Chris Stratton believed he was out of the inning. The Royals’ infield believed it had just completed a crucial double play. The Royals’ dugout was also convinced.
However, when a replay review determined Tommy Pham was safe at first base rather than second base on a double play, the Cardinals found the key hit against Stratton, handing the Royals an eventual 8-5 series-opening loss at Kauffman Stadium on Friday night.
With a one-run advantage in the eighth inning, Royals lefty Will Smith put two men on base before manager Matt Quatraro turned to Stratton with one out to face right-handed hitter Pham.
While Stratton, who had a 4.40 ERA before Friday, has not been a high-leverage reliever for Quatraro in recent years, his 50.4% ground-ball percentage was a consideration in putting him in for a double play.
“We’re about a centimeter away from going to the ninth inning with a lead,” Quatraro told reporters. “Stratton got a ground ball, and we made a wonderful double play. If [first-base umpire Roberto Ortiz] calls him out, it will be the opposite way.”
Hunter Harvey, the Royals’ high-leverage reliever acquired from the Nationals last month, was also unavailable, according to postgame reports. The right-hander has been battling with back pain for the second time since joining the Royals, and Quatraro has been avoiding him.
In theory, the Royals could have turned to Harvey in the eighth inning after using Lucas Erceg, the Royals’ second Trade Deadline acquisition, in the seventh against the Cardinals’ top order.
That was the most leveraged situation in the game thus far, yet Erceg pitched a shutout inning despite allowing a double.
“It gives us a chance to continue to add on, if possible, in the seventh and eighth prior to the top of the order coming up again,” Quatraro said of deploying Erceg in the seventh.
According to Quatraro, the idea following Erceg was to turn to Smith in the eighth inning and Kris Bubic in the ninth for a save opportunity. However, Smith, who entered Friday with a 1.52 ERA since April 21 and a.190 batting average against lefties, gave a leadoff double to Brendan Donovan.
Donovan advanced to third on Paul Goldschmidt’s groundout, then Smith walked pinch-hitter Pedro Pagés on four pitches, two of which appeared to be in the strike zone.
The only concern was Pham’s 105 mph ground ball, which third baseman Maikel Garcia kept in front of but bobbled slightly. That kept Donovan on third base, but Michael Massey’s throw from second to first was a moment or two late.
“He hit a hard groundball,” Garcia explained. “Just trying to get the ball in front of me. Try to hold the guy on third and achieve a double play. I believe we got it, but they said he was safe.
Following a lengthy replay review, Victor Scott II hit a two-run, go-ahead double off Stratton’s in-zone changeup. Angel Zerpa, a lefty, came in for the ninth inning and allowed two more runs.
The Royals bullpen’s 4.28 ERA is currently the sixth-worst in MLB, and they were charged with getting 14 outs on Friday after starter Michael Lorenzen gave up three runs and 88 pitches in 4 1/3 innings. The club attempted to upgrade the bullpen at the Trade Deadline due to its problems, and Erceg has not allowed a run since joining Kansas City.
Sam Long has earned higher-leverage opportunities and allowed one run in 1 2/3 innings on Friday, helping to close the distance between Lorenzen and Erceg. With John Schreiber on the injured list and Harvey out due to back pain, Long, Erceg, and Bubic are the Royals’ three most trusted relievers, so someone had to step up for the eighth inning.
Smith has recently worked his way back into that circle, but the Royals were unable to execute on Friday.
“I was disappointed in myself tonight, not being able to come through for the guys,” he remarked. “As a reliever, keeping the runners you inherit off the board is the greatest feeling in the world. The fact that I gave away Will’s runners and we ended up losing the game is simply overwhelming. Disappointing.”
