rasmus struggled mightily, perhaps from not being well-rested enough after a long outing two days ago. That might also explain why Huston Street nearly blew his save opportunity. Ironically, the Royal reliever that actually avoided any harm was old friend Ryan Madson. Their two superstar relievers were the ones that got bombed.
Game Flow
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The Angels should have lost this game. By the time Rasmus finished dousing the mound in gasoline, they had just a 2% win expectancy. Somehow that was all they needed.
Halo Hero
He started the rally against David and finished off the rally against Holland. What more do you want?
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