Daily Clips
March 11, 2017
LOCAL
O'Brien's fourth spring homer leads offense
March 10, 2017By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Hammel working on slider, building up arm strength
Righty allows two runs in 2 2/3 innings in second spring start
March 10, 2017By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Royals' coaches using protective screens
After Giants' coach suffers injury, added guards brought in
March 10, 2017By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Orlando not upset at losing chance to start in Royals' OF
Outfielder now likely a reserve after acquisition of Soler
March 10, 2017By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Duffy still grappling with loss of friend Ventura
March 10, 2017By Phil Rogers/MLB.com
Kelvin Herrera, Matt Strahm look sharp in Royals’ 11-7 loss to A’s
March 10, 2017By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Royals’ next three spring games will be televised on FSKC
March 10, 2017By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Danny Duffy plans to honor Yordano Ventura at WBC
March 10, 2017By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Royals’ Raul Mondesi leaves game against A’s after collision at first base
March 10, 2017By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Bubba Starling feels right at home with friend and teammate Cam Gallagher
March 10, 2017By Shelby Hyde/KC Star
In era of innovation, Royals’ Ned Yost remains a bullpen traditionalist
March 10, 2017By Rustin Dodd/KC Star
Ask Rustin: Assessing the competition at second base, the World Baseball Classic and Alex Gordon as classic rock
March 10, 2017By Rustin Dodd/KC Star
How to watch baseball like a scout, and see things you might otherwise miss
March 10, 2017By Lee Judge/KC Star
Royals hope Herrera can be their next great closer
March 10, 2017FOXSportsKC.com (via AP)
MINORS
9 Chasers Among Top 30 Royals Farmhands
Top prospect Josh Staumont could start 2017 in Omaha
March 10, 2017By Andrew Green/Omaha Storm Chasers
NATIONAL
USA’s Danny Duffy to be emotional Saturday when USA faces Dominican Republic
March 10, 2017By Bob Nightengale/USA Today
MLB TRANSACTIONS
March11, 2017 •.CBSSports.com
LOCAL
O'Brien's fourth spring homer leads offense
March 10, 2017By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Chad Pinder blasted a three-run homer, Matt Olson hit a towering solo blast and Andrew Lambo added a two-run shot, as the A's beat the Royals, 11-7, on Friday night at Surprise Stadium.
A's right-hander Jharel Cotton, likely the club's No. 3 starter, overmatched the Royals with 3 1/3 no-hit innings.
Cotton struck out five, including the side in the second inning. He walked Alex Gordon to lead off the bottom of the fourth, then struck out Mike Moustakas before exiting. Gordon scored after Cotton's departure, charging the right-hander with a run.
"That's always a plus," Cotton said of allowing no hits. "I don't want to say it was an easy outing, but it was easier than the [first] two, mentality-wise."
Right-hander Jason Hammel, likely the No. 3 or No. 4 starter in the Royals' rotation, went 2 2/3 innings, giving up two runs on three hits with three strikeouts. New Royals closer Kelvin Herrera made his second appearance this spring, and like his first outing, pitched a scoreless inning.
Peter O'Brien led Kansas City's offense with his fourth homer of the spring, while Lorenzo Cain added an RBI triple.
Royals infielder Raul Mondesi was involved in a collision at first base in the seventh inning, then left the game. The Royals announced he was removed as a precaution for a possible concussion. His status is listed as day to day.
"I haven't talked to the trainers, but he seemed OK," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "A little sore, but he was fine when he got to the dugout."
A's up next: Right-hander Andrew Triggs, battling for a spot in the back end of the A's rotation, will make his first start of the spring when the A's host the Rangers in a 12:05 p.m. PT contest at Hohokam Stadium on Saturday. Veteran relievers Ryan Madson (2 ER, 1 IP in one outing so far) and John Axford (0.00 ERA in 2 IP) are also scheduled to pitch.
Royals up next: Left-hander Jason Vargas, likely to be the No. 3 or No. 4 starter in the rotation, makes his third start this spring in a 2:05 p.m. CT start against the Indians in Goodyear on Saturday, live on MLB.TV. Veterans Al Alburquerque, Chris Withrow, Bobby Parnell and Brandon League are among those also expected to pitch -- all of whom are fighting for the one or two possible open bullpen spots.
Hammel working on slider, building up arm strength
Righty allows two runs in 2 2/3 innings in second spring start
March 10, 2017By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Friday's 11-7 loss to the A's marked a first for Royals pitcher Jason Hammel.
"That was the first Spring Training night game I've ever pitched in," Hammel said. "I liked it."
Hammel threw 2 2/3 innings in his second Cactus League start, giving up two runs on three hits. He threw 48 pitches.
"I definitely worked on the slider more," Hammel said. "Not overly pleased, but not disappointed, either.
"My fastball the last time out was pretty good and my breaking stuff wasn't. Tonight, it kind of flipped."
Hammel threw one changeup -- Oakland's Matt Olson deposited it over the right-field fence and out of Surprise Stadium.
