One Royal Way (OOTP 23)

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Royal Rumblings (05/16)

Royal Rumblings

By Brian Douglas | Kansas City Star | May 16th, 2022

Olivares Headed To Injured List: Royals outfielder Edward Olivares is expected to miss the next five to six weeks with a quad strain, per manager Mike Matheny. In his place, catcher Sebastian Rivero was re-called from Omaha to take his place on the roster, giving the Royals three catchers on the active roster.

Rivero spent time with the Royals last season, hitting just .175 in 40 at-bats (7-for-40). He's much more of a defensive-minded catcher, much like fellow Venezuelan Salvador Perez, at the same age. Cam Gallagher, who is currently on the injured list, is expected to come off this week and take a short rehab tour to Omaha before returning to action.

Olivares' first-inning double in last night's loss gave him a .281/.410/.375 slash at the time of his injury, which is one of the better slash lines on the club to date despite a small sample size of just forty plate appearances. With Adalberto Mondesi on the shelf the entire season, Olivares was expected to play a pretty significant role going forward, but that will have to wait until likely the beginning of July.

Singer Full-Go For Tonight: No Royals pitcher had topped the 100-pitch mark until Brad Keller threw exactly 100 in last night's loss at Colorado. Manager Mike Matheny noted earlier this morning that Brady Singer should be good to go over that mark if need be in tonight's game with Chicago.

"He threw nearly ninety pitches in his last outing, and there's no reason to think he can't go a little further if needed," Matheny said. "With no off days in sight for the next ten to twelve days, we're going to need him to push into the sixth, seventh inning now if he can."

In his last three starts, he's allowed just two runs over fourteen innings, striking out thirteen with just four walks and nine hits scattered over that span, as well. He's lowered his ERA from a robust 30.00 to a still-robust 6.35, but much, much better than in recent weeks.

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Series Preview: Chicago (21-13) @ Kansas City (15-17)

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PITCHING MATCHUPS
05/16: RHP Vince Velasquez (0-1, 6.16) vs RHP Brady Singer (0-0, 6.35)
05/17 (Gm 1): LHP Dallas Keuchel (3-2, 5.64) vs RHP Ronald Bolanos (3-0, 0.00)
05/17 (Gm 2): RHP Dylan Cease (3-1, 2.61) vs LHP Daniel Lynch (3-2, 5.06)
05/18: RHP Johnny Cueto (1-3, 10.29) vs RHP Jon Heasley (1-0, 1.46)
05/19: RHP Michael Kopech (3-0, 1.89) vs RHP Zack Greinke (0-3, 5.35)

WHO'S HOT?
RHP Michael Kopech, Chicago -- 10 IP, 12 K, 2 ER (2 starts)
IF Yoan Moncada, Chicago -- 9-for-21 (.429), 4 2B, HR, 2 BB
IF Whit Merrifield, Kansas City -- 11-for-23 (.478), 3 2B, 3B, HR
C Salvador Perez, Kansas City -- 9-for-26 (.346), 2B, 3 HR, 6 BB

WHO'S NOT?
RHP Zack Greinke, Kansas City -- 9 IP, 13 ER 7 K (2 starts)

CHICAGO INJURED LIST
LHP Garrett Crochet (elbow) -- 60-day IL
RHP Lucas Giolito (back) -- 10-day IL
RHP Joe Kelly (tricep) -- 60-day IL
RHP Jonathan Stiever (shoulder) -- 60-day IL

KANSAS CITY INJURED LIST
C Cam Gallagher (hamstring) -- 10-day IL
LHP Richard Lovelady (elbow) -- 60-day IL
SS Adalberto Mondesi (knee) -- 10-day IL
OF Edward Olivares (quad) -- 10-day IL
1B Carlos Santana (ankle) -- 10-day IL
RHP Tyler Zuber (shoulder) -- 60-day IL

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Chicago @ Kansas City (05/16 -- 05/19)

Team Roster/Records | MLB Standings | Statistics

Series Recap: Chicago White Sox

By Brian Douglas | Kansas City Star | May 20th, 2022

Chicago White Sox at Kansas City Royals
May 16, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago White Sox (21-14)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
Kansas City Royals (16-17)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	10	0
W: Brady Singer (1-0) L: Vince Velasquez (0-2) S: None

Monday, May 16th, 2022
It wasn't the smoothest of outings, but Brady Singer managed to slough his way through 6 1/3 shutout frames in posting a 4-0 victory over the White Sox to open an extended five-game set with the White Sox. The two teams will meet for two on Tuesday night in a day-night twinbill.

