DETROIT -- Royals right-hander Yordano Ventura had won three of his past four starts since coming off the disabled list in early July, but that success was largely due to above-average run support rather than solid performances.
On Thursday afternoon, Ventura struggled again, yielding six runs over five innings in an eventual 8-6 walk-off loss to the Tigers. The outing raised Ventura's ERA to 6.75 in five appearances since recovering from ulnar nerve inflammation and returning to the rotation.
"It's been very difficult," the righty said through a team interpreter. "This is one of the first years where I've gone through a struggle and haven't been able to get hitters out as consistently as I'm used to.