"Strong kid," Hammel said. "I don't know what they're feeding these young guys, but I've got to get some of it."
At this stage of camp, Hammel simply is building up his arm strength.
"Overall, I felt great, throwing 50 pitches, plus the warmup," Hammel said. "That was a nice workload."
Hammel then added with a smile, "I do feel like I threw more strikes than I got credit for."
Royals' coaches using protective screens
After Giants' coach suffers injury, added guards brought in
March 10, 2017By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Less than a week after the horrific accident in which Giants coach Jose Alguacil was struck in the face with a foul ball while sitting on a folding chair outside the dugout, a protective and portable fence was put up in front of the coaches for both teams during an exhibition game between the Royals and Team Venezuela on Wednesday.
And that protective fence might be here to stay for Spring Training games.
Last Saturday, Alguacil was struck in the face by a check-swing foul, and was then airlifted to a trauma unit in Phoenix. He underwent surgery to repair a broken nose, while also suffering a deep laceration on the left side of the face and fractures of the eye sockets.
Alguacil is expected to be out at least two more weeks.
Meanwhile, while the Spring Training tradition of coaches sitting outside the dugout will continue, protective screens could be in order from now on, though no mandate came down from Major League Baseball. Both teams used the screens Friday night at Surprise Stadium for the A's-Royals game.
"[Team Venezuela] asked for it," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "They asked to have a screen and I said, 'Hey, throw one out for us, too.'"
Are the screens here for good?
"I don't know," Yost said. "The rest of my coaches are pretty scared."
Yost indicated he is somewhat indifferent about the screens. He doesn't necessarily want one.
"Not really," said Yost, who also said he has never been close to being hit by a foul ball. "Been sitting out there for 14 or 15 years."
Yost said the Giants coaches' chairs were positioned differently during the game Alguacil was hit.
"The problem was that the chairs were more extended that day," Yost said. "I noticed right from the get-go. ... Sometimes they put the chairs out, and they put that time clock on the other side. Well, we don't use the time clock, so I shift our chairs in front of the time clock, closer to the dugout. But theirs were extended more toward the backstop.
"It's nobody's fault. Just a bad angle."
Yost said sitting outside the dugout is not only tradition, it's somewhat of a necessity during the spring.
"You do it because you've got 60 guys in Spring Training, and the bench is so filled up, you don't have a place to stand," Yost said. "You don't have a problem during the regular season. But now, it's like a football team in the dugout."
Orlando not upset at losing chance to start in Royals' OF
Outfielder now likely a reserve after acquisition of Soler
March 10, 2017By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
One of the biggest surprises of the Royals' 2016 season was the emergence of outfielder Paulo Orlando.
In his age-30 season, the late-blooming Orlando had his breakout year, playing in 128 games, hitting .302 and smacking 24 doubles.
Combine that with his superb outfield play, and Orlando had every reason to think he might compete for a starting job in the outfield this spring.
That notion vanished at the Winter Meetings, when the Royals traded closer Wade Davis to the Cubs for outfielder Jorge Soler.
"It was surprising to see Wade leave, because he's so good," Orlando said. "But we know Soler is a good player with power, and a good arm. Everything is fine. We do what we can to get back to the playoffs."
Orlando insists he wasn't upset knowing his chance to start vanished with the Soler deal.
"No, I don't think about that, because I know the Royals are always looking for good players to help the team," Orlando said. "They're trying to get us back to the playoffs again. All I can do is look for my opportunity."
Still, after last season, thoughts of starting must have danced through Orlando's head, right?
"Sometimes you think about that," Orlando said. "But then again, you have to wait for your opportunity. Your opportunity will come, and you have to be ready. I'll do my best. It's nothing different than last year.
"Last year, a couple guys got hurt and I got in. I [platooned] with [Jarrod] Dyson, got at-bats that way. We'll see what happens this year. First, I have to make the roster."
Actually, making the roster would seem to be a foregone conclusion for Orlando. Manager Ned Yost likely will use Orlando, if nothing else, as a late-inning defensive replacement on days he doesn't start.
But Orlando isn't assuming any of that.
"I know I still have options left to play in the Minors," Orlando said.
Minors? It seems highly unlikely Orlando will end up there.
"Hey, you never know," Orlando said, smiling. "But I try not to think about it. It's a new year. Every year is different. Hopefully I stay on the roster again."
Duffy still grappling with loss of friend Ventura
March 10, 2017By Phil Rogers/MLB.com
It's been almost seven weeks since he heard the news, but the shock of losing close friend Yordano Ventura remains fresh to Danny Duffy.
The Royals left-hander admitted on Friday that he still sees Ventura when he closes his eyes.
"I mean, it still hasn't become real to us," Duffy said before Team USA's opener in the World Baseball Classic. "Truthfully, man, I mean, I dream about the kid all the time. It's definitely a tough period, but none of us in that clubhouse, in the Royals clubhouse, has ever been through something like that before. You can't plan for it. I feel like you have to feel all these emotions in order to get through it and ... not get past it but get through it, and just band together."
