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KANSAS CITY Hayden Hurst Color Rush Jersey , Mo. — It wasn’t Friday the 13th, but it was a nightmare nonetheless for Danny Duffy.

On May 13, the Kansas City Royals 29-year-old left-hander took the mound at Progressive Field in Cleveland. After 87 pitches in 3 1/3 innings, Duffy was finished.

“What do I remember from the last one?” Duffy said. “I try to forget it. It was probably the worst start I’ve had in a long timfe.”

To say it was bad would be an understatement. Duffy gave up nine runs, eight hits and five walks and hit a batter. He yielded a three-run homer to Jose Ramirez in the second inning.

Manager Ned Yost mercifully replaced him in the third when Yan Gomes belted Duffy’s final pitch over the center-field fence with two runners on base.

Duffy gets a chance for a reprieve on Tuesday when he faces the Indians in the second game of the three-game series.

“I’m looking forward to getting out there,” he said. “It’s another challenge and I’m up for it. I’m going to do everything I can to execute every pitch and stay within my strengths.”

Duffy has not fared well against the Indians in his career. He is 2-8 with a 5.06 ERA, surrendering 39 earned runs in 69 1/3 inning in 17 career outings, 13 of them starts.

This season, he is 4-7 with a 4.94 ERA in 17 starts, allowing 95 hits, walking 46 and hitting two batters in 94 2/3 innings.

Opponents are batting .259 against Duffy. That breaks down to .264 by right-handed batters and .233 by left-handed batters. Lefties have hit .188 against Duffy since 2016.

Duffy has pitched better recently. He began the year 1-6 with a 6.88 ERA in his first 10 starts, giving up 39 earned runs in 51 innings. He is 3-1 with a 2.68 ERA in his past seven starts http://www.titansauthorizedshops.com/authentic-harold-landry-jersey , allowing 13 earned runs across 43 2/3 innings.

In his last start, Duffy picked up a 5-4 decision over the Milwaukee Brewers on the road. He permitted one run, five hits and two walks with seven strikeouts in six innings. He stranded two runners in the first and third inning. Jesus Aguilar’s home run in the sixth was the only run Duffy allowed.

Duffy will be looking for his first Kauffman Stadium victory this season. He is 0-3 with a 6.32 ERA in six home starts. His last home victory was Aug. 22, 2017.

The Indians, who won the series opener 9-3 with Francisco Lindor driving in a career-high seven runs, will counter with rookie right-hander Shane Bieber, who is 3-0 with a 2.22 ERA in his first four career starts.

“I just want to go out there and continue what I’ve been doing so far,” Bieber said. “That’s just throwing three or four pitches for strikes and getting ahead, and trying to put guys away when I can.

“Really, it’s just a matter of trusting (catchers) Yan (Gomes) or Berto (Roberto Perez). They always know exactly what they’re doing, in case I don’t. They make up for my lack of experience.”

Bieber has plus breaking pitches.

“Right now, I’m relying on the slider and curveball Jason McCourty Color Rush Jersey ,” he said. “I’ll use the fastball if they’re sitting on those two. I feel comfortable throwing those three especially. My change-up is a work in progress. All my pitches are a work in progress, obviously, but that one especially.

“Keeping them off balance with all three or four pitches is the best thing. If I can do that, things will be a little bit easier. That’s the goal for every starting pitcher.”

Fellow Russian linemate Evgeny Kuznetsov and goaltender Braden Holtby certainly did some heavy lifting of their own.

In helping deliver a championship Washington had wanted for more than 40 years, Kuznetsov was arguably the Capitals‘ most instrumental player. The 26-year-old, fifth-year pro finished with a playoff-leading 32 points, including his 20th assist in Thursday night’s series-clinching 4-3 win over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5.

”He was unbelievable,” Ovechkin said of Kuznetsov. ”He makes the magic over there.”

Holtby, overshadowed coming into the Final, bested three-time Stanley Cup champion goalie Marc-Andre Fleury. He not only allowed the Golden Knights just eight goals over the last four games, but won in Vegas twice.

Holtby is now 45-37 in 82 career playoff appearances – all with the Capitals – while compiling a 2.04 goals-against average, .929 save percentage and six shutouts. That is the second-highest save percentage and fifth-best GAA in NHL postseason history among goaltenders with at least 50 outings.

Washington coach Barry Trotz said it took losing the No. 1 role to Philipp Grubauer late in the regular season and the start of the postseason for Holtby to rediscover the foundation of his game he developed in Saskatchewan.

”Just like all great goaltenders Authentic Josh Allen Jersey , you go through some dry spells in your game where you lose your way a little bit and your foundation,” Trotz said. ”We had a conversation and he was very respectful. He understood that he wasn’t going to start in the playoffs. And he said, `If I get a chance to go back in, I’m gonna be really good for you.’ And he was.”

His unbelievable stick save on Alex Tuch to lock up a win in Game 2 will ring forever in Caps history.

”I think any big play is going to be a turning point,” Holtby said humbly. ”It was a big play in the game, but the credit really goes to our guys because we didn’t get complacent. We knew we could do something special and we did.”

With Ovechkin, Kuznetsov and Holtby leading the charge, Washington wasn’t about to blow another 3-1 lead, an unwelcome feature of its postseason past. Prior to this season, the Capitals had lost five series when leading 3-1, the most in the NHL.

After losing Game 1, the Capitals won four straight to win the Cup http://www.billsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-marshall-newhouse-jersey , outscoring the Golden Knights 16-8 along the way. For the series, Kuznetsov scored one goal and assisted on seven others, including Jakub Vrana’s goal that opened the scoring for the Capitals in Game 5.

”Kuz is a great player, he’s a really, really talented player,” Vrana said. ”He can be the difference every game. He’s just unbelievable.”

While Trotz acknowledged Ovechkin’s play and how much he’s meant to the franchise, he said Kuznetsov single-handedly took over games for the Capitals and proved to be just as valuable during their championship run.

So much so, he wasn’t sure who was going to be named MVP of the Final.

”That was a toss-up for me, I thought they were neck and neck if you ask me who gets the Conn Smythe, I thought that’s gonna be a tough choice,” Trotz said. ”You probably have to split that in half for me.”

Trotz said Kuznetsov is just scratching the surface, and the rest of the league is starting to find just how good he is.

Kuznetsov Denard Span Seattle Mariners Jersey , who finished the regular season with 27 goals and 56 assists, scored 12 goals and had 20 assists in the postseason. He was instrumental in Washington’s 6-2 demolition of the Golden Knights in Game 4, when he registered four assists to tie a single-game Stanley Cup Final record.

”Since Day 1 of training camp, we really play for each other, we work for each other and we really try to help the young guys, older guys – it doesn’t matter,” Kuznetsov said. ”We just play for your partner and we compete every day.”

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