Singer allowed just three hits; two of them doubles. He struck out four, throwing a season-high ninety-three pitches.

The Royals have won their last four series openers dating back to the beginning of the Orioles series earlier in the month. However, in the subsequent games, they are just 1-5.

Bobby Witt, Jr., led the offensive attack with three hits, including an RBI triple in the second inning against Vince Velasquez. Andrew Benintendi was 2-for-4 with a double, and Hunter Dozier reached base in all four plate appearances, including three walks.

Ronald Bolanos is expected to get the ball for the first game tomorrow, while Daniel Lynch should get the call for the nightcap.

Chicago White Sox at Kansas City Royals (Game 1)
May 17, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago White Sox (22-14)	3	0	2	0	0	1	1	0	0	7	8	0
Kansas City Royals (16-18)	0	3	0	2	0	0	0	1	0	6	12	0
W: Dallas Keuchel (4-2) L: Ronald Bolanos (3-1) S: Jose Ruiz (1)

Chicago White Sox at Kansas City Royals (Game 2)
May 17, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago White Sox (23-14)	3	1	3	0	0	0	0	1	0	8	15	0
Kansas City Royals (16-19)	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	1	0	4	9	0
W: Reynaldo Lopez (5-0) L: Daniel Lynch (3-3) S: None

Tuesday, May 17th, 2022
In the midst of a grueling stretch for the Royals where they won't see a day off for nearly another week; they played a doubleheader on Tuesday with the Royals falling in the first game by a 7-6 score, before dropping the nightcap as well by losing 8-4 in that one.

Chicago led 5-3 after three innings in the early game, but the Royals fought back to tie it at 5 heading into the fifth inning. The White Sox tacked on runs in the sixth and seventh innings against starter Dallas Keuchel, as Jose Ruiz shut the door with two innings in relief to pick up the save, only allowing an RBI single to Kyle Isbel.

Isbel and Bobby Witt, Jr., handled the heavy lifting on offense in the first game, each collecting three hits in the losing cause. BWJ fell a triple short of the cycle in the first game, and went 1-for-4 in the night cap.

In the second game, Daniel Lynch couldn't get out of the third inning in the Royals' 8-4 loss. He surrendered ten hits in just 2 1/3 innings, allowing seven earned runs and two walks. Manager Mike Matheny had hoped to save both Josh Staumont and Scott Barlow, but both had to be pressed into service along with Collin Snider, who pitched in Monday's 4-0 victory.

The Royals loaded the bases in the ninth against Kendall Graveman, who allowed three straight singles to begin the inning. But he fanned Nicky Lopez, and then coaxed a groundball double play to end the contest. Merrifield had a nice game overall with a pair of hits, along with Michael A. Taylor's two hits.

Chicago White Sox at Kansas City Royals
May 18, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago White Sox (24-14)	1	2	0	1	2	0	1	0	0	7	15	1
Kansas City Royals (16-20)	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	1
W: Lance Lynn (1-0) L: Jon Heasley (1-1) S: None

Wednesday, May 18th, 2022
It was announced yesterday that Lance Lynn would make his season debut after a nearly three-week tour through the minors on a rehab assignment, and sent the Royals fans in attendance home disappointed as they trounced Kansas City by a 7-1 score. Lynn threw 6 2/3 innings of one-run baseball, which his only blemish a solo homerun off the bat of Bobby Witt, Jr., who has seen his bat come to life in the last ten days.

After a brilliant outing against the Rockies last week, Jon Heasley was knocked around by the White Sox, getting pummeled for six earned runs on ten hits over four innings. Matt Peacock, who was re-called from Omaha after Ronald Bolanos was sent down, was solid in relief, going 3 2/3 innings while allowing just one run and striking out one. Dylan Coleman handled the final 1 1/3, striking out three.

