Greinke (17-7) was the pitcher of record in the Diamondbacks' 2-1 loss to the Royals on Friday. He went four innings and was tagged for two runs on six hits and two walks while striking out four batters.
Making his fourth career start against the team that drafted him in 2002, Greinke was limited to 75 pitches in his final outing of the regular season, despite not laboring too badly when he was pulled in the fourth inning. The ace's early departure was a pre-planned move by manager Torey Lovullo, who wanted to keep Greinke on his normal pitching schedule while not overextending him in advance of a starting assignment Oct. 4 in the Diamondbacks' matchup against either the Rockies or Brewers. Greinke will finish the 2017 campaign with a 3.20 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 215 strikeouts in 202.1 innings, which should help him earn some down-ballot votes for the National League Cy Young Award.