Friday’s Major League Baseball deadline to sign unsigned players under team control came and went for the KC Royals and they tendered contracts to three players.

First, they signed pitcher Felipe Paulino to a $1.75 million contract, with performance bonuses that could push the contract to $2 million. That is a bit of a pay cut from last season, but he is recovering from Tommy John surgery and expects to be back after the All-Star break. Paulino is excited to be sticking around and thinks the team is moving in the right direction. He began playing catch for the first time since surgery this week.

Second baseman Chris Getz avoided arbitration by signing a $1.05 million contract. There is also $150,000 in performance incentives. GM Dayton Moore was glad to have him back, as he is a leader and makes shortstop Alcides Escobar better. Getz is also looking forward to returning to Kansas City and getting back on the field healthy.

They also tendered starter Luke Hochevar. No word yet on the monetary figures. Right now, the Royals are shopping both Hochevar and lefty Bruce Chen.

They did not tender a contract to outfielder Derrick Robinson, who they designated for assignment last week. He has yet to make his big league debut, thus he is not eligible for arbitration. He is now a free agent and an intriguing pickup for all teams out there.

Left hander Ryan Verdugo and catcher Adam Moore cleared waivers and both were outrighted to Triple-A Omaha. Both are eligible for next Friday’s Rule V draft.

*Pitcher Jeremy Guthrie was elected to one of two of the highest positions within the Players Association. He and Curtis Granderson of the NY Yankees will serve as Association Player Representatives.

** Word is that the Royals offered pitcher Scott Feldman, formerly of the Texas Rangers, a one year, $4.5 million contract, but he chose more money with the Chicago Cubs. They also offered Ryan Dempster a two year deal worth $26 million, but dropped out of the bidding war.

After much speculation (his agent tweeted it and he was scratched from Thursday’s Triple-A lineup), the KC Royals welcome catcher Salvador Perez back from knee surgery, as he is back in the lineup tonight against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Perez had been rehabbing with Omaha, where he played in 12 games. He caught back-to-back games just once. The good news is that he felt good. He also hit very well (.340 with two doubles).

For right now, the Royals will carry three catchers, as Brayan Pena and Humberto Quintero will stick around for the time being. Pena is under control for next season and is a switch-hitter, while Quintero is a free agent following the season.

To make room for Perez, lefty Tommy Hottovy was sent back to Omaha and Lorenzo Cain was placed on the 60-day DL. Cain is currently rehabbing with Double-A NW Arkansas.

There is also some bad news on Friday for the Royals. Felipe Paulino, who was their best pitcher so far this year when he wasn’t spending time on the DL, most likely needs Tommy John surgery. He is set for a second opinion. That would make four Royals pitchers having that surgery this season, and it’s only June.

Felipe Paulino

KC Royals starter Felipe Paulino lasted just four batters into the game and the Royals lost the series finale (and the series) to the visiting Minnesota Twins, 4-2.

Paulino was hit by a line drive off the bat of Twins outfielder Ben Revere, but stayed in the game. Three batters later, he left with two outs due to a right groin strain.

Luis Mendoza relieved him and lasted five innings. He allowed two runs in the top of the 5th inning that gave the Twins a 3-2 lead they would not relinquish. The Twins had two outs and nobody on base in the 5th inning, but a hit, a walk, and a hit batter loaded the bases for Justin Morneau. He hit a two-run single.

The Royals jumped on Nick Blackburn for two runs just two batters into the game. Alex Gordon singled and Yuniesky Betancourt followed with a two-run homerun. That was all Blackburn and the Twins bullpen would allow.

*The Royals will hopefully enjoy their Thursday off, as they head to Pittsburgh to begin Interleague Play on Friday night. Will we see Billy Butler at first base, Eric Hosmer in right field, and Jeff Francoeur in center? Stay tuned.

The KC Royals have won three straight series, as they went 4-2 last week. Overall, they are 23-29 and seven games out of first place in the American League Central. The Royals are just one game behind the Detroit Tigers for third place. They open a series at home tonight against the Minnesota Twins.

Omaha went 4-3 this past week and are 34-24 overall. The Storm Chasers are still in first place in the Pacific Coast League’s American Northern Division by eight games. They continue their series against Memphis over the next two days.

NW Arkansas went just 2-4 last week and are 28-27 overall. They are in second place in the North Division of the Texas League. The Naturals finish up their series in Frisco tonight with a chance to sweep.

Wilmington went 3-4 this past week and are 26-29 overall. The Blue Rocks are now in second place and just 2.5 games back in the Carolina League’s Northern Division. Problem is, they do not play another divisional foe prior to the first half ending in two weeks.

Kane County went 3-4 last week and are 30-27 overall. The Cougars are in third place (five games back) in the Midwest League’s Western Division. They finish up their home series against Peoria tonight.