BWJ's homerun was his fifth of the season, and one of just three hits by the Royals all day long. Michael A. Taylor singled in the fifth, and Nicky Lopez singled in the eighth. Manager Mike Matheny opted to sit several of his regulars, including catchers Salvador Perez and MJ Melendez, and outfielder Andrew Benintendi.

There's still not an off day for nearly another week," Matheny lamented. "We're barely past the midway point of a 15, 16-day stretch here, so we're trying to keep guys as fresh as possible. I thought Matt (Peacock) did a heck of a job for us, and kept us from spending much more capital out of the pen tonight."

While the bats have come around in the month of May, the runs still are lagging behind -- the Royals have scored four runs or less in six of their last nine games, and even in the games they've scored more than that in that same span, they're 1-2.

Chicago White Sox at Kansas City Royals
May 19, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago White Sox (24-15)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	9	1
Kansas City Royals (17-20)	0	1	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	3	8	0
W: Zack Greinke (1-3) L: Johnny Cueto (1-4) S: Josh Staumont (3)

Thursday, May 19th, 2022
Behind a brilliant performance from Zack Greinke, the Royals managed to snap a short three-game skid with a 3-1 victory over the White Sox to close out the five-game series with Chicago. Greinke had gone eight shutout frames, but surrendered a leadoff homerun to Adam Engel to begin the ninth, and was promptly pulled by manager Mike Matheny, who had righty Josh Staumont ready in the bullpen for such an occurrence.

The ever-even-keeled Greinke mused after the game, "I had no intention of locating that pitch where it was, but I think all the sauce on that meatball caused me to lose my grip."

Again, it wasn't an offensive masterpiece, but Kansas City did enough to win -- Kyle Isbel and Nicky Lopez each went 2-for-4 with extra-base hits, including a second-inning triple from Isbel that scored the Royals' first run. Whit Merrifield and Andrew Benintendi would later add RBI hits to their ledger.

Replacing Greinke was Josh Staumont, who surrendered a double and a walk to Leury Garcia and Danny Mendick, respectively. But he managed to get Yoan Moncada on strikes before getting Tim Anderson to fly out, and then striking out Eloy Jimenez to end it.

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MLB News (05/20)

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Royal Rumblings (05/20)

Royal Rumblings

By Brian Douglas | Kansas City Star | May 20th, 2022

Royals Make Roster Moves: Closer Scott Barlow, who hasn't pitched since Tuesday, was placed on the 10-day injured list retroactive to the 17th with an elbow issue. The Royals re-called Jake Brentz to take his spot on the active roster.

In addition, they also shifted right-hander Jonathan Bowlan to the 60-day injured list, and claimed yet another righty off waivers in former White Sox farmhand Will Kincanon. He was assigned to Omaha, as he has multiple minor league options remaining.

Barlow is not expected to be out a long time; only two to three weeks, according to manager Mike Matheny. However, with elbow problems, the Royals have always been conservative when it comes to timetables for return, so it's possible he could be back earlier if they decide not to send him on a rehab assignment.

Matheny expects Josh Staumont to take over the bulk of the closing duties in the meantime, although he also mentioned he may give others a shot "depending on the situation", he said.

Perez Day-to-Day: Royals catcher Salvador Perez is listed day-to-day after suffering a knee contusion while changing a tire on his wife's car after yesterday's game. No explanation was given as to how it happened, but Matheny noted that it wasn't serious enough for medical attention. That said, he did mention that it could have been far more serious.

"We'll keep an eye on it, but right now, the plan is that he'll continue to play as his soreness allows," he said. "It's a bit sore and swollen, so we'll limit his innings behind the plate for the next few games, but as far as swinging the bat and doing some light sprinting, he can still move okay."

Salvy had a rough series against the White Sox, going just 3-for-14 with two doubles. He still leads all of baseball in homeruns with sixteen, however, and is still considered one of the favorites to win the MVP at this point in the season after finishing in the top ten in voting a season ago.

