The Royals have seen Danny Duffy melt down often this season.
He once threw a cooler at the wall of the visiting dugout at Progressive Field in Cleveland. He often berated himself in post-game interviews, frustrated with his inability to keep runs off the board in the opening months of this oft-times demoralizing campaign.
But the self-flagellation and physical manifestations of Duffy’s ire paled in comparison to the scene that unfolded in the sixth inning of the Royals’ 8-3 loss to the Cardinals on Saturday night at Kauffman Stadium.
Duffy had fought command all evening. He’d given up seven hits in 5 1/3 innings and watched the Cardinals reel off five consecutive two-out hits in the third to put the Royals in an early hole.