Hitter of the Week

Majors: Alex Gordon got hot over the last week, as he moved back to the leadoff spot that he thrived in last season. In six games, he went 9-for-24 (.375) with four doubles, four runs scored, and four RBIs.

Minors: Lane Adams, Kane County. He went 9-for-30 (.300) with a homerun, four runs scored, and eight RBIs.

Honorable Mention: Wil Myers, Omaha. He has jumped to Triple-A without much of a struggle. Last week, he went 12-for-28 (.429) with four doubles, three homeruns, seven runs scored, and ten RBIs.

Pitcher of the Week:

Majors: I feel like I am constantly honoring the bullpen, which is much deserved. However this week, I am going to honor three starting pitchers who helped the Royals win series. Felipe Paulino‘s dominance has been fairly unexpected, but it has happened nonetheless. He made one start last week and allowed just three hits and three walks over six scoreless innings. He struck out five in picking up the win over Oakland.

Will Smith won his first game in the big leagues in his second start (against Cleveland). He allowed two runs on four hits over six innings. He struck out five.

Vin Mazzaro won the finale on Sunday against his former team (the A’s) with six shutout innings. He allowed just four hits and three walks while striking out three.

Minors: Greg Billo, Blue Rocks. He is coming off winning the Pitcher of the Week honor in the Carolina League. Overall, he allowed just one run on four hits and three walks over 7.1 innings (one relief outing and a start). He struck out eight.

Felipe Paulino

The KC Royals scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning and made them hold up, as they beat the visiting Oakland A’s, 2-0.

It all started with a leadoff walk to Alex Gordon. Yuniesky Betancourt followed with an RBI double. Yup he’s back, which unfortunately means that Irving Falu was sent back to the minors. Doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to send a guy back who was hitting .326, with 14 hits in 12 games.

Anyway, back to the game….With one out, Mike Moustakas delivered with an RBI single.

That was all A’s starter Bartolo Colon would allow, though the Royals had their chances. They hit into two double plays and went just 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position.

The star of the night was the  Royals pitching, beginning with starter Felipe Paulino. Though he walked three, he allowed just three hits over six shutout innings. The A’s had base runners in the first, 2nd, and 4th innings, but Paulino worked out of the jams.

Then the bullpen went to work. Only Greg Holland allowed a base runner (a leadoff walk in the 8th inning). Kelvin Herrera pitched a perfect 7th inning and Jonathan Broxton pitched a perfect 9th inning for his 12th save of the season. Broxton struck out the first two hitters he faced.

*Every Royals hitter but Jarrod Dyson had a hit.

**Brandon McCarthy is scheduled to start against the Royals’ Luke Hochevar on Saturday afternoon.

***For more on the A’s, check out The Oaktown Breakdown.

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The KC Royals returned home after a very successful road trip. After losing the first game in Baltimore, they took the next two from the Orioles (thus winning the series against a first place team). After losing the first game in Cleveland, the Royals took the next two from the Indians (and knocked them out of first place). But that winning came on the road. The Royals need to bring that winning attitude to Kauffman Stadium (just 5-17 at home).

Oakland comes to Kansas City after being swept by the lowly Minnesota Twins. The A’s have lost eight in a row and have dropped to last place in the American League West. The A’s pitching has been getting battered and they continue to not get enough offense. One guy who is hitting is Josh Reddick, especially with power (14 homeruns). Yoenis Cespedes is set to return from the DL.

With both teams having Thursday off, each team has a TBA for a starter this weekend.

» Continue reading “Royals Vs. A’s Preview”

I’m live at a hot Camden Yards, as the KC Royals look to win a game this season against the Baltimore Orioles. The right guy is on the mound: Felipe Paulino. This will be the first time I have seen him pitch in person. He is matched up against the equally stingy Wei-Yin Chen.

I will try to give updates as best I can. Eric Hosmer has dropped to eighth in the order.

» Continue reading “Royals @ O’s Live Blog”

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The KC Royals begin a three-game series on the road in Baltimore after a day off and losing two of three in New York. The Orioles continue to surprise everyone, as they keep on winning. They are 28-17 and sitting in first place in the American League East (with the best record in the AL). The Royals are still in fourth place in the AL Central (17-26), but just 2.5 games behind the Detroit Tigers for third place.

The O’s have been hitting homeruns (69, which leads all of baseball) and with the heat and humidity this weekend, balls should be flying out of Camden Yards. Adam Jones is tied for second place in the AL with 14 bombs (and there is a rumor that a big deal is about to be announced).

Their pitching has been way better than expected (they have a team ERA of 3.58), though it has been coming back to earth as of late. Closer Jim Johnson has been lights out. He is tied for the most saves with Cleveland’s Chris Perez with 16 (who the Royals will see next), though Johnson has yet to blow a save opportunity.

Baltimore has yet to set a rotation for this weekend’s series outside of Friday’s starter, Jason Hammel.

