The KC Royals and Cleveland Indians played two on Sunday, one in the afternoon and the other at night. The night game was the makeup of Friday night’s rainout, which made many in Kansas City unhappy (with the time because it cannot be televised due to ESPN and the ticket exchange policy).

The Royals took Game 1 of the doubleheader by a 9-0 score. They then lost the night game, 10-3.

Jeremy Guthrie during 2013 ST against Cleveland.

Jeremy Guthrie outdueled Indians ace Justin Masterson (who had been masterful so far this season). Guthrie pitched 6.2 shutout innings. He allowed six hits and three walks while striking out five. He left the game with two men on base in the seventh and lefty Tim Collins entered to face Michael Brantley. He flied out on the second pitch to end the inning.

Luke Hochevar followed with two scoreless innings of relief. He struck out the side in the 8th inning around an Asdrubal Cabrera double. In the ninth, he struck out two more.

The offense went to work in the second after a two out walk to Mike Moustakas. Back-to-back doubles by Jeff Francoeur and Jarrod Dyson gave the Royals the 2-0 lead. After Masterson struck out the side in the third, Dyson drove in another run (after another Moose walk). Alcides Escobar hit a solo homerun in the 5th inning to give the Royals a 4-0 lead.

They chased Masterson from the game in the seventh. Escobar drove in the first inning on a ground out. After a wild pitch and a walk to Billy Butler, Eric Hosmer singled to drive in a run. That brought in right-hander Matt Albers, who hit the first batter he faced before walking in a run. That was the second time in two games that an Indians reliever has walked in a run. And guess who worked that walk? MOOSE!

Alex Gordon hit a two-run homerun off lefty Scott Barnes in the 8th inning. Barnes was the Indians 26th man for the doubleheader.

In Game 1, Gordon, Francoeur, and Dyson each collected two hits in the win.

» Continue reading “Royals Win One, Lose One to Indians”

It looks like Bruce Chen won’t be making that start later today against Seattle after all.

Luis Mendoza

Earlier this morning, KC Royals manager Ned Yost named Luis Mendoza the fifth starter. Chen will move to the bullpen (and will still pitch today). Sugar Ray Marimon will make the start.

Yost spoke the obvious this morning, that Mendoza pitched better this spring. I’ll let you know how he pitches in his first start of the 2013 season, next Saturday (April 6th) in Philadelphia against the Phillies. Yost believes being a sinkerballer, Mendoza should have success.

Even though Mendoza missed time as he joined Mexico for the World Baseball Classic, he did pitch better and has seemed to be in midseason form. He pitched in winter ball for Obregon and earned Caribbean Series MVP. This spring, he has just an 0.82 ERA in three games. Over 11 innings, he gave up just one run on 11 hits and two walks. Mendoza struck out eight.

Chen allowed 16 hits, with seven of them being homeruns. Over 13.2 innings, he carried a 7.90 ERA, though he struck out 12. Chen is expected to be the long reliever and took his assignment with grace (which shouldn’t be a surprise if you have been around him).

“It’s a challenge, and I’m going to try to make the most out of it. I know that Luke took a really good approach, and he’s been excelling at that position. It’s tough, but it’s not impossible,” Chen said.

“We have to do everything we can to help this team win. We can’t be feeling sorry for ourselves, feeling bad or pouting or anything. That’s not going to help the team or us.”

Yost did hint that Mendoza is still the perfect long reliever and he earned the rotation spot because he has pitched better than Chen. He mentioned that it could change during the season:

“He is the perfect long reliever,” Yost repeated. “He’s the better guy right now and the reason for that is Bruce, like most veteran players, is a little slow to get it going in Spring Training. So starting the season, we wanted to put the guys out there that are doing the best in Spring Training. I’m not saying that it doesn’t change somewhere down the road. Who can say what’ll happen. That’s where we’re starting.”

The KC Royals won their slugfest over the visiting LA Angels, 17-11 on Sunday afternoon. It was another piggy-back game for fifth rotation spot contenders Luke Hochevar and Bruce Chen. Neither pitched well, but their offense continued to do the talking.

Hochevar started and allowed four runs on five hits over 3.1 innings. He walked two and struck out three. Hochevar also allowed two home runs. He threw 68 pitches, 42 for strikes.

