 had just allowed a two-run single to Nicky Lopez that gave the Royals a 7-5 lead with one out in the fifth inning.When Francona emerged from the dugout, Bauer turned, took a couple steps and fired the ball over the 410-foot mark.Bauer, whose quirky pregame routine includes a lot of long toss, put that practice to use as he let fly. Shortstop Francisco Lindor incredulously watched while second baseman Mike Freeman flinched as Bauer wound up. Rookie center fielder Oscar Mercado had his back turned and was looking at the wall when he saw the ball land, and quickly spun around, trying to figure out what happened.As Francona reached the mound, he and Bauer appeared to exchange words. Francona pointed Bauer toward the dugout, then followed closely behind him. They both disappeared into the tunnel. They later emerged, separate but both fuming.Danny Duffy (5-5) picked up the win, though he was hardly stellar. He allowed five runs (four earned) on seven hits in six innings. Duffy had lost 10 straight decisions to the Indians, dating to May 6, 2015, the most consecutive starts and decisions lost by a Royals pitcher against any opponent.Trailing 5-3 coming into the inning, the Royals chased Bauer after Lopez's hit put KC ahead. Ryan O'Hearn, Cheslor Cuthbert and Meibrys Viloria also had RBIs in the inning.Almost a mirror image of Saturday, the Indians jumped on the Royals starter Sunday as well. Duffy gave up singles to Francisco Lindor and Mercado to start the first. Carlos Santana, back after a couple of days off with shoulder tightness, hit a drive that got up in the wind and carried into the Cleveland bullpen for a three-run homer. On Saturday, it was a grand slam before the first out was made.UP NEXTIndians: Following an off-day on Monday, RHP Shane Bieber (10-3, 3.44 ERA) will face RHP Justin Verlander (13-4, 2.86 ERA) as the Houston Astros start a three-game series in Cleveland. Bieber threw his second shutout of the season and his career, blanking the Blue Jays in his last outing.Royals: RHP Brad Keller (7-9, 3.95 ERA) will face Toronto's Thomas Pannone (2-4, 6.39 ERA) as the Blue Jays and Royals open a three-game series in Kansas City. Keller is riding a career-best four-game winning streak. He defeated the Atlanta Braves with seven shutout innings in his last outing.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Indians in position to sweep RoyalsFLMWhen Bubba Starling was taken by the Kansas City Royals in the first round (fifth overall) in the 2011 MLB Draft, the local product carried great expectations.It took eight years for him to finally make the major league roster, and he's making sure he's taking advantage of the opportunity, as the Royals enter Sunday's finale against the Cleveland Indians.Starling hit safely in 11 of his first 12 games in MLB for a .319 average. It was his offense that kept him from progressing quickly through the minors. In his first seven minor league seasons, he played in 622 games. He hit only .236, never hitting higher than .269 when appearing in more than 22 games in a season. But in 72 games in 2019, he hit .310, with seven home runs and 31 RBIs.His defense was always there. But few knew how good he was in center field, because his offensive numbers were so pedestrian."That's the Bubba I remember coming up through the minor leagues," Friday's starting pitcher Jakob Junis said. "One of the best center fielders I ever played with." Starling made a few stellar plays in Friday's game. He raced to the wall in right center, robbing Cleveland's Jason Kipnis of extra bases. He also made a couple of plays coming in on line drives. After one of those, he threw out speedy Francisco Lindor trying to tag from third. He seems to make a defensive highlight every night."The throw to throw the runner out at the plate was phenomenal," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "He made a great play in the gap, taking charge and running that ball down. That's kind of what we expect out of Bubba. From the minute he was drafted, he's been a very athletic player, and he uses that athleticism to provide plus defense in center field." The Royals will need great plays from Starling on Sunday after a 9-1 loss Saturday night to avoid a four-game sweep by the Indians. Cleveland will send Trevor Bauer (9-7, 3.49 ERA) to the mound to face Danny Duffy (4-5, 4.32 ERA) of Kansas City.Bauer is 2-0 with a 4.26 ERA in three starts against Kansas City in 2019. He'll be making his 16th career start against the Royals. He owns a 5-4 career mark against KC with a 3.18 ERA.Duffy is 2-11 with a 5.44 career ERA against the Indians. He's lost 10 straight decisions to Cleveland, dating back to May 6, 2015, the most consecutive starts and decisions lost by a Royals pitcher against any opponent. He's faced the Indians only once this season, a 4-0 loss July 3.Starling is one of nine Royals to make his major league debut this season. With the Royals near the bottom of the American League standings, the club has taken a future-looking posture for the rest of the 2019 season."This is more of the team we envisioned going forward with," Yost said. "It was time to start moving forward with the guys we envisioned." The Indians are in the thick of the pennant race, so they don't have the same volume of youth. But they've had to rely on young pitchers with front-line pitchers Corey Kluber, Danny Salazar and Dan Otero battling injuries. Adam Plutko, Shane Bieber and Zach Plesac have combined to go 18-8 with a 3.66 ERA in 41 starts.Mike Freeman, who made his major league debut in April, is hitting .270 with three home runs and 15 RBIs. Oscar Mercado, who debuted in May, is hitting .296 and playing stellar center field."We know Freeman's going to play the game," Cleveland manager Terry Francona said. "Even if we need him to bunt and not be a typical three-hole hitter. He knows how to play the game and give you a good at-bat. He's been a really, really good addition for us.--Field Level Media
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