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Series Preview: Minnesota (20-18) @ Kansas City (17-20)

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PITCHING MATCHUPS
05/20: RHP Joe Ryan (4-2, 1.78) vs RHP Brad Keller (1-3, 2.81)
05/21: LHP Christian Friedrich (0-1, 14.09) vs RHP Brady Singer (1-0, 4.63)
05/22: RHP Sonny Gray (0-2, 5.57) vs LHP Daniel Lynch (3-3, 6.55)

WHO'S HOT?
RHP Brady Singer, Kansas City -- 11.1 IP, 8 K, ER (2 starts)
RHP Joe Ryan, Minnesota -- 31.1 IP, 30 K, 5 ER (6 starts)

WHO'S NOT?
LHP Daniel Lynch, Kansas City -- 7.1 IP, 2 K, 11 ER (2 starts)

MINNESOTA INJURED LIST
OF Byron Buxton (concussion) -- 10-day IL
RHP Kenta Maeda (elbow) -- 60-day IL
RHP Josh Winder (knee) -- 60-day IL

KANSAS CITY INJURED LIST
RHP Scott Barlow (elbow) -- 10-day IL
RHP Jonathan Bowlan (elbow) -- 60-day IL
LHP Richard Lovelady (elbow) -- 60-day IL
SS Adalberto Mondesi (knee) -- 10-day IL
OF Edward Olivares (quad) -- 10-day IL
1B Carlos Santana (ankle) -- 10-day IL
RHP Tyler Zuber (shoulder) -- 60-day IL

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Minnesota @ Kansas City (05/20 -- 05/22)

Team Roster/Records | MLB Standings | Statistics

Series Recap: Minnesota Twins

By Brian Douglas | Kansas City Star | May 23rd, 2022

Minnesota Twins at Kansas City Royals
May 20, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Minnesota Twins (21-18)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	5	1
Kansas City Royals (17-21)	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	7	1
W: Jhoan Duran (2-0) L: Jake Brentz (0-3) S: Cody Stashak (5)

Friday, May 20th, 2022
Gio Urshela's sacrifice fly off Jake Brentz in the ninth was the deciding run, as the Royals couldn't break through in the bottom of the frame, absorbing a 2-1 loss to open a three-game series with Minnesota at home. It's the first series in the last four that the Royals didn't win the opening game.

With just one run allowed over 5 2/3 innings, Brad Keller went head to head with rookie sensation Joe Ryan, as neither starter ended up in the decision. Keller walked just two, but struck out just one in his 103-pitch outing.

The Twins bookended the game with single runs as Miguel Sano singled home a run in the first to give the Twins the early advantage. Kansas City answered with an RBI triple from Emmanuel Rivera, who also singled the game to go 2-for-4.

Minnesota Twins at Kansas City Royals
May 21, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Minnesota Twins (21-19)	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	2	8	2
Kansas City Royals (18-21)	0	0	0	2	0	1	0	0	X	3	6	0
W:Brady Singer (2-0) L: Christian Friedrich (0-2) S: Josh Staumont (4)

Saturday, May 21st, 2022
With a two-run homerun and sacrifice fly, Andrew Benintendi supplied all of the offense that the Royals would need as Kansas City edged out the Twins 3-2 to even up their series.

Brady Singer moved to 2-0 on the season as he continued his torrid stretch in the month of May, allowing just one earned run over six innings, striking out four with one walk and six hits scattered.

Benintendi's two-run homerun in the fourth put the Royals out in front by a 2-0 score, but the Twins halved that with a single tally in the top of the fifth. Kansas City clawed that back with a run in the fifth; an important insurance run as the Twins received an RBI double from Gio Urshela in the eighth.

Signed roughly a month ago to a minor league contract, southpaw Christian Friedrich held the Royals to just two runs over six innings, striking out five. He had come into the matchup with a 14.09 ERA through two starts with Minnesota after a brief stint in Triple-A.

Minnesota Twins at Kansas City Royals
May 21, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Minnesota Twins (22-19)	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	3	8	1
Kansas City Royals (18-22)	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	9	1
W:Tyler Duffey (2-2) L: Josh Staumont (1-3) S: Cody Stashak (6)

Sunday, May 22nd, 2022
Opposing pitchers continue to confound Royals hitters, especially with men on base, as Kansas City left a dozen runners on base in a 3-2 loss to the Twins to close out the three-game series between the two squads. The loss drops the Royals to four games below .500, and 3.5 games out of third place behind these Twins.

