News
Twins (Black)burned by Royals in rout
Right-hander chased in second inning as KC pours it on
By Tyler Mason / MLB.com
08/12/09 1:38 AM ET
MINNEAPOLIS -- You'd have to look back to before the All-Star break -- July 10, to be exact -- to find the last time Twins starter Nick Blackburn recorded a win. One month and one day since his last victory, Blackburn continued his drought. On Tuesday against Kansas City, it took just one inning for things to fall apart for the righty as he and the Twins fell 14-6 to the last-place Royals. Blackburn lasted just 1 2/3 innings, his shortest outing of the year, as he gave up six runs -- four earned -- on six hits. "That wasn't much fun," Blackburn said. "It's getting kind of old going out there and not feeling like myself. Hopefully, we can get something figured out pretty soon." Minnesota's pitching problems didn't end with Blackburn, as the bullpen combined to give up eight more runs in relief as the Twins dropped the series opener in front of a Metrodome crowd of 32,121. "Not a good night pitching wise tonight," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. Blackburn threw 25 pitches in the first inning alone, with eight Royals batters coming to the plate in the opening frame. The Twins starter consistently fell behind hitters as he had trouble controlling his fastball. Blackburn's first-inning struggles were great enough to elicit a mound visit pitching coach Rick Anderson, something he rarely does that early with Blackburn on the hill. "That's not a good thing," Anderson said. "He's getting better at learning how to make adjustments. Today, he just battled himself." The scoring for Kansas City began when Billy Butler singled in Josh Anderson from second, and Miguel Olivo tripled with two outs down the first-base line to drive in Butler and Alberto Callapso. Olivo then scored on a ground-rule double to left by Alex Gordon to give the Royals an early four-run lead. "Blackburn had troubles," Royals manager Trey Hillman said. "I'm not sure what's going on, but that's not the same guy we've seen. He had trouble locating and had trouble getting the ball going downhill. I was glad to see we took advantage of it." The Twins got just one run back in the first, when Orlando Cabrera scored on a wild pitch by Royals starter Kyle Davies (4-8). Earlier in the inning, Cabrera singled to center to extend his career-high hit streak to 20 games. Things didn't get any better for Blackburn in the second, when Kansas City scored two more off the Twins starter. With the bases loaded and nobody out in the second, Butler grounded into a double-play, bringing home Mitch Maier from third. Mike Jacobs later singled in David DeJesus for a 6-1 Kansas City lead. The Royals would go on to score two more in the third and another in the fourth to climb to a 9-1 advantage. "When you get behind like that -- I think the first three numbers on the scoreboard looked like an area code -- that's not good," Gardenhire said. "Can't put area codes up there. 4-2-2. You're behind, and that's bad." Blackburn was coming off a losing effort in which he allowed just two runs in 6 1/3 innings against Cleveland in a 2-1 Minnesota loss. But before the start against the Indians, Blackburn had allowed a total of 17 runs on 31 hits in his three previous outings. "The one in Cleveland, he went in with a 1-1 game. We didn't score any runs for him. He ends up getting beat 2-1," Gardenhire said. "He pitched really well. He's had some good performances, some bad ones. He's had his share of games he could have won with a couple of pitches here and there." Blackburn's rough outing marked the fourth loss by a Twins starter in the team's last six contests, with Blackburn picking up two losses in that stretch. "I know I can get guys out. I know I can pitch at this level," Blackburn said. "It's just getting back to where I'm comfortable and where I should be." As shaky as Minnesota's starting pitching has been as of late, the bullpen hasn't been any steadier. That trend continued Tuesday, as Brian Duensing and Bobby Keppel each allowed three earned runs in relief of the starter Blackburn. Jesse Crain gave up two more runs in 1 2/3 innings of work. Jose Mijares relieved Crain in the eighth but walked in a run with two outs before getting out of the inning. There were a few bright spots offensively for the Twins. Joe Mauer went 3-for-4 to raise his average to .369. Delmon Young and Brendan Harris each hit solo homers, and Harris' blast marked his third hit of the night. Davies stymied the Twins hitters in five innings of work, giving up just one run on five hits while striking out six. It was Davies' first win since June 13 against Cincinnati. "I thought we were set up pretty good with Blackie going out today, starting the series out there," Gardenhire said. "It didn't work out too well. I don't think anybody has all the answers right now."Tyler Mason is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