Chen followed and allowed five runs on five hits over 3.2 innings. He walked two and struck out four. Chen also allowed two home runs. He threw 40 of his 67 pitches for strikes.

Francisley Bueno and Aaron Crow each allowed a run in their one inning of work.

Alcides Escobar went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Billy Butler went 3-for-4 with a double, three runs scored, and four RBIs. Jeff Francoeur fell a double short of a cycle, with three RBIs.

Next up, the Royals will enjoy their second day off this spring. On Tuesday, they will head to Phoenix to play Oakland and Tommy Milone. James Shields will start for the Royals, followed by Everett Teaford, Greg Holland, Juan Gutierrez, Donnie Joseph, and Louis Coleman.

Catcher Salvador Perez is expected back by Tuesday and should be in the lineup. He went 0-for-1 in his final game of the World Baseball Classic for Venezuela.

Eric Hosmer went 2-for-5 in the USA’s clinching game of Pool D over Canada. His bases clearing double in the ninth blew the game open. He and lefty Tim Collins will be heading to Miami for the second round, where they will face Puerto Rico. Irving Falu went 2-for-4 in Puerto Rico’s loss to the Dominican Republic. Former Royals Carlos Beltran went 0-for-4 and Mike Aviles went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run. In the game for the Dominicans, Miguel Tejada came off the bench to go 2-for-2.

The KC Royals won yet again on Tuesday, as they beat visiting Oakland, 8-2. They scored four runs in the bottom of the first and cruised to victory.

Three straight singles opened the bottom of the first to score a run and Billy Butler’s RBI ground out drove in another. Mike Moustakas followed with an RBI double before Lorenzo Cain’s two out RBI single closed out their first inning scoring.

Alcides Escobar was the only Royal that recorded a multi-hit game. They totaled 13 hits. Jarrod Dyson drove in a run in the Royals three run 8th inning with a triple and Brandon Wood hit a solo home run in that inning. Brett Hayes also hit a solo home run (in the second).

Now to my headline.

Bruce Chen made his first start of the spring and allowed one run over three innings. He allowed two hits while striking out two. He threw 29 of his 44 pitches for strikes.

Luke Hochevar followed with three scoreless innings. He allowed three hits and walked one while striking out three. He threw 33 of his 56 pitches for strikes.

Louis Coleman allowed another run in the seventh, before Aaron Crow threw a quick, perfect inning. He threw just nine pitches.

Greg Holland finished out the game by allowing one hit. He struck out two and threw 13 pitches.

James Shields will make his second spring start on Wednesday against Arizona at Salt River. He is hoping to pitch three innings. Lefty Will Smith will follow. Trevor Cahill will start for the Dbacks.

On Wednesday afternoon, the KC Royals battle for the fifth spot in the rotation officially began, as Luke Hochevar made the start and Bruce Chen pitched in relief. The Royals came back to beat the visiting Milwaukee Brewers, 3-2.

Hochevar did not make it through the customary two innings for a first start in spring training. He only allowed one hit, but walked three and used 38 pitches to get just five outs. Francisley Bueno followed and allowed an inherited runner to score (so Hochevar ended up giving up two runs).

Chen entered in the fourth and pitched two perfect innings. He struck out two and threw 21 of his 28 pitches for strikes.

Kelvin Herrera and Tim Collins, who will be leaving for the World Baseball Classic, each pitched a scoreless inning of relief. Louis Coleman followed with a shutout inning before Michael Mariot picked up his second spring training save with a perfect inning.

Meanwhile, on offense for the Royals, it was all about the starters.

Alex Gordon went 2-for-3 with a run scored. Eric Hosmer also went 2-for-3 with a run scored, but he also drove in a run. His replacement, Max Ramirez, went 1-for-1 with a two out RBI.

Mike Moustakas went 2-for-2 with a two out RBI. His replacement, Miguel Tejada, went 1-for-2.

The Royals defense turned four double plays.

James Shields will make his Cactus League debut on Thursday with one inning of work to start at Peoria against the San Diego Padres. Lefty Will Smith will follow in his second spring appearance. Atahualpa Severino will make his final outing before heading to join the Dominican Republic in the WBC.

Jason Marquis will make his first spring start for the Padres and is expected to throw two innings. Tyson Ross and Wilfredo Boscan are expected to follow and throw two to three innings each.

