Daily Clips
May 22, 2018
LOCAL
Kennedy burned by big frame in loss to Cards
Royals right-hander yields costly homer in pivotal 4-run 3rd
May 21, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Yost focused on Royals improving, not losses
Veteran manager happy with progress of Junis, Keller, Skoglund, Hill
May 21, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Royals shut out by Cardinals to start the I-70 series in St. Louis
May 21, 2018By Maria Torres/KC Star
Use it or lose it: Why most big-league pitchers can’t hit a lick
May 21, 2018By Lee Judge/KC Star
Royals head to St. Louis, where fans are booing a struggling Greg Holland
May 21, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
It’s supposed to be hard to lose 100 games. The Royals are making it look easy
May 22, 2018By Rustin Dodd/The Athletic
MINORS
Monday's top prospect performers
Melendez racks up career-high 6 RBIs for Lexington
May 21, 2018By Mike Rosenbaum/MLB.com
Former Creighton standout, current Royals prospect Nicky Lopez tearing up the minor leagues
May 21, 2018By Tony Boone/Omaha World-Herald
Cardinals Win Home Run Derby In Finale
May 21, 2018By Northwest Arkansas Naturals
Rocks Shocked in Late Inning Defeat
Wilmington Drops Fourth Straight
May 21, 2018By Wilmington Blue Rocks
Lexington Legends Take Game One Over Rome Braves, 18-2
May 21, 2018By Lexington Legends
NATIONAL
Twins designate RHP Hughes for assignment
Righty still owed roughly $22.5 million through next season
May 21, 2018By Rhett Bollinger/MLB.com
Collins called up, records first K since 2014
Lefty tosses scoreless inning Monday vs. Padres; Murphy yet to start rehab games
May 21, 2018By Jamal Collier/MLB.com
MLB TRANSACTIONS
May 22, 2018 •.CBSSports.com
LOCAL
Kennedy burned by big frame in loss to Cards
Royals right-hander yields costly homer in pivotal 4-run 3rd
May 21, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Another day in which a Royals starter couldn't hold an opponent down. And another day in which the offense couldn't put up much of a fight.
The Royals dropped their third straight, this time to the Cardinals, 6-0, on Monday night in the I-70 Series opener at Busch Stadium. Kansas City has lost eight of nine, and at 14-33 just past the quarter pole, is on pace for 114 losses, which would shatter the club record of 106 in 2005.
Right-hander Ian Kennedy was cruising through 2 2/3 innings when the Cardinals suddenly struck for five hits and four runs. The big blow came from rookie Tyler O'Neill, who jacked an opposite-field three-run home run off a Kennedy four-seam fastball.
"One big inning cost me a ballgame," Kennedy said. "O'Neill, I mean, I didn't know he had that pop the other way. Threw another good pitch off the plate and in that he got for a double [in the fifth inning]. He's a good young player."
Kennedy was effective after that and lasted 5 2/3 innings, permitting nine hits and five runs. He walked one and struck out five.
"Two quick outs in the third and just couldn't get that last out," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "But outside of trying to get that third out, he was pretty darn good. He made a little minor adjustment and was pretty good."
The Royals were no match for Cardinals starter Miles Mikolas, who breezed to a four-hit shutout.
"He's got good stuff," outfielder Jon Jay said. "That slider/cutter was tough. He made good pitches. [The cutter] had good action.
"For a lot of these guys it's the first time seeing him. He pitched a good game. You tip your hat to him."
MOMENT THAT MATTERED
The Royals had a promising start to the third inning. Kennedy lined a sharp single to right, though he had to hustle at the end to avoid a 9-3 putout. Jay followed with a single to left-center. But as has so often been the case, the next hitter, Jorge Soler, jumped at the first pitch and rolled into a 5-4-3 double play. The Royals now have hit into a Major League-leading 51 double plays.
"We had an opportunity in the third and of course we bang into a double play," Yost said. "I think that's the 22nd time we've hit into a double play with runners in scoring position."
SOUND SMART
Kennedy's single was the Royals' first hit by a pitcher since Danny Duffy singled on July 9, 2017.
HE SAID IT
"It starts with us as starting pitchers. When we put ourselves in holes like that, it's hard. When you keep your team in the ballgame, it's a little easier for us to grind some at-bats later in the game, maybe come back a little bit. But when you give up a four-spot, I would imagine it affects the hitters a little bit because now they feel like they have to grind a little bit more. It's not just one or two -- it's four [runs]. It starts with us. We've given up big innings as starters." -- Kennedy, on the Royals' recent woes
UP NEXT
Royals right-hander Jason Hammel (0-5, 6.28 ERA) will take the mound in the second game of the I-70 Series at 7:15 p.m. CT on Tuesday at Busch Stadium. Right-hander Luke Weaver (3-3, 4.37) will start for the Cards. Hammel gave up five runs and 10 hits over six innings last time out on Wednesday against the Rays.
