Joe Ryan allowed eight hits and four runs with zero walks and four strikeouts over six innings in a loss to the Royals on Wednesday.

Yikes. Ryan followed up his stinker against the Guardians last week with another tough start after being pushed back with arm fatigue. This one wasn’t as bad as that eight run, six homer implosion, but still poor against a lackluster Royals lineup that was missing Bobby Witt Jr. They scored in each of the third, fourth, and fifth innings and made plenty of hard contact on the way. In all, Ryan allowed 11 hard-hit balls and this rough patch is the last thing the Twins need as they try to fight for a Wild Card spot. His velocity was in line with his season averages though, so hopefully this is not a health issue. He’ll look to right the ship in a rematch against these same Royals next time out that will begin a two-start week where Ryan will also face the Brewers.