The provisional rosters for the World Baseball Classic were released this afternoon and there are quite a few current and former KC Royals on those rosters.

I wrote earlier about lefty reliever Tim Collins being a member of Team USA.

It was rumored that lefty starter Bruce Chen might join Team China. Well, it looks as though the crafty veteran will be anchoring the Chinese staff in the WBC. I am surprised that he is going to be leaving the Royals early in spring training when he is going to be in a tight battle for the final rotation spot. Their pool, Pool A, begins play on March 2nd, but China starts play on the third against host Japan.

Pitchers are only allowed to throw 65 pitches in the first round of pool play, so if Chen can be economical, he could realistically go five or six innings (unless he gets ripped).

Joining Chen in Pool A is Royals minor leaguer Paulo Orlando. The outfielder was a member of the surprise Brazilian team that upset Panama in the WBC Qualifier. He will be with Brazil in their first WBC when they begin play on March 2nd against host Japan. As of right now, Brazil’s lone big leaguer, catcher Yan Gomes, who played in the qualifier, is not on the roster (but they only have one catcher listed on their roster).

The Netherlands shocked the world in 2009 and look to do the same in 2013 in Pool B with some players with a little more name recognition (like Jair Jurrjens, Andruw Jones, Andrelton Simmons, and Jurickson Profar). Pitcher JC Sulbaran, who the Royals received from Cincinnati for Jonathan Broxton, is a member of the Netherlands pitching staff.

I am most looking forward to seeing some of the veteran Netherlands players, like Robbie Cordemans and Yurendell de Caster, along with some of the prospect guys like Jonathan Schoop, Xander Bogaerts, and Spencer Kieboom.

The Netherlands begin pool play on March 2nd against Korea in Taiwan.

Former Royal Justin Huber is yet again a member of the Australian team that is looking to use some of that explosive offensive (over .300 average in 2009) to make it out of the pool.

Huber will be joined with other veterans Luke Hughes, Peter Moylan, and Brad Harman. They also have some young prospects like Stefan Welch, James Beresford, and Clayton Tanner.

» Continue reading “WBC Rosters Full of Royals”

With the acquisition by the KC Royals of starters James Shields and Wade Davis, it has suddenly over-crowded their rotation.

I don’t necessarily think it is a question of will the Royals trade Bruce Chen and/or Luke Hochevar, but can they trade one or both of them? Would any team take them and their salaries?

Teams are overpaying for starting pitching right now (ie Zack Greinke and Anibal Sanchez), but can the Royals sell that these two are worth the risk?

Chen may be an easier sell mainly because he has pitched better of late and he is a veteran with a good clubhouse presence. He is slated to make $4.5 million in 2013, which is relatively cheap for the going rate (Dan Haren will make $13 million to fill the same role as Chen with Washington).

The Royals signed Chen to a multi-year deal after a very successful 2011 campaign when he went 12-8 with a 3.77 ERA over 25 starts. However, he like many of his teammates, could not duplicate it. The 2012 season started out rough, as he allowed 34 earned runs over his first 11 starts. His best months were June and August, when he went 6-1 with an ERA under 4.00.

Chen is a crafty lefty, so no one knows if he will ever be able to put together another season like 2011. I would like to see him stay in Kansas City and give it a shot. Plus, the Royals need a left-handed starter. He could rack up wins as the Royals fifth guy rather than facing other teams’ two guys like he has in the past.

Teams in desperate need of pitching, like Minnesota, could be tempted. However, I am not sure the Royals want to trade within the division.

» Continue reading “Can the Royals Trade Chen & Hochevar?”

The KC Royals had the chance to keep the Detroit Tigers from clinching the American League Central. Instead, Triple Crown leader Miguel Cabrera made sure that the Tigers were victorious. The Tigers won 6-3 and clinched the AL Central.

The Royals received a typical pitching performance by their crafty lefty Bruce Chen. However he was hurt by a David Lough fielding error in the top of the 6th inning which cost him four runs.

The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the 5th inning on a Jhonny Peralta solo homerun. The Tigers blew the game open in the sixth when they scored five runs off Chen.

After getting a strikeout to start the inning, Chen allowed a solo homerun to Cabrera and then a double to Prince Fielder (who went 4-for-5). After getting Delmon Young to fly out, he got Peralta to hit a fly ball to centerfielder David Lough. Instead, Lough couldn’t haul it in and a run scored.