Heading into the ninth up 2-1, Gio Urshela pounded a two-run homerun off Josh Staumont to erase the Royals' thin lead, held up well by starter Daniel Lynch, who shook off last week's awful outing against Chicago to post seven strong innings of one-run baseball. He struck out six, allowing one run (no homeruns!), and just six hits, five of them singles.

Kansas City made it rather interesting in the bottom of the ninth. Nicky Lopez singled to lead off the inning for his fourth hit of the game. Bobby Witt, Jr., then tried to drag bunt his way on, which was a move that Mike Matheny was asked multiple questions about in the post-game presser. Matheny noted that it was a 'bunt for hit' situation to try and catch Minnesota off-guard, but it was played well by the Twins.

With two on and two out later in the inning, Kyle Isbel launched a deep fly to right-center, but Max Kepler made a superb catch at the wall to keep the Royals off the board.

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MLB News (05/23)

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Royal Rumblings (05/23)

Royal Rumblings

By Brian Douglas | Kansas City Star | May 23rd, 2022

Merrifield's Games Started Streak Snapped: He would later enter yesterday's game due to an injury to Emmanuel Rivera to keep the general games played streak intact, but the consecutive starts streak for Whit Merrifield ended at 508 games, which broke the old record of 429 games by Alcides Escobar.

Mike Matheny said it was Merrifield's decision to sit, and that it's very likely he won't be in the lineup today when the Royals play at Arizona.

"It's been up to him whether or not he wants to take a rest every now and then," she said after last night's loss. "He came up to me before the game and told me that he wanted to take a break, and I told him that's fine, we'll move some guys around."

Third baseman Emmanuel Rivera left after the top of the third with a sore elbow, and is expected to be out several weeks after being placed on the 10-day injured list. The Royals re-called infielder Maikel Garcia from Double-A, as he's the only infielder on the 40-man roster within earshot of the majors.

Minor Leaguers Earn Weekly Honors: Infielders Vinnie Pasquantino of Omaha, and Dayton Dooney of Columbia were named their respective leagues' Players of the Week for the week ending yesterday, May 22nd.

The more-heralded of the two, Pasquantino (BA #135) had a torrid week in going 14-for-25 (.560) against International League pitching, hitting a trio of homeruns, six doubles, and driving in seven runs as the Storm Chasers went 3-3.

The 22-year-old switch-hitting Dooney went 8-for-22 (.364) with four homeruns, a double, and nine RBI. The Royals' sixth-round pick out of Central AZ JC in last year's draft, Dooney has played all twenty-seven games for the Fireflies at first base this season.

Royals Release Veteran Reliever: Kansas City has granted the release of right-hander Brad Peacock, who was on the roster with the Triple-A Storm Chasers. The Royals had a clause in his contract that stated that the organization would grant a release if not on the active roster by the end of May. They've decided to exercise that option about a week early.

Peacock has struggled so far this season, posting an 8.53 ERA through just six games. He was a prominent member of the 2017 World Series champion Houston squad in his age-29 season, going 13-2 with a 3.00 ERA that season, splitting time between the rotation and bullpen.

The move was made to clear room on the Triple-A roster for left-hander Angel Zerpa, who struck out ten over seven innings in his last start for the Naturals on the 19th.

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Re: One Royal Way (OOTP 23)

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PITCHING MATCHUPS
05/23: RHP Jon Heasley (1-1, 4.41) vs RHP Zach Davies (1-3, 3.63)
05/24: RHP Zack Greinke (1-3, 4.60) vs LHP Madison Bumgarner (0-6, 5.83)

WHO'S HOT?
OF Jordan Luplow, Arizona -- 10-for-31 (.323), 5 HR, 3 2B, 3B, 3 BB
RHP Luke Weaver, Arizona -- 13.1 IP, 9 K, 3 ER (2 starts)
RHP Brady Singer, Kansas City -- 12.1 IP, 8 K, ER (2 starts)

WHO'S NOT?
3B Buddy Kennedy, Arizona -- 2-for-25 (.080), 3 BB, 8 K

ARIZONA INJURED LIST
None

KANSAS CITY INJURED LIST
RHP Scott Barlow (elbow) -- 10-day IL
RHP Jonathan Bowlan (elbow) -- 60-day IL
LHP Richard Lovelady (elbow) -- 60-day IL
SS Adalberto Mondesi (knee) -- 10-day IL
OF Edward Olivares (quad) -- 10-day IL
IF Emmanuel Rivera (elbow) -- 10-day IL
1B Carlos Santana (ankle) -- 10-day IL

