Bryan Bullington shuts the Yankees down for a 1-0 Royals’ win
Sunday night provided a stunning exhibition of pitching as the Kansas City Royals beat their series opponents, the New York Yankees, with a slender 1-0 score line. The win came from some excellent ball throwing display by the former number 1 draft pick, Bryan Bullington. Not much was expected from the player as his track record suggested a terrible form in Major League Baseball (MLB). But yesterday night marked the first start up triumph for the Royals’ ace man in his full tenure as an American League player.
Going into the match with a loss in their previous encounter against the Yankees, the Royals were looking for a breather and a change in their recent form. Being 2-1 down in the series, Kansas City needed to set a statement in their final bout as the fans had to be given a reward for their attendance at the Kauffman Stadium in Kansas. Bullington came through for the side and got the required result which the ball club wanted. Bryan was a the number 1 draft pick eight years ago, but his inability to come up with a pitch starting win in the league saw him scuttle his way back to the Triple A league. The player made his 7th start of the career and 20th league appearance on Sunday night to set aside his past blow the World Series Champions asunder.
Falling short on confidence and morale in the previous match ups, the Royals Manager Ned Yost noted that Bryan had a different and more confident look on him last night. He recalled how the pitcher looked more confident and prowled on his attack with determination. Ned further described him as a player who was sure of his pitching and brought in a different mindset during the game.
To recap, Bullington struck out 5 players in his 8 innings of pitching. Bryan allowed just 2 hits and 1 walk to close his performance with no runs allowed and an Earning Runs Average of 3 in his 2 losses and a win for the season. Joakim Soria replaced the ace man in the top 9th and followed up on the play by allowing no runs, as well and ensuring the home team won the final match of the series, comprehensively.
On the other hand, Allan James Burnett featured for the Yankees, last night. Apart from the unfortunate run that went against the League champions in the bottom second - the pitcher never had a hard time owning up to the opposition. He allowed 4 hits and a run to put his team on the back foot. He struck out 6 players and conceded an average 3 walks. Though the run was a critical difference in the fixture, he wasn’t particularly liable for the blame as an error by the catcher provided the run. The lack lustre performance from the batters proved to be the problem for the New York team as well. Alex Rodriguez made his bid for the home run to the deep centre, but he was eventually denied by Gregor Blanco, who almost banged against the wall for the save. Lance Berkman left the field in the top 5th with a sprained right ankle and the rest of the team wasn’t up to the task to take the game from the Royals.
The only run of the match came in the bottom second innings as Willie Bloomquist led an interesting quest to bring up the score for the Royals. The hitter singled to the first base and stole the second as he led the effort against the opposition. For the third base, the player got a little help from an error that came off Francisco Cervelli’s throw. The final sprint to the finish line came off a Running Bat In (RBI) single to the right by Billy Butler. This got Kansas City, the run they needed, which ultimately proved to be the difference in the match.
The Royals will be glad from the victory as their campaign to better their standings in the league has picked up momentum yet again. In the course of their goal, they’ve found a pitcher with a rekindled interest for MLB glory. The pitcher, who comes off a bad start to the league, will look to make his mark on the game with an exhibition like this again. The question to be asked now is, Does Bryan Bullington have what it takes to keep pitching this way throughout the season?
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