On Wednesday, I like many more SF Giants fans were hoping to see their starting lineup as they traveled to Goodyear to play the Cincinnati Reds. Instead, a mainly minor league offensive lineup beat the Reds regulars, 9-5. There were a ton of Giants fans in town and they cheered every time a Giants player left the field.

Barry Zito skated into and out of trouble over his 3.1 innings. He only allowed a first inning run via Neftali Soto’s RBI single. The Reds were kept in check until the 6th inning with Javier Lopez on the mound.

Meanwhile, the Giants scored two runs off Bronson Arroyo in the second. DH Johnny Monell (who went 3-for-4 in the game) delivered a two out RBI double. Wilson Valdez followed with an infield single that Arroyo threw away to let another run score. Arroyo ended up striking out three in the inning. Sean Marshall allowed a run in the fifth, but the Reds came back.

Donald Lutz doubled and Derrick Robinson singled him home. But the former Royal tried to get to second on the throw home and was thrown out by a mile. It was a bad play, considering Chris Heisey homered as the next batter to tie the game at 3-3 against Lopez.

The game stayed tied until the eighth, when the Giants plated six runs. That included back-to-back pitch home runs by Ricky Orepesa and Juan Perez. They ended up batting around, as Gary Brown made both the first and last out.

The Reds came back with two runs in the ninth and had two more on base against Dan Otero, but Heisey flied out to end the game.

Following the game, we headed to the Wildlife World Zoo and Aquarium. There were ton of animals, including tons of Mucaws who seemed to run the place. We ate dinner at the aquarium, right in front of the shark tank (who circled throughout the meal).

*I forgot to mention that while eating breakfast at IHOP, Ian Kinsler and his family were across the aisle. I guess he didn’t have to be at the field for the Rangers game.

The KC Royals beat the defending World Series champions on Saturday, with a 9-4 home victory over the SF Giants.

The Royals were down 2-0 after Giants catcher Hector Sanchez tripled home two runs off Jeremy Guthrie. It was Guthrie‘s first spring training outing. He threw 31 of his 36 pitches for strikes.

The bats woke up in the third, when Eric Hosmer drove in one run with a double. In the 4th inning, Mike Moustakas hit a two-run home run that gave them the lead they would not relinquish. They scored another run in that inning on an error.

In the fifth, Hosmer hit a solo home run (he went 3-for-3 with three extra base hits). Brandon Wood came off the bench to deliver an RBI double in the 6th inning. Later that inning, Anthony Seratelli tripled in two more and scored on a wild pitch.

Meanwhile, the pitchers leaving for the World Baseball Classic pitched well today. Luis Mendoza followed Guthrie with two scoreless innings. Lefty Tim Collins struck out the side in the fifth and Kelvin Herrera followed with a perfect 6th inning.

Prospect Noel Arguelles struggled in his one inning of work, as he allowed two runs on a Gary Brown home run. In that inning, Arguelles allowed three hits and walked two. Lefty Francisley Bueno pitched a perfect eighth, before Louis Coleman allowed a two out solo homerun to Brandon Belt in the ninth.

Wade Davis will make his second start of the spring on Sunday in Goodyear against Cincinnati. Yordano Ventura, Justin Marks, Blaine Boyer, Juan Gutierrez, and Chris Dwyer are also expected to pitch. Billy Butler is expected to get the day off, despite the loss of the WBC players. Homer Bailey will make his second start for the Reds.

On Sunday night, the SF Giants finished off a four-game sweep over the Detroit Tigers to win the 2012 World Series. Without the help of some former KC Royals players, the Giants would not have been successful.

Following the World Series celebration, MLB Network analyst Kevin Millar called lefty reliever Jeremy Affeldt the MVP Game 4.

Why would a reliever be the MVP?

Well, Affeldt entered Game 4 in the 8th inning with the score tied at 3-3. He walked pinch-hitter Avisail Garcia. However, he proceeded to strike out the Tigers 3-4-5 (Miguel Cabrera, Prince Fielder, and Delmon Young) hitters on 12 pitches. Only Fielder was a left-handed hitter.

Affeldt then struck out lefty Andy Dirks (another left-handed hitter) to lead off the 9th inning before giving up a LONG fly ball to Jhonny Peralta that chased him from the game. The ball was caught on the warning track in centerfield only because the park is HUGE and the wind knocked it down. Giants manager Bruce Bochy said after the game that when he came to take Affeldt out he said “You scared me. I have to take you out.”

So how did the Giants get to Game 4 with the help of some former Royals?

» Continue reading “Giants Win Title with Former Royals Help”

Just like the divisional series, the championship series in Major League Baseball have former KC Royals playing integral parts for their new teams. One finished in a short four-game sweep. The other in an exciting seven games.

Raul Ibanez struck again in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series. Down 4-2 with two outs in the bottom of the 9^th inning against Detroit Tigers closer Jose Valverde, Ibanez took the second splitter of the at-bat into the right field seats to tie the game up at 4-4 and send the half-empty home crowd into a frenzy. That died off quickly as the Tigers came back and won in the 12^th inning after captain Derek Jeter was lost for the rest of the postseason with a fractured ankle.