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Kansas City @ Arizona (05/23 -- 05/24)

Team Roster/Records | MLB Standings | Statistics

Series Recap: Arizona Diamondbacks

By Brian Douglas | Kansas City Star | May 25th, 2022

Kansas City Royals at Arizona Diamondbacks
May 23, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Kansas City Royals (19-22)	0	1	3	0	0	3	1	0	0	8	11	0
Arizona Diamondbacks (15-29)	1	0	1	1	1	0	1	0	0	5	8	1
W: Jon Heasley (2-1) L: Edwin Uceta (0-1) S: Gabe Speier (1)

Monday, May 23rd, 2022
With three hits, including a three-run homerun in the third inning, MJ Melendez keyed the Royals' 8-5 victory over Arizona to open a quick, two-game set in the desert. Melendez also reached base via walk, reaching base four times in all.

Also notably in this game -- Whit Merrifield's consecutive games streak is now over at 509 games, as he sat out of own accord, per Mike Matheny yesterday. Maikel Garcia, who was called up in the wake of Emmanuel Rivera's injury on Sunday, went 0-for-3 with a walk in Merrifield's place.

Andrew Benintendi and Ryan O'Hearn also chipped in with a pair of RBI apiece, and Bobby Witt, Jr., doubled home a run in the Royals' three-run sixth. Kansas City led 4-1 after two-and-a-half innings, but the D-Backs kept chipping away, scoring single tallies over the third, fourth, and fifth innings to tie the score at four going into inning number six.

"Pretty resilient victory," said Matheny, as the Royals continue to do well in series openers. "Got ahead, they made a nice run to tie it, and then we shut things down from there, minus a homerun once Jon (Heasley) came out."

Heasley threw six pretty solid innings, allowing four earned runs while scattering seven hits and a walk, covering eighty-seven pitches. He struck out five. Gabe Speier picked up his first career MLB save, pitching a 1-2-3 ninth.

Kansas City Royals at Arizona Diamondbacks
May 24, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Kansas City Royals (19-23)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	11	0
Arizona Diamondbacks (16-29)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	8	1
W: Madison Bumgarner (1-6) L: Zack Greinke (1-4) S: Keone Kela (5)

Tuesday, May 24th, 2022
Kansas City received a valiant performance from Zack Greinke, but it wasn't enough to beat Arizona as they notched a 1-0 victory to split the road portion of the season series between the two teams.

The Royals' old nemesis from the 2014 World Series, Madison Bumgarner, held the Royals to no runs through 6 1/3 innings, scattering four hits, a pair of walks, and four strikeouts. Keone Kela picked up the save, his fifth of the season.

Greinke surrendered a solo homerun just three pitches into the bottom of the first inning, and went the entire rest of the way for the Royals, throwing a season-high for any pitcher with 108 pitches, sixty-four of them strikes. Over the eight-inning complete game defeat, he scattered four hits, two walks, and six strikeouts. The latter is a season-best.

Kyle Isbel was 2-for-4 with a double, and Andrew Benintendi was the only other Royal to reach base safely more than once, as he went 1-for-3 with a single.

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MLB News (05/25)

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Royal Rumblings (05/25)

Royal Rumblings

By Brian Douglas | Kansas City Star | May 25th, 2022

Royals Fire Hitting Coach Terry Bradshaw: The first coaching domino in the majors has fallen, and it's in Kansas City. Hitting coach Terry Bradshaw will be re-assigned away from the major league club, and will likely return to a roving instructor role, per GM J.J. Picollo. Minor league hitting program director Alec Zumwalt will take over as the hitting coach in the interim, but Picollo noted in that case, it's not likely to be a permanent assignment.

"We really like him where he was at before," Picollo said in an interview with a local radio station. "The work he's done in the last three years has been remarkable, and we don't want to take away from that. That said, a change needed to be made, and he's the guy right now that best fits what we need."

