The Royals pitching has been a rollercoaster.
The Kansas City Royals dropped the rubber match in West Sacramento on Thursday, falling 6-3 to the Athletics.
Noah Cameron took the mound for Kansas City in the series finale, and a rough second inning pretty much decided the game.
The Athletics put together a four-run frame with Nick Kurtz lining a two-run double to right-center, Shea Langeliers adding an RBI double, and a throwing error from shortstop Nick Loftin that allowed another run to come in.
Cameron's Honest Take
After the game, Cameron was blunt about where things went wrong.
"I thought we were making good pitches, but they were obviously hitting mistakes," he said. "It's just who wins that matchup, and they got us these last three days."
Cameron pretty much told the whole story of the series right there.
Even in Tuesday's Game 1 win, a 4-1 Royals victory that needed extras, the Athletics loaded the bases in the bottom of the tenth.
The A's offense has been tough to deal with all season, and Langeliers collected three doubles in Thursday's finale while Kurtz extended his walk streak to 19 straight games.
Game 2 went to the A's 5-2, and Thursday sealed the series loss at two games to one.
A Rough Start
Cameron entered 2026 with real expectations after a rookie year where he posted a 2.99 ERA across 24 starts and finished fourth in AL Rookie of the Year voting.
This season has played out differently.
Thursday's loss dropped him to 2-2, and his ERA sits well above 5.00 through five starts.
The home run ball has been a problem, with five allowed in 26.1 innings entering the game.
The Royals have been scrambling for pitching reinforcements, even signing lefty Anthony Gose to a minor league deal earlier in the week to add some depth to the organization.
The Bigger Picture
Cameron is not the only one struggling.
Injuries and poor outings have hit the Royals staff hard, and the team carries a 4.62 ERA, which ranks 25th in baseball.
Cole Ragans has a 5.00 ERA through his early starts, and several bullpen arms have not delivered either.
Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha have been the steady ones, but two veterans cannot prop up an entire pitching staff by themselves.
Kansas City sits at 12-19, while the Athletics have climbed to 17-14 and first place in the AL West.
The Royals open a series at Seattle on Friday with Ragans on the mound, and Cameron's words will stick with a team that knows it has to start winning those pitcher-hitter battles if this season is going to go anywhere.