Friday: Bruce Chen (3-4, 4.17) @ Jason Hammel (5-1, 3.12 ERA)

Chen has won three straight starts and has gone six or more innings in seven of his nine starts this season.

A sore right knee that hasn’t improved has caused short outings for Hammel, despite strong starts. He is expected to keep pitching through the pain because he is more valuable in the rotation than on the DL.

Felipe Paulino (2-1, 1.42 ERA) will get the start on Saturday against the O’s. He has been dominant since coming off the DL. Over four starts, he has just a 1.42 ERA and has beaten the Yankees twice. He held the O’s to five hits in a 15-inning loss on May 16th. Paulino has struck out 29 compared to just seven walks. I will be in attendance for this game, so hopefully I can get some good pics.

Luke Hochevar (3-5, 6.61 ERA) will start the series finale on Sunday for the Royals. He has pitched well of late, despite going 1-2 over his last three starts.

*Nate Adcock will be skipped in the rotation this series, but will be back in the rotation to start Monday’s series opener in Cleveland.

**For more on the Orioles, check out Charm City Yakyuu.

To say that this is what we expected from Felipe Paulino when he returned from the DL would be lying (unless you can predict the future). He was stellar again tonight, as he and the KC Royals bullpen shut out the NY Yankees, 6-0.

The Yankees had runners on base against Paulino in all but two of his six-plus innings. He escaped a major jam in the 3rd inning when the Yankees had the bases loaded and nobody out. Paulino then proceeded to strike out Robinson Cano and Alex Rodriguez before getting Raul Ibanez to fly out to end the threat.

All-in-all, Paulino allowed six hits and two walks over 6.2 innings. He struck out eight.

The Royals jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning against Yankees starter Hiroki Kuroda. Mike Moustakas put them on the scoreboard with a two-run homerun.

With all of the offense the Royals produced, six runs on 12 hits, they were just 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Billy Butler went 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Alex Gordon (who is down to sixth in the order) and Alcides Escobar each collected two hits.

*Chris Getz left the game in the 5th inning after aggravating his rib injury. Irving Falu replaced him and went 1-for-3 with a run scored. I’m not sure the Royals can take on any more injuries.

**Paulino improved to 2-1 on the season, with both wins coming against the Yankees. He shut them out twice over 12.2 innings. He lowered his ERA to 1.42.

***For more on the Yankees, check out Second Place is Not an Option.

The KC Royals won just three games last week (3-4), as their home woes continued. The good news is that they now embark on a nine-game road trip, where they are 11-7 on the road. Overall, the Royals are 16-24 and sitting in fourth place in the American League Central.

Omaha won just two games last week (2-4) and are 27-17 overall. The Storm Chasers are still in first place in the Pacific Coast League’s American Northern Division with an eight game lead. They gained two of the Royals‘ top prospects: outfielder Wil Myers and right-hander Jake Odorizzi.

NW Arkansas saw their six game winning streak come to an end on Saturday, as they went 5-2 last week. Overall, the Naturals are 24-19 and one game back of Tulsa in the Texas League’s North Division. They are finishing up their road trip right now with Arkansas before returning home for a six-game homestand.

It was an interesting week, especially weekend, for Wilmington. They had two walk-offs wins around being no-hit by Myrtle Beach. They went 4-3 last week and the Blue Rocks are 19-23 overall. They are tied for second place in the Carolina League’s Northern Division with Potomac, who is in town for a three-game series beginning tonight (which is where I will be baring a rainout).

Kane County went 4-3 this past week. The Cougars are 23-21 and sit in third place in the Midwest League’s Western Division. They finish up their roadtrip today with first-place Wisconsin (four games back) before a day off and a seven-game homestand.

It was a fairly decent week for the Royals farm system, so who will take home the awards?

Hitter of the Week:

Major: Billy Butler‘s average has dipped below .300, but he had the best week of any of his teammates. In seven games, he went 9-for-15 (.360) with an on-base percentage of .433. He drove in six runs (he hit two homeruns) and scored three runs.

Minors: Tim Ferguson, Kane County. He has upped his overall batting average to .281, as he is in the midst of an eight-game hitting streak. This past week, Ferguson went 8-for-19 (.421) with three runs scored.

Pitcher of the Week:

Majors: Felipe Paulino has been stellar since coming off the DL. This past week, he made one start at home against Baltimore. He pitched seven scoreless innings and allowed five hits and two walks while striking out nine. However, the Royals lost in 15 innings.

Minors: Brooks Pounders, Kane County. He made two starts this week, while picking up a win. He allowed just two runs on seven hits and four walks over 11 innings. He struck out 15 in those two starts.

Honorable Mention: Chris Dwyer, NW Arkansas. Coming off a combined no-hitter, he was solid in two starts this week (picking up a win). Over 12 innings, Dwyer allowed three runs on six hits and five walks. He struck out 11.