Indians lose to Royals, but Shaun Marcum pitches well

Royals 6, Indians 5

The Indians were behind on the final score this afternoon, but I think they were the game's winners when you limit yourself to considering the players likely to matter in 2015 for each team.

The Tribe jumped out to an early lead by putting a hurting on Yordano Ventura for the second time in two weeks. The first four batters of the game each singled, with Jason Kipnis and Carlos Santana each driving in a run, and the Indians were ahead 3-0 by inning's end and 4-0 by the time Ventura exited the game after 3 innings.

Shaun Marcum, on the other hand, got through his 3 innings pretty comfortably. (Yes, that's easier against the Royals than against a lot of other teams, but still!) He gave a up a pair of singles, one in the 1st, one in the 2nd, but that was it in terms of base runners. He got a number of very easy outs on slow rollers and easy pop ups. His velocity wasn't great (sitting 86-87 with his fastball), but he was never a flamethrower to begin with, and he wouldn't be the first pitcher to get by in his 30s without great heat.

Scott Atchison struggled a bit in the 4th, giving up a run and leaving the bases loaded, but the hits he gave up weren't all scalded or anything. Not good, but not a disaster.

The same cannot be said for Charles Brewer, who gave up 5 runs on 6 hits (including a home run) before being lifted with only one out in the 6th inning. That's a disaster... but only for Brewer, not for the Indians, because he's not someone the team is counting on to pitch real innings this year.

The Indians will be back in Goodyear on Tuesday to host their roommates (the Reds). Corey Kluber is scheduled to start and the game will be broadcast on MLB.TV and STO, so you may want to clear your late afternoon schedule.