Assistant coaches John Mabry, Keoni DeRenne, and one of Zumwalt's lieutenants, Mike Tosar, will likely be in-house candidates for the full-time job if and when Zumwalt returns to his director role. Picollo also mentioned there's an opportunity that they go outside the organization, but they always look internally first.

Matheny Looking To Go Closer By Committee: Even though last night's loss was not due to a blown save, manager Mike Matheny has been getting peppered with questions regarding the closer's role as the team has played so many close games in recent weeks. Scott Barlow is currently on the injured list with an elbow issue, and Josh Staumont is 4-for-7 in save opportunities so far. Gabe Speier picked up the save in Monday night's game, pitching a scoreless ninth inning that night.

"It's a bit up in the air at this point," he said. "I know you all are pretty interested in what we're going to do there, but I think we have some guys that can fill that role pretty ably."

Staumont and Speier figure to get the bulk of the opportunities, but others like Dylan Coleman and Amir Garrett could also get some looks with their power stuff. Garrett has been effective in his limited innings (12 2/3), averaging better than a strikeout per inning, and a WHIP below 1.00.

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Re: One Royal Way (OOTP 23)

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PITCHING MATCHUPS
05/26: RHP Brad Keller (1-3, 2.66) vs LHP Christian Friedrich (0-2, 9.22)
05/27: RHP Brady Singer (2-0, 3.99) vs RHP Sonny Gray (0-2, 5.26)
05/28: LHP Daniel Lynch (3-3, 5.66) vs RHP Bailey Ober (2-3, 4.32)
05/29: RHP Jon Heasley (2-1, 4.84) vs RHP Chris Paddack (1-4, 3.79)

WHO'S HOT?
RHP Brady Singer, Kansas City -- 12.1 IP, 8 K, ER (2 starts)
RHP Joe Ryan, Minnesota -- 11.2 IP, 13 K, 2 ER (2 starts)

WHO'S NOT?
C Ryan Jeffers, Minnesota -- 1-for-23 (.043), 2B, 2 BB, 11 K
C Gary Sanchez, Minnesota -- 1-for-24 (.041), 5 BB, 9 K

MINNESOTA INJURED LIST
OF Byron Buxton (concussion) -- 10-day IL
RHP Kenta Maeda (elbow) -- 60-day IL
RHP Josh Winder (knee) -- 60-day IL

KANSAS CITY INJURED LIST
RHP Scott Barlow (elbow) -- 10-day IL
RHP Jonathan Bowlan (elbow) -- 60-day IL
LHP Richard Lovelady (elbow) -- 60-day IL
SS Adalberto Mondesi (knee) -- 10-day IL
OF Edward Olivares (quad) -- 10-day IL
IF Emmanuel Rivera (elbow) -- 10-day IL
1B Carlos Santana (ankle) -- 10-day IL

[artoodeetoo]

Kansas City @ Minnesota (05/26 -- 05/29)

Team Roster/Records | MLB Standings | Statistics

Series Recap: Minnesota Twins

By Brian Douglas | Kansas City Star | May 30th, 2022

Kansas City Royals at Minnesota Twins
May 26, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Kansas City Royals (19-24)	0	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	8	11	0
Minnesota Twins (24-21)	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	1	1	4	12	0
W: Cody Stashak (3-2) L: Gabe Speier (0-1) S: None

Thursday, May 26th, 2022
Alex Kiriloff's walk-off solo blast to lead off the ninth inning propelled the host Twins over the Royals by a 4-3 score. Kansas City held leads of 2-1 and 3-2, and led the game as late as the eighth inning before Jorge Polanco's two-out RBI single off Josh Staumont tied the game at three.

With Scott Barlow on the shelf, Mike Matheny talked about using more of a 'closer-by-committee' approach. Southpaw Gabe Speier got his turn on Thursday, as just the third pitch that Kiriloff saw from Speier was sent 420 feet over the center field wall for the game-winner. Speier picked up the save against his original organization on Monday.

"Man, that's tough," manager Mike Matheny said of the loss. "With Brad (Keller) on the mound, and the way he's pitched of late, we felt getting to four or five would get us the win, and just couldn't get there. Really reduces your margin for error."

Keller left the game after just eighty-four pitches citing back stiffness, but Matheny noted that he didn't anticipate any time missed for the Royals' top starter this season.

