Royals Notebook: Michael Wacha’s Bad Inning, Bobby Witt Jr.’s Hit Streak Ends

BALTIMORE — The Kansas City Royals came into Camden Yards on Friday night on a hot streak, winning nine of their last 10 games. However, Baltimore’s Dean Kremer grounded Kansas City’s high-flying offense quickly, setting the tone for what would be a dominating performance.

Kremer threw a season-high 7.0 innings, allowing a season-low three hits as the Orioles rode a seventh-inning outburst to a 3-0 win.

While the Royals had enough pitching and offense to come out in top in four of five games during a recent stretch where they averaged just 2.5 runs per game, Kremer’s dominance and Ryan O’Hearn’s sixth home run of the season were enough to gain a bit of revenge over Kansas City after the Royals swept the Orioles out of the American League Wild Card in Baltimore last season.

While Kremer was proving almost unhittable, Kansas City’s Michael Wacha was matching him through the first six innings. Wacha surrendered just three hits (all in the first two innings) and coerced the Orioles into a double play in each frame to end the threat.

In the seventh, however, Baltimore’s bats came alive.

Adley Rutschman opened the seventh with a double and Ryan O’Hearn followed with his sixth homer of the season to break a scoreless tie and push the Orioles to a 2-0 lead. Ryan Mountcastle followed that with a double to keep the home crowd roaring and push Wacha closer to the showers.

“1-0 fastball that got too much plate there,” Wacha said of the home run pitch to O’Hearn. “Inside-out swing and he was able to barrel it to left-center. Looking back, maybe execute a fastball a little bit better or go to a different pitch.”

While the seventh inning was the difference-maker, Royals manager Matt Quatraro praised Wacha for what he did on the mound.

“He was outstanding,” Quatraro said. “His command was great and his stuff looked really good. He pitched in, pitched out and moved the ball around really well. Getting into the seventh inning without allowing a run against that lineup is pretty impressive.”

Did Michael Massey Unlock Something?

So what did Kremer do against the Royals to keep them off-balance at the dish? Michael Massey, who went 2-for-4 and joined catcher Freddy Fermin (playing catcher in place of an injured Salvador Perez and who went 2-for-3) as the only Royals with hits on Friday, said it was about changing speeds and spotting pitches.

“He’s tough. He’s always tough,” Massey said. “He changes speeds and he has a fastball at the top of the zone that is tough to get to. His location makes him tough.”

Massey’s solid night at the plate gave him his first extra-base hit (a second-inning double) since doubling against the Orioles in Kansas City on April 6. He had also been in an overall slump, slashing just .164/.169/.164 in his last 20 games.

“I’m trying to be a little flatter through the zone,” Massey said. “When I went back and looked, I think the barrel angle in April was a little tipped and probably causing more of a loopy swing through the zone. I was missing some of those fastballs up, but I have to keep working and keep going.”

The Hit Streak for Bobby Witt Jr. is Over

While Massey is part of the key pieces of Kansas City’s support cast around Bobby Witt Jr., all eyes were on Witt on Friday night as he brought a career-high 22-game hitting streak into Baltimore.

However, an 0-for-4 evening with a pair of strikeouts ended the streak, tied for the sixth-longest in Kansas City history and the longest since Whit Merrifield’s franchise-record 31-game streak between September 10, 2018 and April 10, 2019.

Taylor Clarke Returns to Royals Bullpen

After not pitching in MLB last season, Taylor Clarke was called up from Triple-A on Friday and immediately was inserted into the game against the Orioles. He threw a clean inning that included a strikeout to complete a long road back to the Major League mound.

A solid relief piece for the Royals in 2022 (49.0 innings in 47 games posting a 4.04 ERA/3.30 FIP), Clarke struggled in 2023 for Kansas City, watching his numbers skyrocket to 5.95 ERA/5.07 FIP in 59.0 innings over 58 appearances.

He was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers before the 2024 campaign, but couldn’t overcome injuries and ineffectiveness before being designated for assignment on July 3. At the end of the 2024 season, he elected free agency and ended up back with the Royals.

Born and raised in Ashburn, Va., roughly 68 miles from Camden Yards, Clarke’s return to the mound for the Royals in Baltimore was special and celebrated with his high school baseball coach and his family in attendance to cheer him on.

“I still talk to him a lot. He texts me after every outing,” Clarke said. “To have his support throughout all of the years means a lot.”

Quatraro said he liked what he saw from Clarke in his first Royals outing of the season.

“He was very impressive,” Quatraro said. “I think I saw a couple of 96s (96 mph fastballs) and that slider looked really good. We know he has the good changeup and he was on the attack.”