In Game 2, Ibanez went 1-for-2 with two walks in the Yankees 3-0 loss. They collected just three hits off Tigers starter Anibal Sanchez (he had one of them).

Ibanez couldn’t be the hero every night and couldn’t awake the sleeping Yankees offense. In Game 3 (the first game in Detroit), he came up with two men on base, two out, and the Yankees down 2-1. Ibanez was facing lefty Phil Coke and worked the count full. However, Coke threw a nasty offspeed pitch and struck him out to end the game. He went 0-for-4 in Game 3. Ibanez went 0-for-2 with two strikeouts in Game 4 and was pinch-hit for by Alex Rodriguez, who of course did nothing.

» Continue reading “Former Royals Help New Teams to World Series”

All four Division Series played win-or-go home Game 5’s, so every series was interesting and down to the wire.

The first team to punch their ticket to the Championship Series was the SF Giants. All four former KC Royals played integral parts to their advancement.

Lefty reliever Jeremy Affeldt pitched in just about every game. In Game 1, he walked one in 2/3 of an inning (12 pitches, five for strikes). In Game 3, he allowed one hit over two scoreless innings of relief (22 pitches, 14 for strikes). In the Game 5 clincher, he pitched another scoreless inning (the seventh). He was pulled after that one inning after a scary incident in the dugout on a foul line drive (he should be okay for the National League Championship Series).

Left fielder Gregor Blanco started every game for the Giants. In Game 1, he went 2-for-3. In Game 2’s blowout loss, he went 0-for-2, but the Giants only collected two hits. He went 0-for-1 with a run scored in Game 3. He showed off his surprise power in Game 4 with a two-run homerun in the 2^nd inning that gave the Giants the lead they would not relinquish. In the Game 5 clincher, he went 1-for-4 with a run scored in their six-run 5^th inning.

Shortstop Joaquin Arias didn’t start, but made an impact off the bench. He pinch-hit in Game 1 and picked up a single and scored a run in the bottom of the 9^th inning of the Giants 5-2 loss. He hit the eventual game-winning ground ball in the 10^th inning of Game 3’s 2-1 victory. Arias went 2-for-3 off the bench in Game 4 with two doubles and two runs scored.

Lefty reliever Jose Mijares had the worst series. In Game 2, he allowed three runs on two hits and a walk, but did not record an out. He rebounded in Game 4 and struck out the only batter he faced (Joey Votto) on five pitches in the 4^th inning.

One former Royal saw his season come to an end with the Cincinnati Reds. That was former closer and Reds setup man Jonathan Broxton. Broxton took the loss in Game 3 when a Ryan Hanigan passed ball moved base runners up in the top of the 10^th inning and Scott Rolen’s error scored the winning run. He pitched in three of the five games and allowed that unearned run on four hits over three innings. Broxton walked one while striking out four.

» Continue reading “Former Royals Help New Teams to Championship Series”

The Major League Baseball Division Series begins tonight after an exciting Wild Card Friday. One former KC Royal, Endy Chavez, moved on to tomorrow’s American League Division Series with the Baltimore Orioles. He entered Friday night’s game as a defensive replacement in right field.

Another former Royal, outfielder Carlos Beltran, moved onto the National League Division Series, as the St. Louis Cardinals controversially defeated the Atlanta Braves on Wild Card Friday. He started in right field, batted second in the order, and went 1-for-4 with a run scored in the win. Beltran and the Cardinals moved on to face the NL East champion Washington Nationals on Sunday.

With the Division Series’ kicking off today, it’s a great time to take a look at the former Royals who will be participating.

The NL West champion SF Giants have quite a few representatives. They begin play tonight at 9:30pm ET on TBS.

» Continue reading “Division Series Begin with Royals Input”

Pablo “Kung Fu Panda” Sandoval played all nine innings for the SF Giants and provided the heroics, as the Giants walked off against the KC Royals, 4-2.

Doug Kerr/Flickr

This all came after another good outing from Royals starter Luis Mendoza. He pitched five shutout innings against most likely the Giants everyday lineup. Mendoza allowed three hits and two walks while striking out four.

The Royals received another scoreless appearance by lefty Jose Mijares, who has yet to allow an earned run in spring training.

Only problem is, the Royals couldn’t put together much offense. They collected seven hits and just one walk, but only mustered two runs. In the 8th and 9th innings, they hit into inning-ending double plays. Billy Butler‘s was probably the worst, as the Royals had runners at first and third with just one out.

The Giants tied the game in the 8th inning against Aaron Crow. It all started with Panda hitting a double. However Crow retired the next two hitters before walking Nate Schierholtz. Then former Royal Joaquin Arias delivered the RBI single (he went 2-for-2 with a run scored).

Greg Holland started the bottom of the 9th inning by retiring the first two hitters. Then he allowed a single to Justin Christian, who then stole second base and went to third base on the throwing error by Humberto Quintero. Next up was Panda, who connected for a two-run homerun.

