Daily Clips
June 20, 2018
LOCAL
Royals' bats can't break out behind Hammel
Herrera is bright spot vs. Rangers as KC drops 8th straight
June 19, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Moose, Salvy in the mix for ASG starts
June 19, 2018By Jordan Wolf/MLB.com
Mondesi will get starts at SS; Esky in CF?
June 19, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Kelvin Herrera makes instant impact on 'crazy' first day with Nationals
June 20, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Make it eight: Rangers pounce early and extend Royals' losing streak
June 19, 2018By Sam McDowell/KC Star
With Mondesi looming, Escobar appreciates why 'unbelievable' streak about to end
June 19, 2018By Vahe Gregorian/KC Star
This Royals prospect went to drastic measures to inform his parents he was called up
June 19, 2018By Sam McDowell/KC Star
Royals draft pick Jackson Kowar matches Gerrit Cole, Trevor Bauer in CWS gem
June 19, 2018By Blair Kerkhoff/KC Star
After trading Kelvin Herrera, who will the Royals use as their new closer?
June 19, 2018By Sam McDowell/KC Star
Lightning struck when a Royals player sat on Iron Throne from 'Game of Thrones'
June 19, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Mellinger Minutes: Herrera's gone, what's next for Royals and worrisome about Chiefs
June 19, 2018By Sam Mellinger/KC Star
Changing of the Guard? Royals set to end Alcides Escobar’s streak, experiment with Adalberto Mondesi
June 20, 2018By Rustin Dodd/The Athletic
Kansas City will always be the place where Kelvin Herrera found his voice
June 19, 2018By Rustin Dodd/The Athletic
MINORS
Watch Royals' minor-league star Seuly Matias take part in Class A Home Run Derby
June 20, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Meet Seuly Matias, the Royals prospect who's putting up Mike Trout stats
June 20, 2018By John Edwards/Sporting News
Chasers Take Series in Reno with 9-2 Win
Duda homers, Chasers enjoy winning road trip before returning home Thursday
June 19, 2018By Omaha Storm Chasers
Naturals Fall As Travelers Claim First-Half Title
Arkansas clinches a spot in the Texas League Playoffs in September with the 7-1 victory on Tuesday night
June 19, 2018By Northwest Arkansas Naturals
Southern Division Uses Big Sixth Inning to Earn Comeback Win
Wilmington's Lee and Peterson Reach Base Twice
June 19, 2018By Wilmington Blue Rocks
Legends' Own Nick Pratto Named South Atlantic League All-Star Game MVP
June 19, 2018By Lexington Legends
NATIONAL
Rosenthal: Why were the Royals so quick to deal Kelvin Herrera?
June 19, 2018By Ken Rosenthal/The Athletic
Hurry up and wait: How MLB players deal with the mental toll of a long DL stint
June 19, 2018By Dave Brown/The Athletic
Kansas City Royals help fan attend game
June 20, 2018By The Miami County Republic
Mendez optioned following team rules violation
Bibens-Dirkx recalled, will start in place of Rangers' No. 7 prospect Wednesday
June 19, 2018By T.R. Sullivan/MLB.com
MLB TRANSACTIONS
June 20, 2018 •.CBSSports.com
LOCAL
Royals' bats can't break out behind Hammel
Herrera is bright spot vs. Rangers as KC drops 8th straight
June 19, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
Someday soon, the Royals' struggling offense is bound to break out.
That day wasn't Tuesday as they mustered just four hits in a 4-1 loss to the Rangers at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals have lost eight straight and 14 of 15.
The primary culprit has been the offense, which has scored 24 runs in the past 13 games. Only the Orioles (255) have scored fewer runs in the American League this season than the Royals (265).
Newcomer Rosell Herrera, acquired off waivers recently from the Reds, tried to provide a spark, recording two hits and an RBI.
"Nice job by him," manager Ned Yost said. "This is exciting to see a young kid come up. He's a switch-hitter, got a couple of hits against a quality pitcher like Cole Hamels, and made some nice plays in the outfield."
But the Royals managed just an unearned run through seven innings against Hamels, who struck out seven, and the Rangers' bullpen closed out the victory.
Royals starter Jason Hammel came into the game having gone 2-2 with a 2.56 ERA in his previous five starts. But the Rangers nicked him for two runs in each of the second and third innings.
The big blow in the second was Delino DeShields' two-run double.
Hammel lasted 5 2/3 innings and gave up nine hits, four walks and four runs. He also struck out four.
"The first few innings, I was sweating a lot," Hammel said. "I was having trouble gripping the ball, so just getting through that. Kind of when I ran out of sweat, I was able to feel the ball again and make more effective pitches. But [no] excuses. Just got to execute better. There was four walks, three of them come around to score. That's the thing that'll irk me tonight while I'm sleeping, trying to sleep."
