Daily Clips
May 16, 2018
LOCAL
Herrera has rare hiccup in loss to the Rays
May 15, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Soler tweaks rib charging for fly ball
May 15, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
After Royals rally to tie score, closer Kelvin Herrera allows a run in loss to Rays
May 15, 2018By Maria Torres/KC Star
What happens when a Royals player loses it? Why, he 'snaps,' of course
May 15, 2018By Lee Judge/KC Star
Mellinger Minutes: Jorts, why should you go to the ballpark, and when can we start gambling?
May 15, 2018By Sam Mellinger/KC Star
MINORS
No, it’s not time to give up on Adalberto Mondesi’s future as a Royal yet
May 15, 2018By Rany Jazayerli/The Athletic
'Cakes Slice Chasers 16-0 in Series Finale
New Orleans dominate middle innings in rout; road trip continues Thursday
May 15, 2018By Omaha Storm Chasers
Dini Walks-Off Naturals With Extra-Inning Homer
Nick Dini hit a two-out, two-run home run in the 10th to give the Naturals the 4-2 victory over the Travelers
May 15, 2018By Northwest Arkansas Naturals
NATIONAL
What’s the rulebook definition of a swing in baseball? There isn’t one — but there should be
May 15, 2018By Cliff Corcoran/The Athletic
Rib injury sends Zimmer to disabled list
Indians bring up reliever Ramirez from Triple-A
May 15, 2018By Jordan Bastian/MLB.com
Cano suspended 80 games for violation of drug policy
Mariners slugger, eight-time All-Star tests positive for banned substance
May 15, 2018By Greg Johns/MLB.com
MLB TRANSACTIONS
May 16, 2018 •.CBSSports.com
LOCAL
Herrera has rare hiccup in loss to the Rays
May 15, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Royals closer Kelvin Herrera has been virtually perfect this season, allowing one run in 16 appearances and sporting an 0.61 ERA entering Tuesday's ninth inning.
But Herrera was nicked for three singles, the last an RBI hit by the Rays' Joey Wendle that was the deciding run in the Royals' 6-5 loss at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals have lost four straight and six of seven.
With runners on first and second and two out, Herrera threw a changeup down and away to Wendle, who lined it to the left of left fielder Alex Gordon, who had no realistic chance at throwing out Johnny Field at the plate.
"[The changeup] was down," Herrera said. "I tried to get a weak ground ball or weak popup, but he got the head of the bat on it. This is the type of game that will happen sooner or later."
Royals manager Ned Yost agreed, saying: "The ball that Wendle hit I thought was a pretty good pitch right there. Kel's really been throwing the ball well for us."
The bigger issue has been too many erratic starts from the rotation -- three starters got tagged for nine runs each in the last six days -- and on Tuesday, right-hander Ian Kennedy gave up three quick runs in the first.
"He didn't look very good to me [in the first]," Yost said. "It's one of those situations where you're hoping that he can make an adjustment and settle in. That's exactly what he did. He did a great job of grinding through six innings, keeping the score within check so that we could at least stay in the game and have a chance to win it."
Added Kennedy: "I was just grinding. I didn't feel right from the get-go. Tried to keep the team in it."
After throwing 34 pitches in the first inning, Kennedy did give Yost some length. Kennedy wound up going six frames, permitting seven hits and five earned runs. He walked three and struck out six, throwing 101 pitches.
Whit Merrifield collected two hits and three RBIs for the Royals.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Merrifield came through with a clutch two-out, two-run single in the seventh that tied the score at 5. The inning started with Alex Gordon drawing a walk and Hunter Dozier, just called up from Triple-A Omaha on Monday, belting a double to deep left-center. But Jose Alvarado then got Abraham Almonte to hit a first-pitch slow roller to first as the runners held. Ryan Goins, who struck out in the ninth on Monday night with the tying run on third and one out, struck out again. But Merrifield stroked a two-strike single off Sergio Romo into center field.
SOUND SMART
When Kennedy fanned Denard Span to end the sixth inning, it marked Kennedy's 1,500th strikeout of his career.
HE SAID IT
"Losing sucks. Nobody likes to lose. We're tired of losing. Guys are showing up, playing hard. Guys are putting in the work. Guys want to win." -- Merrifield, on the state of the Royals
UP NEXT
Right-hander Jason Hammel (0-4, 6.13 ERA) takes the mound for the Royals in a 1:15 p.m. CT game against the Rays on Wednesday to conclude the series. Right-hander Jake Faria (3-2, 5.09 ERA) will pitch for the Rays. Hammel gave up a season-high nine runs over 3 2/3 innings on Friday in a game the Royals rallied to win, 10-9.
Soler tweaks rib charging for fly ball
May 15, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Royals outfielder Jorge Soler was out of Tuesday's starting lineup because of an injury that somewhat defied description.