*Should the Royals be concerned about Holland? This isn’t the first sub-par outing he has had lately (as you can tell by his 5.19 ERA). The same can be said of Crow. I know it’s still spring training, but without Joakim Soria, these two will be counted on for some big innings.

**The Royals hit into two more DPs. That gives them 22 this spring.

***Melky Cabrera started in centerfield and batted in the two-hole for the Giants. He went 1-for-3 with a triple.

****For more on the Giants, check out Third Street Kings.

Doug Kerr/Flickr

The KC Royals welcomed the SF Giants to Surprise on Monday and the Giants brought ace Tim Lincecum with them.

Lincecum stifled the Royals offense for four innings. He allowed just one hit, two walks, and an unearned run. Once he left the game, it didn’t get any easier for the Royals hitters. They collected four more hits against four Giants relievers as they lost 2-1.

Luke Hochevar started for the Royals and didn’t pitch bad. He gave up four hits and two runs over three innings of work. He did not walk a batter, which is good. Jake Odorizzi followed and did not allow a hit over two shutout innings. However, he did walk two batters and threw just 18 of his 34 pitches for strikes.

The most impressive performance from a Royals pitching perspective was Greg Holland. He pitched the final 1.1 innings and struck out three, while not allowing a hit. He threw 15 of his 20 pitches for strikes.

No Royal had a multi-hit game, though the leadoff spot combination of Jarrod Dyson and Mitch Maier went 2-for-4.

*Two former Royals started for the Giants: Gregor Blanco and Joaquin Arias. Blanco led off and went 3-for-3 with an RBI while playing centerfield. He also stole a base. Arias went 0-for-3 while playing second base.

**The base-running issues are still there, as Eric Hosmer was picked off first base by Lincecum in the 4th inning.

***Chris Getz grounded into an inning-ending double play in the 3rd inning. That’s the tenth time for the team this spring.

****For more information on the Giants, check out Third Street Kings.

The winter meetings were fairly quiet for the KC Royals this year. Even after they made a few moves in advance (acquiring Jonathan Sanchez from the SF Giants and signing reliever Jonathan Broxton).

As part of the Sanchez for Melky Cabrera deal, the Giants threw in left-hander Ryan Verdugo. This year in Double-A with the Richmond Flying Squirrels, he tied the franchise record for strikeouts in a game with 10. He pitched 6.1 innings and threw 98 pitches (63 for strikes). Verdugo tied Eric Surkamp’s previous record.

The MLB offseason is only a little over a week old, but the wheeling and dealing has officially begun. The KC Royals, who were rumored to be interested in All-Star starter Jair Jurrjens of the Atlanta Braves, pulled off a deal this afternoon to acquire a starter.

He’s not quite an All-Star or a front-of-the-rotation starter, but he has thrown a no-hitter. That would be Jonathan Sanchez of the SF Giants.

What did it cost the Royals? Outfielder Melky Cabrera, who is coming off a breakout season where he put up HUGE offensive numbers to go along with Gold Glove caliber defense in centefield. I guess the Royals didn’t want to pay Melky the pay raise he was in store for in arbitration.

The Giants were sorely looking for a bat and with both Cody Ross and Pat Burrell being free agents, Melky is a good pickup. Melky should provide protection at the top of the order for Buster Posey, Pablo Sandoval, and Aubrey Huff (or Brandon Belt).

The Royals also received minor league left-hander Ryan Verdugo, who spent the 2011 season with Double-A Richmond. The 2008 draft pick out of LSU went 8-6 with a 4.35 ERA in 25 starts (his first year as a starter). Overall in his career, Verdugo has 300 strikeouts in just 234.1 innings.

The Royals were rumored to be listening to offers for minor leaguer Lorenzo Cain, but now it looks like Cain may be the Royals 2012 starting centerfielder.

This deal is making me scratch my head. The Royals desperately need a front-line starter (like CJ Wilson on the free agent market or James Shields and Gio Gonzalez via trades). Sanchez is a good pitcher, but he reminds me a bit of Luke Hochevar from the left side. He has high strikeout numbers (736 strikeouts in 709 career innings), but doesn’t consistently control his arsenal. In his career, he has walked 336 batters. In the American League, you cannot walk guys with power bats all throughout most lineups (aka the Detroit Tigers).

Here are Sanchez’ numbers from 2011: 4-7 with a 4.26 ERA in just 19 starts. In 2010, he went 13-9 with a 3.07 ERA but was horrible in the Giants World Series title run in the postseason.

This deal probably means that free agent left-handed starters Bruce Chen and Jeff Francis will not be re-signing with the Royals. Sanchez gives the rotation two left-handers (including Danny Duffy) and a possibility of a third in Everett Teaford. Right now, the Royals have 11 possible starting pitchers on their 40-man roster, with ten of them getting a legit shot at the Opening Day roster. That doesn’t include the ace that the Royals should be shopping for.

So, what do you think about the deal? Good, bad, or indifferent.