MOMENT THAT MATTERED
The Royals' sputtering offense had a chance to make a statement against Hamels in the first as he battled his command. Hamels issued a leadoff walk to Whit Merrifield, then he threw a wild pitch. Moments later, Merrifield stole third, still with none out. The Rangers played their infield back, conceding the run, but Paulo Orlando struck out on a pitch out of the zone. Hamels walked Mike Moustakas next, but Salvador Perez rolled into a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat. Perez has hit into a team-leading 12 double plays. The Royals are tied with the Astros for most double plays in the Major Leagues with 73.
"I want to say we've hit into our 76th double play of the year? 73?" Yost said. "Something crazy. It just boggles your mind that that's happened so many times."
Added Merrifield, "[Hamels] looked like he kind of lost the feel for his stuff initially, a lot of times that can snowball. But he's a veteran guy, he found it and commanded, and got a pitch when he needed it."
SOUND SMART
Merrifield, who led the AL in stolen bases with 34 last season, has 16 this season. He also is 9-for-9 stealing third base, which he did in the first inning.
Royals left fielder Alex Gordon threw out Elvis Andrus trying to score from second on a single in the ninth. It was Gordon's seventh assist this season and the 89th of his career, most in the Majors since 2010.
HE SAID IT
"Kind of get tired of that. Feel like I'm playing hockey like I'm a goalie instead of a baseball player right now. I don't know what it is, but it's definitely the most times I've ever been hit since I started playing baseball. It's got to be four or five times lately." -- Hammel, on getting nailed with yet another comebacker in the first inning off the bat of Adrian Beltre
UP NEXT
Right-hander Jakob Junis (5-7, 4.43 ERA) takes the mound for the Royals in the series finale against the Rangers at 7:15 p.m. CT on Wednesday at Kauffman Stadium. Right-hander Austin Bibens-Dirkx (0-1, 6.55) will start for the Rangers. Junis has lost four straight, including Friday's start against the Astros when he gave up six runs over 5 1/3 innings. He gave up three home runs in the game and has yielded 18 for the season.
Moose, Salvy in the mix for ASG starts
June 19, 2018By Jordan Wolf/MLB.com
Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas and catcher Salvador Perez are both in the top five among their position in voting in the 2018 Camping World All-Star Ballot update released Tuesday.
Moustakas is seeking his third All-Star appearance this year in Washington, and Perez his sixth straight.
Moustakas is third on the team in batting average at .263. He leads the club in homers with 13 and RBIs with 47.
Perez sits just behind Moustakas in homers at 11. His slugging percentage of .429 is third on Kansas City. Perez is tied for third in runners caught stealing among all AL backstops.
Moustakas sits at 231,363 votes, a ways behind the Indians' Jose Ramirez, who leads third basemen with 893,530 votes.
Perez is in fourth among catchers with 344,915 votes. Wilson Ramos of the Rays leads the position, with 678,159 votes.
Fans may cast votes for starters at MLB.com and all 30 club sites -- on computers, tablets and smartphones -- exclusively online using the 2018 Camping World MLB All-Star Ballot until Thursday, July 5, at 11:59 p.m. ET. On smartphones and tablets, fans can also access the ballot via the MLB At Bat and MLB Ballpark mobile apps. Each fan can vote up to five times in any 24-hour period, for a maximum of 35 ballots cast.
Mondesi will get starts at SS; Esky in CF?
June 19, 2018By Jeffrey Flanagan/MLB.com
The streak may soon be coming to an end.
A day after Royals manager Ned Yost brushed aside questions about when infielder Adalberto Mondesi, presumably a big part of the team's future, may start at shortstop instead of Alcides Escobar, Yost said on Tuesday he now plans to play Mondesi some at shortstop.
Yost said he wanted to discuss the issue with Escobar first before announcing anything to the media.
"It'll probably be one time a week or two times a week, but we are going to play [Mondesi] some at short," Yost said. "And probably on those days, we're going to be moving Esky around, too. When I was in Milwaukee, Esky played center field. He can play third. He was probably one of the best athletes we had in the organization. Still extremely athletic."
One issue at stake was Escobar's streak -- he started for the 406th straight time on Tuesday, a club record and the longest active streak in the Majors.
"We talked about the streak last night a little bit," Yost said. "There will be times when he'll sit."
Escobar's response?
"He was excited about the opportunity," Yost said. "He's at a point in his career now where it will increase his value if he can play multiple positions, especially center field, third base, second base and shortstop as he can. So he was excited about that, something a little different. He understands exactly where we are with Mondesi. He was very, very, very good about the whole thing."
The Royals have little to lose by exploring new lineups and new positions for players. They entered Tuesday with a 22-50 record. And Escobar, hitting .206, was mired in a 3-for-45 slump.
"It's a good chance to experiment right now," Yost said. "There's nothing that's going to make or break us. You can start looking at things a little bit differently, and start experimenting with some things, and seeing how they look."
Who will close?
Yost also said he will try several candidates to replace closer Kelvin Herrera, who was traded to the Nationals on Monday.
The options includes Wily Peralta, Brandon Maurer, Justin Grimm and Kevin McCarthy.
"Maurer has done it before," Yost said. "Peralta and Grimm have the stuff, and McCarthy has been reliable. We'll just see who takes the job."
