Road warrior: Dozier records 2nd multi-HR game
This browser does not support the video element.
DETROIT -- Royals third baseman Hunter Dozier's breakout season just keeps getting more impressive.
Dozier unleashed the second multi-homer game of his career -- both on this road trip -- in the Royals’ 10-8 loss to the Tigers on Thursday night at Comerica Park. Dozier now has 20 home runs this season.
“I think 20 is a good number,” Dozier said. “Still got a long ways to go and I have to keep working. But yeah, 20 is good.”
Jordy Mercer walked it off for the Tigers with a two-run home run with one out in the ninth off left-hander Richard Lovelady.
Dozier, who had a two-homer game on Friday night at Target Field, homered in his first two at-bats off Tigers left-hander Matthew Boyd. He jumped on a first-pitch fastball in the first inning with Whit Merrifield aboard, sending it into the right-field seats. That was Dozier’s ninth opposite-field home run this season.
“I think it’s a big part of my approach, trying to drive it to right-center and stay short to the ball,” Dozier said. “When I’m hitting the ball good, I’m usually going the other way. You get rewarded here for that, too.”
In the third inning, Dozier led off by pulling a 1-0 four-seamer into the left-field seats. He said he consciously was trying to attack early in the count.
“I was a little more passive in Boston and let some good pitches go by,” Dozier said. “I ended up having a good series, but I still think I let too many good pitches go by. Just wanted to get back to being more aggressive tonight.”
Dozier continues to impress his manager.
“He's doing great,” Ned Yost said. “He's putting together great at-bats. I think his power is really starting to show. Everybody is starting to realize he's a pretty strong kid."
Cheslor Cuthbert also homered for the Royals, a two-run shot in the third inning, and Alex Gordon smashed a three-run homer in the sixth -- that one went a projected 454 feet per Statcast.
This browser does not support the video element.
But the Royals’ pitchers were hurt by wildness early as they walked seven batters and hit another in the first three innings.
Right-hander Jorge Lopez, starting in place of the injured Danny Duffy (left hamstring), tossed a 1-2-3 first, striking out two. But Lopez lost his feel for the strike zone in the second inning, walking three hitters and giving up five runs while getting just one out.
Lopez threw 44 pitches, only 21 for strikes.
"Walks early., walks in the middle, walks late,” Yost said. “Nine walks. That's not good for business.
"They're not trying to walk guys. You know, they don't set out to walk guys. We've got to keep working on it. It was just one of those nights for us. We've been doing a pretty good job of containing the walks. We just couldn't do it tonight."