Royals manager Ned Yost said Soler sustained a "dislocated rib" on his right side after charging in for a fly ball in Monday's game against the Rays and then stopping suddenly and leaping to make the catch.
"That play just kind of dislocated a rib," Yost said. "It's something that will snap back into place, like what a chiropractor would do."
The word "dislocated" created some concern from Royals fans, who thought the injury must be more serious, on Twitter.
Soler, though, smiled when asked about the injury in Spanish by The Kansas City Star and said it wasn't really dislocated.
Soler, in fact, took some batting practice before Tuesday's game and was available to pinch-hit.
Royals trainer Nick Kenney said "dislocated rib" was accurate, but that maybe a more layman term for the injury was a "crick" or "pinch" in the right side of his back.
Yost added the injury wasn't serious and said on a scale of 1 to 10 it was probably .75.
After Royals rally to tie score, closer Kelvin Herrera allows a run in loss to Rays
May 15, 2018By Maria Torres/KC Star
If there is one pitcher the Royals have been able to count on this season, without any hesitation that he would crumple, it is closer Kelvin Herrera.
He’d amassed an 0.60 ERA in 16 games, collected eight saves and limited batters to a .170 average in 14 2/3 innings. In all, he'd allowed nine baserunners and only been hurt by the Red Sox when he allowed one run during a wild, extra-innings night two weeks ago in Boston.
But on Tuesday at Kauffman Stadium, he allowed three hits, including a two-out single to Joey Wendle that gave the Rays a ninth-inning lead in what became a 6-5 Royals loss, their fifth in six games.
Before he lofted a fly ball to right field, stranding a runner at first base and ending the game, Whit Merrifield had given the Royals hope. He’d driven in three of the Royals’ five runs, tied the score at 5-5 in the seventh inning and extended his hitting streak to nine games with an RBI single in the fifth.
But for just the second time this season, Herrera showed he was mortal. He allowed back-to-back singles, then retired two batters in a row.
Wendle, however, took advantage of a change-up put over the outside corner of the plate, lining a single to left field and raising Herrera’s ERA to 1.15.
"You feel pretty good going into the ninth inning with a tie," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "You’re sitting on the bench thinking, ‘OK, we got six outs. They gotta get three. So we’ve got two chances to win the ballgame here, with Kel going out there.' Felt good about it. Just didn’t work out."
Such is the state of affairs: Starting pitcher Ian Kennedy had so much trouble locating his fastball in the first inning that, after he yielded three runs without recording a second out, the Royals called down to the bullpen and asked for rookie reliever Brad Keller to start warming up.
The move almost seemed prophetic. Yost indicated hours earlier, for the second time since Saturday, that Keller might find himself in the starting rotation this summer. After all, the Royals acquired Keller in the Rule 5 draft with the understanding he would eventually start for them. To do so this season, though, the Royals would need to start stretching out his appearances — he worked more than 1 2/3 innings for the first time in his career when he pitched three innings and won on Friday in Cleveland.
Had Kennedy unraveled and came anywhere near replicating his nine-run outing from Thursday, Tuesday would have provided that opportunity.
In the end, Keller never entered the game. Kennedy worked six innings, threw 101 pitches and surrendered five runs. After he issued a four-pitch walk to Carlos Gomez and received a visit from pitching coach Cal Eldred in the first inning, Kennedy struck out the ninth batter of the inning for his third out of the game. He had retired 13 of 16 when the Rays’ Mallex Smith, who eventually scored on a sacrifice bunt, doubled to lead off the sixth inning.
"He didn’t look very good to me," Yost said. "In one of those situations where you’re hoping that he can make an adjustment and settle in. That’s exactly what he did. He did a great job of grinding through six innings, keeping the score within check so that we could at least stay in the game and have a chance to win it."
How the Royals tied the game: With runners in scoring position and no outs in the seventh, Abraham Almonte failed to execute a squeeze bunt and grounded out to first base. Then Ryan Goins struck out.
But Merrifield came through, poking a two-run single over the extended glove of Rays second baseman Joey Wendle.
“Losing sucks. Nobody likes to lose," Merrifield said. "We’re tired of losing. Guys are showing up, playing hard. Guys are putting in the work. Guys want to win.”
Up next: The Royals, who fell to 13-29, will close this series with the Rays on Wednesday at 1:15 p.m.
What happens when a Royals player loses it? Why, he 'snaps,' of course
May 15, 2018By Lee Judge/KC Star
A few steps behind the Royals' dugout is the team’s indoor batting cage. The door to the batting cage is painted blue, made of metal and covered with dozens of dents; it looks like the hood of a car left out in a hail storm.
But those dents are right where they should be: away from the public eye.