Duffy is slated to start for Team USA against Canada on Sunday. But he knows that at some point on Saturday night he'll see Ventura's No. 30 jersey hanging in the Dominican Republic dugout, alongside one for Andy Marte, when the D.R. plays Team USA.
The two Major Leaguers died in separate auto accidents in January in the Dominican Republic.
Ventura and Duffy came up together in the Royals' farm system. They were on the field together celebrating the World Series victory over the Mets in 2015, as well as suffering through the Game 7 loss to the Giants the year before.
Ventura's emotions sometimes got the best of him on the field, but Duffy says his heart was always in the right place.
"I loved that kid," he said. "He was my little brother. We came up together, and obviously, he had that kind of fire that you can't teach. He rubbed a lot of people the wrong way, but at the end of the day, he always had all of our backs. And sometimes, when he started those fires, it would get the boys going."
Duffy has Ventura's No. 30 written on the back of his spikes.
"I'm doing everything I can to honor him and just play like him," he said. "So seeing that jersey is obviously going to be difficult. We get out to Opening Day [in Kansas City], it's going to be interesting to really see how we're all going to approach it, because everybody grieves in different ways."
The World Baseball Classic runs through March 22. In the U.S., games air live exclusively in English on MLB Network and on an authenticated basis via MLBNetwork.com/watch, while ESPN Deportes and WatchESPN provide the exclusive Spanish-language coverage. MLB.TV Premium subscribers in the U.S. have access to watch every tournament game live on any of the streaming service's 400-plus supported devices. The tournament is being distributed internationally across all forms of television, internet, mobile and radio in territories excluding the U.S., Puerto Rico and Japan. Get tickets for games at Marlins Park, Tokyo Dome, Estadio Charros de Jalisco in Mexico, Petco Park, as well as the Championship Round at Dodger Stadium, while complete coverage -- including schedules, video, stats and gear -- is available at WorldBaseballClassic.com.
Kelvin Herrera, Matt Strahm look sharp in Royals’ 11-7 loss to A’s
March 10, 2017By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Before the start of the Royals’ 11-7 loss to the Oakland A’s Friday night in a spring-training game, manager Ned Yost was asked about the bullpen.
Yost ticked off a list of 10 names of pitchers he said had looked good this spring and were still in the mix to see time in the bullpen this season.
“We’ve got a lot of guys who are throwing the ball really well,” Yost said.
Two pitchers expected to be key contributors looked sharp Friday night. Closer Kelvin Herrera struck out three and allowed just a single in the fourth inning as his off-speed pitches kept the A’s batters off-balance.
Left-hander Matt Strahm followed and struck out the side. Lefty Scott Alexander, who is not a lock for a bullpen spot, also tossed a scoreless inning and struck out a batter.
Royals starter Jason Hammel, however, had an uneven outing.
Oakland first baseman Matt Olson opened the second inning by hitting a home run that made fans scurry on the sidewalk where it landed. That was behind the grass berm beyond the A’s bullpen in right field. After an out, catcher Josh Phegley lined a double to left, and with two outs, right fielder Jaff Decker hit a laser to center for another double and Oakland led 2-0.
Hammel sandwiched a pair of outs around a walk in the third and was lifted after throwing 48 pitches, including 29 for strikes. It was the second spring start for Hammel, who struck out three, walked two and yielded the two runs on three hits.
“I was not overly pleased, but I’m also not overly disappointed with the outing,” said Hammel, who added he was working on his slider. “Obviously, the fastball was much better the first time (out) and the breaking stuff wasn’t there. So now today, it was kind of flip-flopped.
“But overall, I felt great throwing 50 pitches and add in the warmup, it was quite a workload for second time out.”
Oakland starter Jharel Cotton retired the first nine Royals before issuing a walk to left fielder Alex Gordon. Cotton departed after striking out Mike Moustakas for the second time, and the Royals got on the board when Lorenzo Cain greeted A’s reliever Simon Castro with a triple down the right-field line.
It was still 2-1 when Jake Junis, a starter who is likely to open the season at Class AAA Omaha, gave up four runs in the seventh inning — including a three-run homer by second baseman Chad Pinder — as Oakland broke the game open.
Miguel Almonte, also a starter in the minors, allowed five runs in the eight inning.
The Regulars
Gordon walked twice and was 0 for 1.
Brandon Moss had a single and struck out twice.
Outfielder Paulo Orlando had an RBI single in the seventh inning.
The Young Guys
Second baseman Raul Mondesi came on as a defensive replacement in the sixth inning and was involved in a scary play. Decker bunted up the first-base line and ran into Mondesi who tried to cover the bag. Mondesi was down on the ground for a few minutes, but he walked off the field. Whit Merrifield took over at second. The Royals said he was taken out of the game because of a possible concussion.
Peter O’Brien and Ramon Torres hit consecutive home runs in the eighth inning.
Royals’ next three spring games will be televised on FSKC