The Cleveland Guardians got beat 10-3 by the Kansas City Royals last night and fell flat right out of the gate largely due to starter Triston McKenzie enduring yet another rough outing.
McKenzie went just 2.1 innings and gave up five hits and five earned runs with three walks and three strikeouts, and manager Stephen Vogt got honest in the postgame press conference about McKenzie’s issue in the loss.
Vogt noted that McKenzie’s biggest issue was command, saying “I thought his stuff again looked pretty good, but pitching in tough counts and getting hit and then, you know, lack of command at times…really battled, really struggled.”
Stephen Vogt talks about Triston McKenzie's outing tonight and says his command is the biggest issue.
He also credits the team for playing as hard, and says they're still playing good ball even though tonight's results don't reflect that. #ForTheLand pic.twitter.com/uwtpGHuLCJ
— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) June 29, 2024
McKenzie hasn’t completed six innings since May 17th and has now finished up the month of June with a ghastly 9.33 ERA in five starts and has gone just 7.2 innings in his last three starts combined while giving up 12 earned runs over that span.
Control has been an issue of late for McKenzie and surrendered 15 walks over 18.1 innings in June, and he now leads the league with 49 walks on the season.
Vogt praised the team for once again playing hard and said that the Guardians are still playing good ball lately even if this game’s results didn’t reflect that.
It was the team’s third loss in a row and the lineup has produced just six runs during that span.
Tanner Bibee will attempt to stop the bleeding on Saturday and ensure that the team doesn’t drop this series to the Royals.
Kansas City is now seven games back in the division.
NEXT: Three Guardians Are Moving On To Phase 2 Of All-Star Game Voting
