July served as a return to form for Kansas City Royals right-hander Brad Keller, but August certainly didn’t start the way he would’ve liked.
The Royals handed the ball to Keller, the anointed ace of the pitching staff, with hopes of avoiding a sweep at the hands of the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday afternoon in their final game north of the border.
However, Keller’s outing ended early as a result of a precautionary call made by the training staff, and the Royals went on to drop their third game to the Blue Jays, 5-1, at Rogers Centre.
The Royals (45-59) began their road trip having won eight of nine games. After an off day on Monday, they’ll continue their nine-game road swing with a series against the AL Central Division-leading Chicago White Sox starting on Tuesday.
Keller came out of the game after three innings because of lower back tightness. He’d thrown 51 pitches (33 strikes) and left with the Royals trailing 3-0.
Edward Olivares, recalled from the minors on Saturday, homered in the ninth inning to keep the Royals from being shut out.
