Royals’ James McArthur believes he’s identified reason for his recent struggles

It may sound counter-intuitive, but Royals closer James McArthur’s past struggles are one reason he has faith that he’ll turn things around this season.

McArthur, 27, has had moments no one would put on a baseball résumé. There was a minor-league season with an ERA north of 5.00. He didn’t play at all in 2020 because of the pandemic. And he was designated for assignment last season by the Philadelphia Phillies.

McArthur also had a particularly bad time this past week, allowing eight runs on seven hits and a walk in just two innings over two games. That includes a blown save last Wednesday.

But in his previous 16 appearances, he had a 1.72 ERA and opponents batted just .236 against him.

“I’ve struggled before — a lot,” McArthur said Monday, a day after KC’s ninth-inning deficit become a 7-3 loss to the Cubs . “A lot through college, minor leagues and in the major leagues, so I know I can get through these times. They’re definitely frustrating while you are going through them, but at the end of the day I just want to help the team win.

“So luckily for me, we have a really good pitching department here, and those guys have been working with me through this whole thing, and they work with me whenever things are going good, too.”

Past success — including this season — explains Royals manager Matt Quatraro’s continued faith in McArthur.

“His stuff is still as good as it was at getting the best hitters in the game out,” Quatraro said. “It’s a matter of the learning experience, of what that mentality or the pitch execution has to be in order to get them out.

“And I think it’s a fraction of an inch that changes the outcome of a lot of these at-bats. He’s so consistent in his preparation and in his mind-set that I know he can bounce back from a tough outing.”

McArthur, who is 6-7 and 230 pounds, believes he’s been getting too much of the plate with pitches at key times.

“The main thing for me going forward is just working on pitch execution,” said McArthur, who has 17 saves this season. “Some pitches have just been too middle-middle, and guys have been taking advantage of it.

“So (I) just try to go back, keep competing and keep going at guys, but understanding in certain counts, I’ve got to make better pitches.”

McArthur knows he won’t hit his spot with every pitch, but he’s trying to make some small mechanical adjustments to give him the best chance to succeed.

While McArthur now has an unsightly 5.44 ERA, he’s maintaining an even keel. That’s his focus regardless of the results, good or bad.

“It’s frustrating for sure, but it’s baseball at the end of the day, and we go through a lot of ebbs and flows through this game,” he said. “So for me, I never try not to get too high, try not to get too low and always understand there’s something you can get better at.

“And for me, right now, that’s just consistently executing those spots and moving the ball around the outer part of the plate.”