Against All Odds, Grace Can't Get Win May 21, 1998
by Jack Frodd
Who has been the most dominating pitcher for the Royals? Not Kirk Rueter,
not Randy Johnson, not Jose Mesa. No pitcher on the entire team has an ERA
as impressive as Mike Grace--a miniscule 1.62. And yet, he has only one win
so far this year, versus 4 losses. Mike Grace couldn't end the curse last
night when the Royals attempted to sweep the Cincinatti Bearcats at home.
In the 7th inning, the Royals had a more-than-comfortable 5-0 lead. Mike
Grace was tiring quicking with 109 pitches, so the skipper, Gary Carter,
spared him the extra innings by relieving him with Bob Peterman, so far one
of the most reliable backstops on the team.
But the rightie, Bob Peterman, couldn't get an effective pitch across the
plate. He ended up giving up a 2-run home run to Greg Vaughn, in addition
to 2 other runs. He left the mound without even finishing the inning, and
the lead was cut to 1 run. Grace still had the win, but Steve Cooke come up
in the 9th inning with little more success. On four hits, he gave up two
runs and the game was over.
Most of the year it's been a lack of hitting, but last night the relief
failed to provide support.
Mike Grace's line: 6 innings, 10 SO, 5 hits, 0 runs. And he didn't manage
to get a win.
The Rock Comes to Montreal
Tim "The Rock" Raines joined the team yesterday afternoon after being
traded in a 2-player deal that sent lefthanded prospect Steve Kline to the
Cincinatti Bearcats. The Bearcat fans will sorely miss the speed and
reliable veteran, but the team was seriously in need of improving the
quality of it's minor league pitching. Steve Kline has impressed the scouts
in the minors leagues, but he failed to show his stuff in his brief stints
in the majors.
In 13 games (including 2 starts) with the Montreal Royals, Steve Kline
posted a 6.35 ERA with a 0-3 record. In his 18 innings of work he gave up
only 1 home run, but batters posted a .290 average against him (.313
against lefties).
Tim Raines has been declared the #1 bench man for the Royals. He has
capable of playing several positions, including second and shortstop, and
still has a quick bat. The coaching staff is also hoping he'll be able to
teach some of the younger players, namely Curtis Goodwin and Pokey Reese.
Johnson Wins Big
The Big Unit is only 1 win behind the league lead, held by Clemens, Brown
and Appier. His 6-1 record is also the best on the staff. The Big Unit is
winning in a big way, despite playing on a sub-.500 team.
"I'm really happy playing for such a talented young staff," said Johnson.
"Really, any of the pitchers on the Royals could have 6 wins. I'm not
kidding. Mike Grace has just not been lucky and Kirk Rueter and Salomon
Torres are pros. Chances are, they will be competing with me all year."