Yost focused on Royals improving, not losses
Veteran manager happy with progress of Junis, Keller, Skoglund, Hill
May 21, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
As Royals manager Ned Yost sat in his visitors' clubhouse office, he insisted he is not down or frustrated by the team's 14-32 start prior to Monday's I-70 Series opener against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.
Yost also isn't interested in labeling this season as a rebuilding one, which might give the team an excuse for a poor win-loss record.
"[Labeling] it doesn't change anything," Yost said. "Whatever you call it. Whatever excuse you want to use. We show up and try to win games ...
"I don't sit and lament. We work every day to get better. There have been periods of frustration. But I'm not frustrated right now ... I don't know what you're looking for, like it should be all doom and gloom. I don't play that game."
While some observers thought the Royals might be closer to a .500 team coming out of Spring Training, Yost said he held no expectations in any direction.
"What difference does that make?" Yost said. "I never said that [the Royals could be a .500 team]. We just go at it every day. And work every day. Keep going until we get better.
"I don't look at it ... I come to the ballpark with the mindset of how to win a game today. What good is it to sit and look at what we did in the last week? What good does that do?"
There have been some encouraging developments, such as the growth of pitchers Jakob Junis, Brad Keller, Tim Hill and Eric Skoglund.
"I'm pleased with what Junis is doing, what Keller is doing, what Tim Hill is doing, what Skoglund is doing," Yost said. "Yeah, I'm pleased. But it doesn't take away from what we're trying to do."
Yost did concede that part of the mission this season is the development of players for the future.
"We're still trying to identify guys we want to move forward with," Yost said. "I've said that how many times?
"... but I'm not managing the game any differently than I did before. If we give up three or four runs, I have to hope we can get back in it, balance the bullpen, all of that stuff. It's still about going out to try to win each night."
Royals shut out by Cardinals to start the I-70 series in St. Louis
May 21, 2018By Maria Torres/KC Star
The moon shot soared through the Busch Stadium air at 106 mph. The crowd noise swelled. Within moments, Cardinals outfielder Tyler O’Neill was on the top step of the Cardinals dugout, tipping his helmet to the announced crowd of 42,140.
The rookie, the Cardinals' No. 3 prospect, had just recorded his third extra-base hit since being recalled on Friday. The three-run homer came in the third inning against Royals starter Ian Kennedy and effectively sealed the Royals’ fate, as they lost 6-0 to the Cardinals on Monday night at Busch Stadium.
"I mean, I didn’t know he had that pop the other way," Kennedy said. "Threw another good pitch off the plate and on that he got for a double. He’s a good young player. It’s just like I said that one big swing of the bat that took us out of the game."
Kennedy labored from the start. He needed 27 pitches to get through the first inning, allowing a double and walk as he went. By the end of the fourth, he had allowed four runs and thrown 83 pitches.
In all, Kennedy surrendered five runs, all of them with two outs, and yielded nine hits while throwing 108 pitches.
“Two quick outs in the third and just couldn’t get that last out," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "But outside of trying to get that third out, he was pretty darn good. He made a little minor adjustment and was pretty good. ... In the third, he just elevated."
Some other key moments:
Double trouble: Kennedy and Jon Jay led off the top of the third inning with a single apiece — yet only Kennedy reached third base. Jorge Soler grounded into a double play. Mike Moustakas flew out to end the inning.
It was the Royals’ best chance to score against Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas, who’s excelled in his first MLB season following a three-year foray in Japan. The Royals struck out nine times and reached base just six times against the 29-year-old. His season ERA dropped to 2.24 after limiting the Royals to four hits in a shutout.
The Royals lead baseball in two categories: They’ve hit into the most double plays (51) and they’ve allowed the most runs (266 total/252 earned). Entering Monday, the Royals also owned the highest ERA (5.55) in baseball.
“We had an opportunity in the third and of course we bang into a double play," Yost said. "I think that’s the 22nd time we’ve hit into a double play with runners in scoring position."
How else they lost: Before O’Neill shattered the Royals’ chances — a deficit of four runs has spelled disaster for the Royals this season — Soler committed a gaffe in right field on a ground-ball single by Marcell Ozuna. Soler had to double back to grab the ball, allowing Ozuna to reach second base on an error and Matt Carpenter to score from second, the Cardinals' first run.
The Cardinals cushioned their advantage on O'Neill's RBI double in the fifth off Kennedy and Carpenter’s leadoff homer in the seventh off reliever Jason Adam.
The Royals are 6-28 when opponents score four or more runs in a game.
Up next: The Royals, who fell to 14-33, continue this three-game series on Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. Jason Hammel will make his 10th start.
