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Royals Rangers prep for pitchers' duel

Apr 18, 2009 - 5:46 AM By Jeff Mezydlo Stats Senior Writer

Kansas City (6-4) at Texas (4-6), 8:05 p.m. EDT

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- Zach Greinke might have already shown the Kansas City Royals were right to sign him to a contract extension.

After three seasons, Kevin Millwood is still trying to prove he's worth his hefty contract with the Texas Rangers.

On Saturday night, two of the AL's stingiest pitchers look to continue their early-season success when the Royals and Rangers continue their three-game set at Rangers Ballpark.

While Millwood (1-0, 0.64 ERA) is off to the best start in the fourth season of a five-year, $60 million deal with Texas, Greinke (2-0, 0.00) hasn't missed a beat since Kansas City signed him to a four-year, $38 million extension in the offseason.

Greinke has 16 strikeouts in two games, including nine Monday while giving up six hits in five innings of a 4-2 win over Cleveland. Dating to Sept. 13 at Cleveland, Greinke has gone 25 consecutive innings without surrendering a run. He's also shown plenty of poise by working out of a number of jams.

"I don't know how many times I can continue doing that, but the last two games I've been doing good with men on base," Greinke said. "You've got to take the two wins, no matter how it happens. That's as good as it can get."

The right-hander is 2-3 with a 3.69 ERA in seven starts against Texas (4-6), which has scored the second-most runs (74) in the majors, but was stymied by Gil Meche and the Royals in a 13-3 loss Friday.

Mark Teahen went 5-for-6 with a homer and Mike Jacobs hit his third home run in four games and drove in four runs to pace Kansas City's 19-hit attack. Coco Crisp added a three-run homer for the Royals (6-4), who were batting a major league-low .216 entering this series but increased that mark to .245.

"If we can slug it the way we did, that's good to see," said manager Trey Hillman, whose club has won four of five overall and three in a row on the road.

Teahen, whom the Royals considered trading in the offseason, will likely see most of the time at third base with Alex Gordon out at least 10 weeks with a hip injury. Teahen is 6-for-9 in his last two games.

"I was always thrilled we hung onto Mark Teahen," Hillman said. "Now that this has happened, it plays out with more magnitude."

Teahen is batting .276 (8-for-29) with a homer versus Millwood, while Crisp is just 2-for-12 against him.

Millwood has allowed one run and just nine singles in 14 innings over his first two starts. He allowed four hits and struck out six in seven scoreless innings Sunday at Detroit, but the Rangers' bullpen couldn't hold a four-run lead and Texas lost 6-4.

"I don't think you can ask Millwood to do any more than he did today," manager Ron Washington told the Rangers' official Web site.

The right-hander, who's 36-36 with a 4.78 ERA since signing with Texas in December 2005, is 6-3 with a 4.66 ERA lifetime against the Royals.

Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler went 2-for-4 on Friday, two nights after hitting for the cycle in a 19-6 win over Baltimore. Hampered by its pitching staff's 7.16 ERA, Texas has lost six of seven after sweeping a three-game set from Cleveland to open the season.

Kinsler is 12-for-19 in his last four games to raise his season average to .476.