KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Chris Archer had been impeccable on the road until Wednesday night.
Archer gave up a career-high nine runs and the 12 Royals hits matched his career high in a 9-7 Rays’ loss.
“That boils down to me not executing pitches,” Archer said. “They did find some holes, but they also hit some balls hard. Obviously, I hold myself to a higher standard. I want to give the team a better performance.
“No one outing is going to define me, whether it’s good or bad. I’m constantly trying to get better and work toward my potential. And clearly, I’m not there yet.”
Archer entered the game with a 6-0 record in seven road starts, while his 0.77 ERA in away games ranked third for pitchers on this date since 1961 with at least six road starts. The ones ahead of Archer were Roger Clemens, 0.20 ERA after six road starts in 2005, and Greg Maddux, 0.76 after six road starts in 1995.
After allowing just four earned runs in 46 2/3 innings on the road, the Royals roughed up Archer for nine earned runs in six innings.
“It was a little unusual, but even the good ones have some tough nights,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said.