Hunter Dozier and MJ Melendez both hit solo homeruns in the game, their fourth and third homeruns of the season, respectively.

Kansas City Royals at Minnesota Twins
May 27, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Kansas City Royals (19-25)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	3	5	0
Minnesota Twins (25-21)	2	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	X	6	11	0
W: Sonny Gray (1-2) L: Brady Singer (2-1) S: None

Friday, May 27th, 2022
MJ Melendez's three-run homerun in the ninth was all the Royals could muster, as the Twins rolled out a 6-0 lead after three innings and coasted to a 6-3 victory in Friday night's game. After a brilliant first five starts in May, Brady Singer was pelted for six earned runs over 2 2/3 innings, including three homeruns. Jake Cave, Ryan Jeffers, and Max Kepler all went deep against him, with Kepler's shot finally chasing him from the game with two down in the third.

Singer didn't walk a batter and struck out three, but was battered for seven hits in all, including the three longballs. Taylor Clarke and Matt Peacock combined for 5 1/3 innings of brilliant relief, scattering four hits and a walk, while Clarke fanned three on his own.

Minnesota's Sonny Gray picked up the win, but it came at a cost -- he had to leave the game with an apparent shoulder issue. He was replaced by Randy Dobnak, who pitched very well up until the final inning when Melendez homered off him. Gray fanned nine over 5 2/3 innings, scattering just two hits and two walks with nine strikeouts.

Kansas City Royals at Minnesota Twins
May 28, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Kansas City Royals (19-26)	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	0
Minnesota Twins (26-21)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	3	5	0
W: Cody Stashak (4-2) L: Josh Staumont (1-4) S: None

Saturday, May 28th, 2022
For the second time in three games, the Twins walked the Royals off with a homerun, this time off the bat of Kyle Garlick against Josh Staumont as the Royals dropped a 3-1 decision on Saturday. It's the fourth loss in a row, and the Royals are continuing to sink like a stone in both the divisional and wildcard races at this point.

Salvador Perez finally got off the schneid in the homerun department, as his second-inning solo blast off Bailey Ober put the Royals up 1-0 at that point. But that blemish was all that Ober had on his side of the ledger, as he ended up nearly going the whole distance. Cody Stashak replaced him with two outs in the ninth, and Ober left to a standing ovation and a 1-1 tie. He had just been called up in the wake of Sonny Gray going to the injured list with a shoulder issue.

With a walk and hit apiece, Nicky Lopez and Bobby Witt, Jr., each reached base twice. With one out in the eighth, and both Whit Merrifield and Andrew Benintendi next up, the Royals couldn't get anyone home with runners on first and second as Merrifield struck out, and Benintendi flied out to end the threat.

"Been a couple of tough nights in a row," said manager Mike Matheny. "Really have to cash in when you have a chance, and we had a few opportunties to do so. Can't put it all on the pitching to go out and win you 1-0, 2-1 games all the time."

Kansas City Royals at Minnesota Twins
May 29, 2022	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	R	H	E
Kansas City Royals (20-26)	2	2	0	0	2	0	0	1	0	3	10	15	1
Minnesota Twins (26-22)	3	0	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	8	13	0
W: Josh Staumont (2-4) L: Cody Stashak (4-3) S: Gabe Speier (2)

Sunday, May 29th, 2022
Homeruns from Hunter Dozier and Bobby Witt, Jr. in the top of the 10th keyed the Royals' 10-8 extra-inning victory. Dozier led off the 10th with a two-run homerun, and then BWJ followed up with a solo shot of his own; both against Cody Stashak, who was the pitcher of record in three of the four games (2-1).

The win snaps a four-game losing streak, and puts the Royals at the 20-win mark for the year at 20-26, still well off the pace in the AL Central, some nine games out of the division lead that Chicago occupies.

Right-hander Jon Heasley was knocked around for seven earned runs in 2 1/3 innings; and was sent down to Omaha following the game for Carlos Hernandez, who has a 0.98 ERA through four starts with the Storm Chasers.

After going nearly three weeks without hitting a homerun, Salvador Perez has homeruns in back-to-back games, giving him eighteen for the season. Ryan O'Hearn also went deep for the third time this season, getting a couple of hits in the victory.