SB Nation Kansas City - Offense Comes Alive For Cards 9-8 Victory Over Royals In Series Finalehttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48935/kc-fave.png2011-05-22T17:57:45-05:00http://kansascity.sbnation.com/rss/stream/19459372011-05-22T17:57:45-05:002011-05-22T17:57:45-05:00Offense Comes Alive For Cards 9-8 Victory Over Royals In Series Finale
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<p>The bats finally came alive in today’s series closer between the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/">Kansas City Royals</a>, with an extra-innings thriller that featured some impressive clutch hitting. In the end, it was the Cardinals who finished strong with two runs in the top of the 10th inning to take a 9-8 victory and steal the last two on the road at Kauffman Stadium.</p>
<p>In a series that had featured two shutouts thus far, both teams combined for 26 hits and 17 runs. The Cardinals held a 7-2 lead and seemed to be cruising to victory until the Royals came alive in the sixth on home runs from Jeff Francouer and <span>Wilson Betemit</span>. Ultimately, the Royals couldn’t overcome two St. Louis runs in extra innings.</p>
<p>On the Cardinals end, unlikely heroes came in the form of 2B <span>Allen Craig</span>, who hit his third home run on the year, and C <span>Yadier Molina</span>, who had 3 <span class="caps">RBI</span>. In a notable stat, Cards OF <span>Colby Rasmus</span> drew an incredible five walks. Full boxscore is found <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/mlb/events/73070/postgame" target="new">here</a>.</p>
<p>From here, the Royals head on the road this week to Baltimore for a three game set with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.camdenchat.com/">Orioles</a> followed by another road series in Texas against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Rangers</a>.</p>
https://kansascity.sbnation.com/kansas-city-royals/2011/5/22/2184763/offense-comes-alive-for-cards-9-8-victory-over-royals-in-series-finaleMatt Conner2011-05-22T06:43:34-05:002011-05-22T06:43:34-05:00Cardinals Outfielder Lance Berkman Could Return For Final Game In Series Against Royals
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<p>After missing the last three games due to a sprained wrist, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> outfielder <span>Lance Berkman</span> could return in time to face the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/">Kansas City Royals</a> in the final game of the I-70 series. Thus far, the series has been marked not by the hitting of <span>Albert Pujols</span>, <span>Eric Hosmer</span> or <span>Matt Holliday</span> but by strong pitching performances on both sides. The winner of tomorrow’s afternoon contest will take the series win overall.</p>
<p><span>Jaime Garcia</span> (5-0, 1.64) looks to extend the Cardinals current scoreless innings pitched streak that <span>Jake Westbrook</span> laid out last night in the Cardinals win, 3-0. The Royals counter with <a href="http://espn.go.com/mlb/player/_/id/29334/sean-o%27sullivan">Sean O’Sullivan</a> (2-3, 4.65) whose last two starts were problematic, yet he could continue a streak of solid starting pitching from the Royals that include a shutout from <span>Jeff Francis</span> and five shutout innings on Saturday from rookie <span>Nathan Adcock</span>.</p>
<p>Yet the addition of Berkman to a line-up that features last night’s offensive hero, Holliday, and Pujols certainly makes the battle more difficult for the Royals in addition to having their best starter on the mound. The Cards will come with everything they have to finish off the series with a win, but if the Royals can pull it out, it would provide significant momentum heading into a week where they’re on the road for six straight against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.camdenchat.com/">Baltimore Orioles</a> and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Texas Rangers</a>.</p>
https://kansascity.sbnation.com/kansas-city-royals/2011/5/22/2183559/cardinals-outfielder-lance-berkman-could-return-for-final-game-inMatt Conner2011-05-21T16:29:11-05:002011-05-21T16:29:11-05:00Matt Holliday, Cardinals Reverse Outcome In 3-0 Shutout Of Royals In Game Two
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<p>Just several hours after being shutout 3-0 by the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/">Kansas City Royals</a>, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> reversed the fortune at Kauffman Stadium this afternoon to even the I-70 series. <span>Jake Westbrook</span> anchored the Cardinals stellar pitching performance today and <span>Matt Holliday</span> provided more than enough offensive punch with a two-run shot off reliever <span>Blake Wood</span> late in the game.</p>
<p>The Royals solid starting pitching continued on the strength of rookie <span>Nathan Adcock</span>, making his debut after 16 innings in the Royals bullpen. Adcock had never started a game above High-A ball, but Ned Yost must have seen enough in the rookie to give him a chance and the response was strong. Adcock gave up 3 hits and 0 runs in 5 innings, but the Cardinals finally got to relievers Wood and <span>Tim Collins</span>.</p>
