KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Cardinals have epitomized in the past two days the missing offense in Major League Baseball. In two different cities, they have scored two runs in two games and were fortunate to win one of them.
After the Cardinals’ 1-0 win on Monday in St. Louis, the Royals rolled over the Cardinals, 7-1, Tuesday night despite starter Dakota Hudson’s generally solid outing.
Hudson held the Royals to two runs for six innings before he was lifted after a leadoff walk in the seventh and left-hander T.J. McFarland allowed that run to score and two of his own, with right-hander Jake Woodford contributing another two runs in a five-run frame.
The Cardinals haven’t scored on anything other than a home run since the sixth inning on Sunday. They have been held to two runs or fewer in three of their past four games by last-place teams in Arizona and Kansas City.
And you can bet newly recalled slugger Juan Yepez will be somewhere in Wednesday afternoon’s lineup.
Hudson, who had entered the game with 12 2/3 scoreless innings over his past two starts, gave up a second-inning homer to Bobby Witt Jr., who hit his first in the majors. The second Royals run off him scored in the fourth on the second of the double plays that shortstop Paul DeJong started.
Brad Keller gained the win with 6 1/3 scoreless innings although he must have felt he was a target in a shooting gallery in the first inning.
Tommy Edman, back in the lineup after resting a sore hip on Monday, sent a shot up the middle, which deflected off Keller’s glove for an infield hit. After Paul Goldschmidt struck out and Edman was thrown out stealing, ending his streak of successful steals at 16 (second in the majors to Goldschmidt’s 18), Tyler O’Neill rocked a liner at Keller. The right-hander nabbed this at belt-high for the final out.
Keller was bailed out by shortstop Nicky Lopez in the second. With Andrew Knizner at first with a walk, Harrison Bader slashed a grounder into the hole but Lopez dived to make the stop and righted himself to throw to second to force Knizner.
Hudson was pitching in front of a large group of family and friends from Leawood, Kan., the area in which his wife grew up. He breezed through the first five batters until Witt hit a 417-foot drive to left center with two out in the second.
The Royals had a chance for many more in the third when they loaded the bases with nobody out on singles by Michael A. Taylor, Lopez and Edward Olivares. But Hudson retired Andrew Benintendi on a fly to short left.
DeJong is hitting next to nothing lately but the shortstop still has played exemplary defense. His latest example was ranging into the hole for Salvador Perez’s grounder and throwing across his body for the force at second. Edman took it the rest of the way, easily doubling Perez at first and the Royals, who were hitting .188 with men in scoring position before the game, were futile this time, too.
The Cardinals weren’t too good with their first man in scoring position either. Nolan Arenado doubled past third with one out. But Albert Pujols flied to deep center and Knizner grounded out.
DeJong started another nifty double play in the Kansas City fourth when he went behind the bag for Witt’s grounder and backhanded a flip to Edman. But these were only the first and second outs of the inning and on this play, the Royals scored their second run.
Ryan O’Hearn opened with a single and Royals manager Mike Matheny dusted off the hit-and-run play with good bat handler Whit Merrifield and Merrifield plugged the hole vacated by Edman, who had gone to cover second.
Hudson had thrown 33 strikes out of 42 pitches through four. He had walked seven in those 12 2/3 innings over his previous two starts but passed no one through the first five innings.
The Royals had two more singles in the fifth, giving them eight hits for the night. But Perez stranded two more by popping up for the final out.
Hudson walked his first batter, Witt, with two out in the sixth. Rookie MJ Melendez, playing his first major league game, slapped a single to left to send Witt to third. But Hudson caught Taylor looking at a third strike.
Pujols walked to start the Cardinals’ seventh and, after Knizner popped up, Bader singled to right center. Pujols, who was not pinch run for at first, had to stop at second.
Matheny switched to right-hander Collin Snider to face DeJong. Corey Dickerson ran for Pujols at second but that move was rendered moot. The ever-sliding DeJong bounced into an inning-ending double play.
It got ugly in the Kansas City seventh after Hudson walked No. 9 hitter Lopez. McFarland, a double-play specialist, was summoned and he got the double—Olivares’ fourth hit of the night, chasing home Lopez. Benintendi’s single scored Olivares. A double by pinch hitter Hunter Dozier off Woodford set up another three runs driven in on Merrifield’s sacrifice fly, Witt’s single and Taylor’s single.
O'Neill singled to score Edman with the Cardinals' run in the eighth but Arenado, facing left-hander Amir Garrett, grounded hard into a double play.
The Cardinals had been 11-2 at Kauffman Stadium over the previous five seasons.
