Nowhere to run

The Royals' 1-0 loss to the Red Sox on Saturday, dropping Zach Greinke's record to 1-6 with a 3.39 ERA, got me thinking. Now there are numerous things to think about after starting off a four game series by scoring 16 runs and winning the first two and then scoring a combined 1 run in the next two and taking two L's. But the most concerning to me is the well-publicized and well-documented lack of run support that Greinke is receiving. And trust me its on its way to historically bad in the baseball universe.

In 11 starts this year Greinke has given up 26 ER and the Royals are 2-9 in his starts. Greinke is average almost 7 innings per start, (6.27) that means that on average Greinke is leaving the game after seven innings having given up two ER and the Royals have a .180 winning % in those starts.

The Royals are averaging 2.97 runs per-Greinke start, by far the worst on the Royals (Luke Hochevar with a 5 ERA is receiving 5.81 runs per start) This stat figures how many runs the Royals have scored for Greinke in games that he's started, not how many runs the Royals have scored with Greinke in the game...which believe it or not is much worse. The Royals have twice been shutout when Greinke has been pitching, but four times have not scored a run while Greinke was still in the game.

The Royals have scored 33 runs in 11 Greinke starts as the 2.97 run support that I eluded to before shows. However the Royals have only scored 20 total runs, thats right 20 runs while Greinke was in the game, which was found to be 7 innings, that breaks down to being 1.8 runs. Now to be fair to the offense, sort of, the bullpen blew four of the leads that Greinke held after exiting the game. Which surprisingly enough means had the bullpen been steady (crazy, right?) then the Royals would be 6-5 in Greinke's starts. Which is above .500, but considering what Greinke has done is still quite awful.

Now some may say that the reason for the Royals 2nd-in-the league BA, that we are constantly reminded of, seems to go away in Greinke starts is due to the opposing team's Ace is also on the mound. And for now that's possibly the only reasonable explanation, but I'm not buying it. Sure, it's easier to hit off Barry Zito, than it is Tim Lincecum, but that doesn't mean you can't occasionally get three runs and chase The Freak after 6, which the 1.8 runs suggest the Royals are not anywhere close to achieving.

So, I'll take the skeptic approach and suggest that it has to do with the Royals approach at the plate whenever Greinke is toeing the rubber. Forget a numbers standpoint, the Royals just look like a different team batting. Their approach is sloppy, not working counts, allowing the starter to go on average 6.1 innings a game, which is only that low due to Rockies starter, Aaron Cook getting chased after 4.1 IP and 4 ER. Conveniently Greinke decided to have his worst start of the year and was chased after 3.1 IP and gave up 7 ER.

Perhaps their approach is so relaxed due to what they know they have in Greinke? They know that every time Greinke goes out there it's going to be a low scoring game, where a few big hits will win the game. So the hitters come to the plate with that mentality. The mentality of "I can go 1-5 today and work 10 total pitches, as long as that one hit is a three-run dinger." We've all seen how this approach has worked out. Instead they should be coming to the plate with the mentality of working the count, drawing a walk, or trying to make contact. You know, the approach that every Big League hitter should have.

It's nearly a third of the way through the season, and the Royals have established themselves as pretenders, which I think all Royals fans expected. So trade talk will loom with Jose Guillen and maybe a few other Royals. But the Royals biggest concern right now should be giving their Cy Young a little run-support before the 2007 Greinke makes an ugly return. Do I think that will happen? No. But it wouldn't hurt to ensure that it won't by taking a better approach at the plate and an overall different approach as a team whenever #23 is on the hill.

It could go a long way in 2012 when the Royals are ready to make a run at a World Series..or is it 2014 now, Dayton?

Chiefs Sign Thomas Jones

The Kansas City Chiefs signed running back Thomas Jones on Tuesday to a two-year deal worth $5 million, as reported by ESPN insider Adam Schefter.

I want to discuss briefly why I like this move and the implications it will have. Thomas Jones is your traditional grind-it-out running back who will bring a physicality to the Chiefs running game that it lost with the departure of Larry Johnson, without the pre-madonna attitude. Jones is 31 and is best days in the league are clearly behind him, but that being said, he's coming off his best season in the league, statistically, with the Jets.

Jones shouldn't expect to come in and put up those kind of numbers with the Chiefs next year due to the late season emergence of Jamaal Charles, who broke his own personal marks statistically. Jones should be able to come in and spell Charles and bring a legitimate 3rd down back to the offense. The biggest impact that Jones may have on Charles will be off the field. Jones is notorious for being a leader in the locker room and a great team player that other teammates respect. This is the type of role model that Chiefs fans should want for the young Charles who has the potential to be a very explosive top-tier back in the league.

To say that Jones is an upgrade from Larry Johnson, who the Chiefs released in the middle of last season, is an understatement. The only advice Johnson gave Charles was how to bitch and moan when you aren't getting enough carries, something Charles must not have taken his advice on. And Charles, shockingly, patiently waited for his opportunity and helped the team out in other ways (kick returns, recieving, etc.) and once he got his chance he ran with it quite literally and won the good graces of Chief nation, unlike Johnson.

Yes, Chiefs fans there is much to be excited about with the signing of Thomas Jones, and the on field aspect is just the surface. It takes players like Jones to take a squad full of young talent and usher it into a playoff team and eventually a championship team. And that's something that all Chiefs fans have been waiting a long time for.