Use it or lose it: Why most big-league pitchers can’t hit a lick
May 21, 2018By Lee Judge/KC Star
The Royals are playing a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals, and with those games being played in St. Louis, the Royals' pitchers will have to go to the plate.
Back in high school or college, some of these guys were pretty good hitters. So what happened? Why can’t most big-league pitchers hit?
When a player signs a pro contract he’s sent down one of two paths; he’s either working on being a major-league pitcher, or honing his skills as a position player. For the most part, a position player who was a pretty good amateur pitcher quits pitching and pitchers who were pretty good amateur hitters quit batting.
Last season, Jason Hammel had nine plate appearances, Ian Kennedy four, Jake Junis three and Danny Duffy two. Fellow Royals starting pitcher Eric Skoglund hasn’t hit on a regular basis since high school.
It’s a case of use it or lose it.
Hitting advice for pitchers
When the Royals' starting pitchers were asked what advice their coaches were giving them this week, the answers fell into three main categories:
1. Don’t get hurt
2. Get your bunts down
3. Don’t get hurt
In 2017, the Royals' pitchers had a combined .120 batting average and did not score or drive in a run. So those pitchers shouldn’t lose their minds and think they’re going to hit a home run. Instead, they’re being told to try to have some kind of positive impact on the game during their trip to the plate.
Get a bunt down, move a runner, see five or more pitches.
If there’s a runner in scoring position, it’s OK for a pitcher to swing at the first pitch he sees. But with nobody out and nobody on, the pitchers should take a pitch.
If a pitcher makes the first out of an inning on the first pitch of an inning, then the next guy — a guy who actually gets paid to swing a bat — will have to take at least one pitch. That way, the opposing pitcher doesn’t get two-thirds of the way through an inning on two pitches.
As Hammel put it, don’t do what we hope hitters will do when we’re pitching: swing at the first pitch and make an easy out.
I got on base: now what?
If a pitcher’s hitting skills are rusty, his base-running skills are probably even more so.
Former Royals base-running coach Rusty Kuntz told a story about a former Royals pitcher getting to first base and assuring the coach he knew what he was doing; after all, the pitcher had played shortstop in high school.
Kuntz's reply: How long ago was that … 20 years ago?
That pitcher almost snapped an ankle going into third base.
These days, Kuntz tells the Royals' pitchers that no diving into base is allowed. And when it doubt, they should peel off out of the baseline. Don’t take a chance on getting hurt running the bases; we need you to stay healthy and continue pitching.
Anyone seen my helmet?
On Friday, Kuntz told the Royals' pitchers they were going to practice bunting. And he wanted them to wear their helmets.
When he was asked why the pitchers were wearing helmets even though they’d be facing a pitching machine, Kuntz said it was so they could get used to wearing them ... and to make sure the pitchers actually knew where the helmets were kept.
He didn’t want the team to get to St. Louis and have a pitcher looking around for his helmet or, worse yet, realizing he hadn’t even packed it.
Insight (or experience) into all the things that can go wrong when playing a baseball game is one of the reasons Kuntz is considered a valuable coach.
A timely reminder
Trying to hit big-league pitching is good reminder of just how hard hitting a baseball can be.
Skoglund, a guy with a fastball that averages over 92 mph, said even the BP fastballs seemed to get on you pretty quick.
Pitchers can give hitters too much credit, nibble at the zone, fall behind and then simplify the hitter’s job by throwing a fastball when the hitter is expecting one. That, or the pitcher hangs a slider or curve when another fastball would have done the job.
If a pitcher gets on base, pay attention to the next half inning.
In the American League, pitchers get to rest between innings; that’s what they’re used to. But in the National League, if a pitcher gets on base and then has to run hard a few times, pay attention to what he does when he goes back to the mound in the next half-inning.
Don’t be surprised if he’s gassed and leaves some pitches up in the zone.
Kennedy said he was once teammates with a pitcher who seemed to give up runs in the next half-inning every time he got on base.
When the Royals' pitchers go to the plate this week, lower your expectations; if the pitcher has any kind of positive impact, it will have been a terrific at-bat. If a pitcher doesn’t get hurt, it was at least a good one.
And if the pitcher is actually wearing a batting helmet when he walks to the plate, Kuntz has earned his paycheck.
Royals head to St. Louis, where fans are booing a struggling Greg Holland
May 21, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Relief pitcher Greg Holland is finding life is not as rosy on the east side of Missouri.
The Royals open a three-game series Monday night in St. Louis, where Holland has learned that the home fans actually do boo their own.
Holland, who was a key part of the Royals’ two pennant-winning teams before suffering a season-ending arm injury in 2015, is having a rough time with the Cardinals.
Last year, Holland was an All-Star for the Rockies* but declined an option for the 2018 season (worth $15 million), then rejected Colorado’s qualifying offer (worth $17.4 million).
*You may recall that walk-off homer Eric Hosmer hit against Holland at Kauffman Stadium.