Kansas City mayor makes baseball bet

Here are seven things to know about Game 1 of the 2015 ALCS.

Edinson Volquez started for the Royals that tense afternoon. He’s improved in recent years, but he still fights it from time to time, like he did in Game 1. He walked four batters and struck out five.

The sixth inning was the danger inning. The Jays have depth in the rotation and they also have a very powerful lineup with Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. As much as Volquez had struggled with location in the inning, this probably wasn’t what anybody envisioned from Tulo in the most important at-bat of the game. Volquez required 37 pitches for his final frame.

Leaving out Game 3 against the Rangers, though?

It’s not just what has gone on this postseason, or even in the regular season, that makes this ALCS matchup so juicy. “We’ve got to win three more to be happy about anything”.

In Ned Yost’s defense, the team went 82-49 with Escobar leading off this season, compared to 13-18 in the games that statistically sounder-seeming choices such as Alex Gordon or Ben Zobrist led off. So the guy in the dugout didn’t mess with success. Four catchers have hit more – Alomar, 5; 1997; Piazza (2000), Tenance (1972) Varitek (2003) each 4. Pat Sheridan hit a pinch-hit solo home run however and the game entered the tenth inning. Impressive, and it earned him World Series MVP honors.

The song is available via GalleryAC and on iTunes today in time for tonight’s first ALCS game, in case you’re looking to cheerlead along at whatever level of sobriety and manic joy. And to nobody’s surprise, Donaldson was booed lustily by the Kansas City crowd on Friday night.

The Royals put men on first and third with one out in the bottom of the sixth after a Donaldson fielding error put Eric Hosmer on and Kendrys Morales singled.

“They do a great job of putting the ball in play”, he said. He walloped the first offering from Marco Estrada into the Sonic Slam seats.

A cracked shoulder blade sidelined Tulowitzki for three weeks in September.

The Royals are playing from ahead in the postseason for a change. He hasn’t hit at all in October.

Because with the count 2-1 rather than 3-0, Volquez could keep pitching to spots. Maybe both. But, given the nature of his injury and his quick return, chances are he’s not 100 percent physically.

Thankfully for them and their fans, the Blue Jays battled back. The team is bringing in Estrada to start game one and then the team will have David Price and Marcus Stroman before RA Dickey takes the mound.

With Aaron Loup unavailable in Game 4, Toronto manager John Gibbons opted to use Price as his left-hander out of the bullpen.

Umpire Jim Wolf warned both teams in the first inning after Volquez hit Josh Donaldson in the shoulder with a changeup that got away.

The Blue Jays sent Stieb out for his third start of the series and the Royals countered with Saberhagen.

The wild seventh inning between the Blue Jays and Rangers is getting its own TV special. Cain extended his postseason-hitting streak to 11 games, one shy of the Royals’ record held by Amos Otis.

Dating back to game five of Wednesday’s ALDS, the Royals’ pitching staff has combined to throw 16 straight scoreless innings.

Game 3, now in Kansas City, saw Saberhagen matched up against Alexander. Madson and Colabello overcame a few big hurdles and long odds to get where they are. The Royals of the late 70s through the mid-80s was a team that always got close, but could never close the deal.

“It’s over with. We’ve got to move forward”, insisted the Royals’ Edinson Volquez, who will start Game 1 and was arguably the biggest instigator when the teams met in August.