Twins lose to Royals after decision to remove pitcher Bailey Ober backfires

KANSAS CITY, MO. – Bailey Ober surrendered one hit through seven scoreless innings against the Kansas City Royals, and manager Rocco Baldelli hit Ober with an early hook.

As the Twins attempt to stop their free fall, it was a pitching decision that backfired into a stunning 4-2 loss Saturday at Kauffman Stadium. Jhoan Duran entered with a two-run lead in the eighth inning — after Ober retired 15 consecutive batters — and he gave up three runs.

“We have a two-run lead in the eighth inning with our best guys, who are rested and ready to go,” Baldelli said. “I feel good about that. I go out there very confidently bringing in Duran and then hopefully [Griffin] Jax into the game.”

Baldelli opted for Duran in front of Jax because of the lineup matchups. Duran hit a batter and surrendered two singles, including an RBI hit to Kyle Isbel, who ended a 0-for-15 slump. With two runners on base, one out and the top of the Royals lineup due up, Baldelli called for Jax out of the bullpen and the Twins’ most effective reliever was unable to rescue the club.

The Royals tied the game when Tommy Pham hit a slow chopper to the left side of the infield, and shortstop Brooks Lee tried to make a barehanded play. Lee’s off-balance throw bounced past first baseman Kyle Farmer for an error, allowing pinch-runner Dairon Blanco to score the tying run from second base.

Bobby Witt Jr. followed with a go-ahead RBI single off Jax, a bloop hit to center on an outside slider. Witt flipped his bat as he ran up the first-base line. The Twins slipped 1½ games behind the Royals for the second wild-card spot, and their long odds of competing with Cleveland for a division title are evaporating.

“Once you get into the eighth and ninth innings of games and you have exceptional relievers that you can bring into the game, that’s their job,” Baldelli said. “That’s their job to go out there and do it — and they do it for us a lot.”

Duran, who has a 9.34 ERA when pitching in the eighth inning this year, added: “I’m ready for whatever inning they want to put me in. I felt good today. I don’t know what happened.”

The Twins took a 2-0 lead in the third inning after an RBI triple from Jose Miranda and an RBI double from Matt Wallner, ending a 17-inning scoreless streak. They had one hit over the final six innings.

The only hit Ober allowed was an infield single in the third inning. His pitch count was manageable at 83 pitches. His velocity was a little lower in the seventh inning, but he gave up virtually no hard contact.

“After the seventh, I’m thinking maybe I can finish this thing out just because of the low pitch count, and I was on a roll,” said Ober, who threw his first career complete game in June. “I felt like I was in control the whole day. Obviously, the competitor in me wants to keep pitching the whole game. I always want to be out there and throw, but I’m totally comfortable with those guys shutting the door. It just didn’t happen today.”

Ober had extra motivation Saturday. The last time he pitched at Kauffman Stadium, he made the shortest start of his career, recording only four outs while giving up eight runs and nine hits. The Royals scored six more runs against him in May.

That’s why he was smiling when he recorded the final out of the sixth inning, fielding a comebacker and making a bullet throw to Farmer at first base. Ober, perhaps realizing he threw it a little harder than he needed, slapped hands with Farmer.

“I was wanting to throw against these guys,” Ober said. “The last time we were throwing against them, I got pushed back a day, so I missed that start. I’ve been looking forward to throwing against them for a while.”

The decision that bothered Baldelli came on Lee’s error in the eighth inning, which scored the tying run. Baldelli argued there should’ve been baserunner interference because Blanco ran in front of third baseman Royce Lewis, causing Lewis to back away from running toward the ground ball.

“If Royce goes after the ball, there’s probably a major collision on the field,” Baldelli said. “Royce has to be able to make that play. I think the umpires did not get that right. ... A huge portion of the game was decided on that play. I think we caught the brunt end of the stick in a bad call.”