The Kansas City Royals and the Seattle Mariners played for a series win on Sept. 19. Royals pitcher Jackson Kowar took the mound, hoping to build off a solid six-inning, two-earned run outing on Sept. 1. Unfortunately for Kowar and Kansas City, Sunday was more of the same.
Kowar turned in a four-inning, five-run effort that saw him walk three runners while striking out three. Sunday's game saw his 2021 ERA balloon to 11.45, allowing 28 runs in 22 innings pitched.
“The walks again killed me early,” Kowar said. “Anything I got beat on was just center cut. So it really all boiled down to command. Not locating pitches, either in the zone at all or when they were in the zone, catching too much of the plate to a couple of guys. Frustrating start again.”
Kowar is 0-4 in 2021, one of two winless pitchers of the pitching-centric 2018 draft class. Excitement was high for Kowar, as his Triple-A stats suggest a quality prospect. His 9-4 record, 3.46 ERA and 12.8 K/9 show that Kowar is not without talent, but he has yet to put it together in Kansas City.
“Sometimes, too, it’s still adrenaline, it’s still just the excitement of being on a Major League mound,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “That’s still part of the equation here. That’s not something you can completely ignore. He’s trying to work through it, and he’ll find it. Just need to find it sooner.”
The Mariners had a young pitcher of their own Sunday. 2018 14th overall pick Logan Gilbert baffled Royals batters, pitching seven innings and allowing one run off three hits. Gilbert has been a bright spot for the Mariners in 2021, despite having a 2% chance at the playoffs, according to PlayoffStatus.
Second baseman Whit Merrifield scored the Royals' first and only run off shortstop Nick Lopez's RBI single in the bottom of the sixth inning. Merrifield, Lopez and center fielder Michael A. Taylor were the only Royals to record a hit Sunday. Catcher Salvador Perez went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts while firmly in the race for the MLB home run and RBI lead.
Taylor continued his late-season improvement, notching his 11th outfield assist in 2021. He currently ranks fifth in the AL for outfield assists.
Currently at 67-82, the Royals are mathematically eliminated from achieving a winning record, much less making the playoffs. With 13 games left in the season, the Royals travel to Cleveland to start a four-game series against the Indians. Both teams will treat fans to a Monday doubleheader, with the first game starting at 4:10 p.m. EST.
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