Fillmyer up
To fill the open spot on the 25-man roster, the Royals called up right-hander Heath Fillmyer from Triple-A Omaha. Fillmyer was acquired in the offseason from the A's in the Brandon Moss trade.
Fillmyer, 24, was 4-5 with a 5.75 ERA in 13 starts for Omaha. Yost said he will pitch out of the bullpen here.
"It's a great feeling," Fillmyer said of getting called up to the Major Leagues. "You've been waiting for the kind of news like that your whole life. You've been working your whole life for it, and I'm just grateful for it. It's awesome to be here."
Kelvin Herrera makes instant impact on 'crazy' first day with Nationals
June 20, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
A little more than 24 hours after speaking to reporters in Kansas City about his trade to Washington, Kelvin Herrera took the mound Tuesday in his first game with the Nationals.
It was a whirlwind for Herrera.
"Yeah," Herrera told MLB.com. "Crazy."
Herrera was crazy good in his debut, needing a mere six pitches to set down the Orioles in order in the eighth inning. His new teammates were thrilled to have Herrera.
"It's funny, you see 95 on the Jumbotron, but it looks like 104," Nationals outfielder Adam Eaton told MLB.com. "I'm not kidding. I don't know what the gurus upstairs say about his spin effect or whatever, but I'm telling you, it looks like 104 coming out of a cannon. I'm so happy he's here and he's on my team and I don't have to face him anytime in the near future."
Herrera was greeted in the clubhouse before the game by a pair of former Royals teammates who are with the Nationals: Ryan Madson and Tim Collins.
“It’s like when you move to a neighborhood, and in the neighborhood there are two neighbors that you’ve lived near before,” Herrera told the Washington Post. “Obviously, we get along really well, and that makes me feel really good.”
Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo told the Post that he reached out to Royals GM Dayton Moore three or four weeks ago to express interest in acquiring Herrera.
The Nationals traded a trio of minor league players to the Royals and are paying the prorated portion of Herrera's salary, which the Post said was around $4.4 million.
As the Post story noted, paying that money allowed the Nationals to get Herrera without giving up any of their top prospects.
“I think it really affects the player return, obviously,” Rizzo told the Post. “Picking up the entire contract — the prorated portion of the contract — was important because it allows us to make the best deal we can for the long-term future of the organization.”
Make it eight: Rangers pounce early and extend Royals' losing streak
June 19, 2018By Sam McDowell/KC Star
Over the past month, Royals starter Jason Hammel had developed better command of his pitches, a topic of conversation he frequented when crediting a string of resurgence.
But the command was gone Tuesday.
The losing streak, on the other hand, rolls on.
The Royals’ skid hit eight games Tuesday after the Rangers pounced on Hammel early and left Kauffman Stadium with a 4-1 win.
Hammel allowed all four runs in the initial three innings before settling in with three consecutive zeroes.
“Too little, too late,” he said. “I put our guys in a hole early.”
The Royals (22-51) have lost 14 of 15 games, a stretch defined most aptly by their lack of production at the plate. They are hitting .188 in June, scoring only 2.1 runs per game in 17 outings this month. That left an early explosion from the Rangers insurmountable, especially with Cole Hamels in cruise control on the mound. Texas (31-44) scored twice in the third — an output that would have been larger if not for second baseman’s Whit Merrifield’s two-out diving stop to save a pair of runs — and followed it with two more in the fourth.
Hammel (2-8) walked four and allowed nine hits over 5 2/3 innings before handing the ball to the bullpen. He did not have a clean inning in the game and threw just 55 of his 94 pitches for strikes.
“I thought it was a grind for him tonight, the first three innings especially,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “He was really fighting command there, especially in the second and the third.”
This after his most promising stretch of the season. Hammel posted a 2.56 earned run average over his previous five starts. He walked only five in those games, striking out 28.
“I put traffic on with (four) walks,” Hammel said. “That’s the part that bugs me.”
A day after trading reliever Kelvin Herrera to the Nationals — continuing the rebuild process — the wait to see who will get the first chance to serve as his replacement prolongs another day. The bullpen was a bright spot, though, with Tim Hill, Brandon Maurer and Burch Smith combining for 3 1/3 shutout innings. They allowed only two baserunners.
The defense aided the pitching staff — Merrifield’s diving stop in the second; Alcides Escobar and Alex Gordon threw out runners trying to score; and Salvador Perez pegged a would-be base stealer, unleashing the throw from his knees. Gordon has seven outfield assists this season.
The Rangers asked Keone Kela to finish off the encouraging start from Hamels, who improved to 4-6. Hamels yielded only an unearned run over his seven innings, deftly working out of trouble twice. Merrifield advanced to third with nobody out in the opening inning but was left stranded.
Royals outfielder Rosell Herrera hit a two-out single in the fifth to score Gordon, a run that felt like a consolation prize after the first two batters in the inning reached base. Herrera had half of the Royals’ four hits, all singles.
Hamels struck out seven and allowed seven baserunners, three of them free passes.
“He mixes it up really well,” Merrifield said. “His percentages of pitches in counts are almost identical, so there’s no tendencies to him. He mixes everything up.”