The manager saw a good game with nothing to show for it as Kansas City was shut out in Toronto.
The Kansas City Royals finally lost one.
Wednesday night at Rogers Centre the bats went silent in a 3-0 defeat to the Blue Jays, the club's first loss since August 15, and according to the Associated Press one more win would have given Kansas City its longest streak since a 10-game run in June 2014.
What Quatraro Liked
"I mean, we played a good game. We just, you know, we didn't put anything together offensively but played well defensively," Quatraro said in his postgame press conference.
He pointed to the third inning as the chance that got away, and he liked the swings from Vinnie Pasquantino, John Rave and Carter Jensen even though none of them turned into runs, saying that sometimes that is simply how hitting goes.
The at-bats were good and back up that sentiment.
Kansas City put two runners in scoring position with a double steal in the third, watched Toronto walk Bobby Witt Jr. on purpose, and struck out twice to end the threat.
Jensen and Witt chased Tyler Rogers with back-to-back singles in the eighth, and Nick Loftin doubled with two outs in the ninth, but seven Toronto pitchers combined on a six-hitter and Louis Varland recorded the final four outs.
Witt singled, took that intentional walk and is hitting .288 with 16 homers and 35 steals on the year.
Dobnak Gave Them a Chance
Quatraro called Randy Dobnak's night another quality start and said he attacked the zone, with the fourth the one inning where he got behind hitters and paid for a changeup that Nathan Lukes hit for a three-run homer.
That swing produced the only runs of the game.
Dobnak finished with six innings, three runs on six hits and five strikeouts, falling to 2-2 with a 1.92 ERA in a swing role that keeps handing the club winnable games.
A start like that on most nights of the past two weeks gets rewarded.
What Comes Next
The loss left Kansas City at 59-75, fifth in the American League Central and nine games back of the final wild card spot, so the last month of the season is about momentum and sorting out which young players belong in next season's plans.
The series wraps up Thursday night in Toronto, with Noah Cameron scheduled to face Spencer Arrighetti, before a weekend set in Cleveland starting Friday.
Michael Massey sat out Wednesday after hitting his head on the turf a night earlier, and his status is one to watch.
Other pieces are falling into place, with Tony Gonsolin starting a rehab assignment and Carlos Estevez reaching ten years of service time, and nights like the 11-7 slugfest against Detroit showed what this lineup can do when the bats wake up.
One slow night does not undo two of the best weeks this team has played all year, and Quatraro knows it.