If a player “snaps” — baseball slang for having a temper tantrum — it’s a good idea to leave the dugout. Wise major-leaguers don’t let TV cameras catch them smashing dugout water coolers with baseball bats; it’s a bad look that will get a guy on SportsCenter for all the wrong reasons.
If a player feels the need to hit something with a baseball bat — often because he failed to hit a baseball with a baseball bat — the metal door to the indoor batting cage is a good choice. Nobody will see you having that temper tantrum, and the only people who will know about it are your teammates.
Unless you break something.
Hud buys The K a toilet
Ask Royals TV announcer Rex Hudler about snapping, and he'll tell you that he failed so much as a player he rarely got mad about it.
But then he might tell a story about a Kauffman Stadium toilet.
Back when he was playing for the Angels, Hudler was known for his hustle. But he remembers one day when he eased up while running out a ground ball and allowed the Royals to complete a double play.
Hudler was so mad at himself that he left the visitor’s dugout, walked up the tunnel and threw his bat. The bat ricocheted and broke the toilet just outside the visitor’s dugout. Suddenly, the City of Fountains had one more: water was spraying up in the air.
Hudler left a note with his name and uniform number on it and admitted his guilt. Just three innings later, the toilet was replaced. Hudler said that’s when he knew the Royals were a well-organized team.
In fact, the Royals were so well-organized that the next spring Hudler found a bill for the toilet waiting in his locker.
Rusty tries to get a ball in play
The Royals' former outfield coach has a million stories. Ask Rusty Kuntz about his most memorable snap, and he tells a story about his days in the minor leagues while playing in Evansville, Ind.
Rusty recalled that he had struck out 11 or 12 times in a row. Then came a strikeout on a pitch in the dirt that the opposing catcher blocked. The ball rolled out in front of home plate and the catcher bent over to pick it up.
That’s when Rusty shoved him. The opposing pitcher was headed toward him, and Rusty warned him off: “I’m getting a ball in play!” So Rusty picked up the ball, flipped it in the air and hit it with his bat … and the ball went foul into the stands.
The umpire asked Rusty if he was about done, and a few seconds later the ball wasn’t the only thing that left the playing field.
So, about today's Royals ...
Ask current Royals players about snapping and you'll get some interesting answers.
Third baseman Mike Moustakas claims he doesn’t do it anymore, but when he had a bad trip to the plate he used to break his bat over his knee.
Pitcher Ian Kennedy tries not to cuss, but if he feels that he must, he’ll leave the dugout to do it. Other pitchers might drop an F-bomb but cover their faces with their gloves so fans (and umps) can’t lip-read their profanity. If he can’t leave the mound to cuss, Kennedy admits he sometimes bites the webbing of his glove as hard as he can.
Catcher Drew Butera says he tries not to do it anymore, but he used to throw his batting helmet. He says he would throw it at the padded trainer’s table just outside the dugout to avoid breaking anything.
Outfielder Alex Gordon — seemingly the most stoic of players — admitted that he’ll leave the dugout to yell and is good for one or two broken bats per year.
Second baseman Whit Merrifield says he doesn’t snap.
... And a few anonymous accounts
People who have been around the Royals for years are reluctant to name names, but they have lots of snapping stories to tell.
Broken doors and broken chairs are pretty common. One player had a habit of ripping off his jersey before undoing the buttons. Another guy went into the showers and set his hat and shoes on fire. Another one gathered up all the cans of beer in the clubhouse, took them down to the indoor batting cage and hit them off a batting tee.
(As soon as I heard that last story, I really wanted to see what happens when you hit a can of beer with a baseball bat. If you’ve already watched the video we shot to accompany this story, you know it’s pretty spectacular.)
After hearing a few of these stories, a common theme emerged: The worst snappers might be starting pitchers.
And that makes sense. If a starting pitcher is forced to leave a game early, he's likely to wind up angry and alone in the clubhouse. He can’t do anything about a bad performance until he pitches again five days later; in the meantime, hitting cans of beer off a batting tee might seem like a good idea.
In the old days, when the clubhouse was pretty much a concrete floor with metal lockers and stools, a guy could go nuts with a baseball bat and not do that much damage. Now clubhouses have leather couches and captain’s chairs, wood paneling and flat-screen TVs. If today's player needs to snap, he usually does so outside the clubhouse.
Smart teams might provide players a chance to snap without doing much damage. Apparently, at least one big-league team has a punching bag hanging just outside the dugout. If an irate player on that team feels the need to punch something, he’s got a better alternative than a concrete wall.
On more thing. If a guy snaps and does some damage but doesn’t own up to it, that’s considered bush-league. A real pro admits his guilt, gets out his checkbook and pays for the damage he’s done.
Smashing a flat-screen TV is a bad idea from a financial standpoint. At the low, low cost of $8.49, I can highly recommend hitting cans of beer off a batting tee.
Mellinger Minutes: Jorts, why should you go to the ballpark, and when can we start gambling?