Two batters later with the bases loaded, Gerald Laird cleared the bases with a double. That ended Chen‘s evening.

After cutting the deficit to 6-2, the Royals had their chance to really get back into the game. With runners on the corners and one out, Mike Moustakas struck out. Then, Jeff Francoeur singled to drive in a run. As Salvador Perez hustled to third base, Frenchy tried to take second base. Instead, he was thrown out to end the inning.

After getting Cabrera out in his first at-bat (a ground out on four pitches), the Royals could not shut him down. He singled in the fourth, homered in the sixth (to take over the AL lead), singled in the seventh, and singled in the ninth. That upped his AL-leading batting average to .329 and picked up his 200th hit of the season.

*Lefty reliever Tim Collins has earned the Ben Mondor Award, given to the New England Player of the Year. He will be presented with the award in January of 2013. Collins has set the Royals‘ franchise record for strikeouts with 93.

**First baseman Eric Hosmer remained out of the lineup with a partial tear of his rotator cuff. He was expected to take some swings on Monday and see how he felt. It’s uncertain if he will play in the final two games of the season. I say sit him. He’s more important to the team in the long haul than for these unimportant games.

***Strikeouts keep climbing: the Royals single season record for strikeouts by pitchers keeps growing and with two more games to be played, it will only grow larger. Their strikeout total sits at 1,163.

****For more on the Tigers, check out Motown Lowdown.

Somehow, the KC Royals only lost to the Detroit Tigers 2-0 on Tuesday night.

Royals starter Bruce Chen allowed two straight singles to lead off the bottom of the first inning. After getting Triple Crown threat Miguel Cabrera to fly out, Chen gave up back-to-back RBI singles and the Royals were quickly down 2-0.

After a coaching visit, Chen escaped without allowing another run.

The Tigers loaded the bases with nobody out in the bottom of the 2nd inning, but Chen was once again his crafty self. He got Omar Infante to fly out and then struck out both Cabrera and Prince Fielder to end the inning.

Chen was saved in two other innings by double plays.

His night came to an end in the seventh. With two outs, Chen allowed a triple to Infante. He then intentionally walked Cabrera and walked Fielder on four pitches.

That ended his night and in came the inconsistent Louis Coleman. With the bases loaded and Delmon Young at the plate, Coleman struck him out on three pitches.

Meanwhile, the Royals didn’t pick up their first hit against Anibal Sanchez until there were two outs in the 4th inning. Alex Gordon and Billy Butler collected back-to-back singles, but Salvador Perez lined out to end the inning.

Sanchez would allow another two out single in the 6th inning (and then a walk) before retiring ten in a row. He pitched a complete game shutout to move the Tigers into a first place tie in the American League Central with Chicago. He finished the game with ten strikeouts.

*Despite Chen taking the loss, Tigers manager Jim Leyland and catcher Gerald Laird had nothing but good things to say about his performance. You can check out what they had to say in the game wrap on kcroyals.com

The KC Royals helped out the second place Detroit Tigers (who beat Oakland) by beating the first place Chicago White Sox, 3-0. The Tigers are now two games back.

Neither team did ANYTHING with runners in scoring position: the White Sox went 1-for-12 and the Royals went 1-for-14.

However the Royals capitalized.

With the bases loaded and one out in the 3rd inning, Billy Butler drove in a run with a sac fly. In the bottom of the 7th inning, the Royals picked up their only hit with runners in scoring position: a two-run double with two outs by Alex Gordon to chase White Sox starter Chris Sale from the game.

Royals starter Bruce Chen was in trouble in every inning, as were relievers Kelvin Herrera and Greg Holland. The White Sox only had one inning when they did not have a base runner: the fifth.

On offense for the White Sox, Alejandro De Aza went 4-for-5 and Alex Rios went 3-for-5. For the Royals, Alcides Escobar went 3-for-3 and Gordon collected two hits.

*It is expected that Jake Odorizzi will make his much anticipated debut on Sunday against Cleveland. Hopefully the fans show up to support him. If they decide to go with a six-man rotation, he would start again against the Indians next weekend in Cleveland.

**For more on the White Sox, check out South Side Hit Girl.