<p>You can find <span>full results here</span>. More on the Royals can also be found at <a href="http://www.royalsreview.com/" target="new">Royals Review.</a></p>
https://kansascity.sbnation.com/kansas-city-royals/2011/5/21/2183313/matt-holliday-cardinals-reverse-outcome-in-3-0-shutout-of-royals-inMatt Conner2011-05-21T11:54:41-05:002011-05-21T11:54:41-05:00Royals Nathan Adcock Looks To Best Cardinals Jake Westbrook In Game Two Of I-70 Series
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<p>After last night’s impressive shutout from <span>Jeff Francis</span> and company, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/">Kansas City Royals</a> look to take the I-70 series from the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> as an unlikely rookie matches up against a familiar foe. <span>Nathan Adcock</span>, a Rule V selection from the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bucsdugout.com/">Pittsburgh Pirates</a> makes his first career start this afternoon against <span>Jake Westbrook</span>, once a fixtures in the AL Central for the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.letsgotribe.com/">Cleveland Indians</a>.</p>
<p>Westbrook is coming off his best outing of a young season as he outdueled <span>Cliff Lee</span> and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/">Philadelphia Phillies</a> for an important win among National League powers. It’s a good sign given the miserable season Westbrook had put together thus far.</p>
<p>Adcock, meanwhile, has decent primary numbers out of the bullpen (2.08 <span class="caps">ERA</span>), but the peripherals point to some mediocre numbers. After all, Adcock has allowed 25 baserunners in 16 innings, including 2 home runs. He’s been very hittable so far, so the <span class="caps">ERA</span> isn’t a marker of how effective he’s been. Adcock’s minor league numbers look solid as a starter, but again, his highest level is High-A before this season.</p>
<p>Honestly, it’s surprising the Royals are sending out Adcock to the mound against a team with a formidable line-up like the Cardinals. The best guess is that Adcock doesn’t even last through the fourth inning, although that’s certainly not the hope. It’s just the reality of a team that has to keep a player on its major league roster in order not to lose him (Rule V rules), and then choosing to place him on the center stage. Those cues usually don’t work too well.</p>
https://kansascity.sbnation.com/kansas-city-royals/2011/5/21/2182963/royals-nathan-adcock-looks-to-best-cardinals-jake-westbrook-in-gameMatt Conner2011-05-20T22:21:31-05:002011-05-20T22:21:31-05:00Jeff Francis Leads Royals To 3-0 Victory Over The St Louis Cardinals
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<p>Home sweet home seemed to be the sentiment of the evening for <span>Jeff Francis</span>, as he finally picked up his first <a href="https://www.royalsreview.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Royals</a> victory Friday evening, taking on the <a href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">St. Louis Cardinals</a>. After pitching solely in the NL for the <a href="https://www.purplerow.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Colorado Rockies</a>, Francis moved on to Kansas City this season and was 0-5 so far, despite having some outings worthy of a win.</p>
<p>Francis tossed 7 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball, scattering six hits. He also struck out six, while walking just two. With the victory he improved to 1-5, lowering his ERA to 4.23</p>
<p>Chris Carpenter was dealing for the Cardinals on Friday evening as well, cruising through the first six innings before the Royals bottom of the order came through clutch in the seventh. After <span>Billy Butler</span> singled and <span>Wilson Betemit</span> doubled, <span>Brayan Pena</span> hit a sacrifice fly scoring Butler for the first run of the evening. <span>Alcides Escobar</span> then singled, scoring Betemit and knocking Carpenter from the game. Carpenter finished giving up three runs on nine hits as he fell to 1-4 with the loss. Carpenter had been charged with a third run after the Royals added one more later in the inning against reliever <span>Trever Miller</span>.</p>
<p><span>Aaron Crow</span> walked <span>Albert Pujols</span> and struck out <span>Matt Holliday</span> to end the eighth, and <span>Joakim Soria</span> looked dominant in the ninth, picking up his seventh save.</p>
<p>Best quote of the evening may have been Butler, who on the post game show said, "There was a lot of red out there, and I'm glad we could disappoint them tonight". That line was in reference to the many Cardinals fan who were in the stands.</p>
<p>Kansas City evens their record at 22-22, while the Cardinals fall to 26-20. The boxscore can be viewed <a target="_blank" href="http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2011_05_20_slnmlb_kcamlb_1&mode=box&c_id=kc">here</a>. The Royals will be looking for their third win a row Saturday afternoon as <span>Nathan Adcock</span> (1-0 2.16 ERA) will be starting his first game for Kansas City, facing <span>Jake Westbrook</span> (3-3 6.07).</p>
