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Royals-Pirates Preview

Jun 28, 2009 - 4:08 AM By MIKE LIPKA STATS Writer

Kansas City (31-41) at Pittsburgh (34-39), 1:35 p.m. EDT

The Zack Greinke who was all but unhittable through his first 10 starts was not present throughout early June, but after the major league ERA leader's latest outing, the struggling Kansas City Royals are hoping he's back.

If so, that would be bad news for the Pittsburgh Pirates, who will have to go through the hard-throwing right-hander if they hope to complete a three-game sweep as the teams finish up interleague play at PNC Park on Sunday.

Greinke did not allow more than two runs in any of his first 10 appearances, grabbing national attention with eight wins and a 0.84 ERA over that span while striking out 81 in 75 innings.

In the four starts that followed, however, he looked a bit more human, going 0-2 with a 5.19 ERA. The slump didn't last long, though, as Greinke (9-3, 1.90 ERA) gave up one run in eight innings of a 2-1 victory at Houston on Tuesday.

"He was really tough," Astros shortstop Miguel Tejada said. "The kid today was kind of like Roger Clemens pitching back in the day. I don't want to say he's just like Clemens, but he (had) a good command today. He had the fastball at 96 (mph) 97, the slider, the changeup - everything. He's good."

Greinke allowed eight hits, and Kansas City manager Trey Hillman said he wasn't at his best, but he still held Houston without an extra-base hit or a walk.

"I started off a little slow, but I got more comfortable as the game went along," Greinke said. "I was making pitches when I got into jams. That's good. I just need to be able to do that."

He can become the majors' fourth 10-game winner with a victory Sunday, but wins have been rare for the Royals (31-42) over the last several weeks, and they enter the series finale on another three-game losing streak.

Kansas City is 13-31 since May 8 - easily the worst record in the AL over that span, and only narrowly better than woeful Washington.

Not much has changed in Pittsburgh this weekend. Friday's 5-3 loss gave Pirates right-hander Virgil Vasquez his first major league win, and little-used Pittsburgh outfielder Delwyn Young drove in a career-high four runs in the Royals' 6-2 defeat Saturday.

"I haven't driven a run in it seems like six months," Young said, "so just to get one - let alone four - is a good feeling."

Kansas City's visit has helped the Pirates (35-39) remain just five games out of first place in the NL Central, even though they are last in the six-team division. They've won four straight overall, one shy of matching their season-best streak from May 16-20.

Pittsburgh has also ensured it will finish with a winning record in interleague play for the first time since 2001. The team is 8-6 against the AL, including a 6-2 mark at home.

The Pirates will try for one more win, and they'll hope for an encouraging performance from newcomer Charlie Morton (0-0, 3.00) along the way. The Pirates acquired Morton in a trade with Atlanta earlier this month, but he left his initial start June 10 with hamstring tightness.

He was originally slated to pitch Friday, but the same injury forced him to be pushed back to Sunday.

In his one full start with the Pirates, Morton allowed two runs in five innings June 20, but did not get a decision in Pittsburgh's 9-7 loss to Colorado.