<p>Gametime tommorow is 1:10, televised on Fox Sports Kansas City.</p>
https://kansascity.sbnation.com/kansas-city-royals/2011/5/20/2182379/jeff-francis-leads-royals-to-3-0-victory-over-the-st-louis-cardinalsMatthew Hays2011-05-20T17:35:23-05:002011-05-20T17:35:23-05:00Kansas City Royals And St Louis Cardinals Share More Than Just A State
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<p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/">Royals</a> and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">Cardinals</a> have met just 60 times in regular season play with St. Louis holding a 34-26 lead in the all time series, of course the Cardinals have routinely been in the playoff hunt since interleague play began, while Kansas City has been in the hunt just once (2003) during that time period. At the same time Kansas City holds the true advantage, the 1985 World Series Championship.</p>
<p>We've all been there before, be it at school, at the workplace, talking with neighbors, sometimes even amongst our own families, the Royals and Cardinals rivalry is much like brothers fighting. Brothers that are fighting for the annual bragging rights in the state of Missouri. <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/2011/05/19/2888582/how-kansas-city-and-st-louis-compare.html" target="_blank">Sam Mellinger</a> at the Kansas City Star wrote a humorous piece of satire this morning providing everyone with his stark opinion of what makes Kansas City better.</p>
<p>The storybook also continues throughout many decades with connections between players such as Al Hrabosky, Dan Quisenberry, Vince Coleman, Gary Gaetti, <span>Mark Grudzielanek</span>, and of course manager Whitey Herzog. Even Fox Sports Kansas City's own Joel Goldberg was once an employee of the Cardinals. </p>
<p>Herzog may be the most interesting link between to two cities as he managed both teams. The Baseball Hall of Famer was the Royals skipper between 1975 and 1979, leading the Royals to three division titles during his time before heading across the state to St Louis, where he was manager from 1980-1990, advancing to three separate World Series, winning it all in 1982. </p>
https://kansascity.sbnation.com/kansas-city-royals/2011/5/20/2182069/kansas-city-royals-and-st-louis-cardinals-share-more-than-just-a-stateMatthew Hays2011-05-20T15:36:56-05:002011-05-20T15:36:56-05:00St. Louis Cardinals, Kansas City Royals Set To Kick Off I-70 Series
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<p>It's a series that finally looks even. Or at least, it's not as lopsided. Over the last several years, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/">Kansas City Royals</a> have fared quite differently in their respective leagues -- the Royals sitting as the laughingstock of the AL Central while the Cardinals are surprised when they're not heading to the playoffs in the National League. While the Cards are still in first place in the NL Central, the Royals are hovering around .500 and their heralded farm system is finally seeing the light of the day at the major league level.</p>
<p>The Cardinals have finished in first place in 5 of the last 10 seasons. Tony LaRussa has the team playing well despite injuries to <span>Matt Holliday</span> and a slow start from star first baseman <span>Albert Pujols</span>. The NL Central was supposed to be much more competitive this season with the arrival of former Royal Zach Greinke in Milwaukee and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.redreporter.com/">Reds</a> returning such a young core from last year's division winner.</p>
<p>The AL Central, meanwhile, is upside-down this year with the Royals sitting in third place so early in the year and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.letsgotribe.com/">Cleveland Indians</a> leading the division. The Royals have finished higher than fourth or fifth in the division only once since 1998, and that was a third place finish in 2003. Suffice to say, the addition of <span>Eric Hosmer</span> and <span>Danny Duffy</span> to a revitalized team has been very exciting for Royals fans.</p>
<p>Tonight's series opener also features two pitchers looking to turn around their fortunes in 2011. The Royals are sending starter <span>Jeff Francis</span> to the mound to kick things off. As we've previously discussed, Francis has to be frustrated with the lack of run support while he still searches for his first win on the season. The Cardinals counter with Chris Carpenter (1-3, 4.95), an ace pitcher who hasn't quite found his groove this season. Carpenter has been surprisingly hittable in 2011 after winning the Cy Young in 2009 and winning another 16 games last season. This year, Carpenters home run rate is his highest allowed in 8 seasons and his WHIP is the highest since 2002, the year before he arrived in St. Louis.</p>
https://kansascity.sbnation.com/2011/5/20/2335468/st-louis-cardinals-kansas-city-royals-set-to-kick-off-i-70-seriesMatt Conner