Fourteen games in, the Royals are 8-6 and only a half a game out of first in the A.L. Central. Overall, the team is playing well, but so far they’ve given up 18 home runs, which is fourth in the A.L. and 6th in the Majors. Meanwhile, they’ve hit just five home runs, which is last in the A.L. and 29th in the Majors, just ahead of the woeful Miami Marlins with only three team home runs.

Of the 18 home runs given up, the starting rotation gave up 13, with Jeremy Guthrie (5 HR) and Ervin Santana (4 HR) being the top offenders. The bullpen gave up five homers, with Kelvin Herrera giving up three of them, all in one inning of Tuesday night’s game against the Atlanta Braves.

Of the 18 homers given up, 15 are solo shots, two are two-run homers and one is a three-run homer. In the games the Royals didn’t give up a home run, they’re 4-2. In games where they only gave up solo shots, they’re 3-2. In multi-run homer games, they’re 1-2. What’s interesting are the games where the opposing team hit multiple solo home runs in a game. In those games, the Royals are 2-1.

So why is the Royals pitching staff giving up so many home runs? For Guthrie, it appears he throws a bad pitch once in a while and hitters take advantage of it. So far, he’s 2-0 with a 3.20 ERA with 17 strikeouts and three walks, giving him a 5.67 SO/BB ratio.

Over his career, Santana has a tendency to give up homers and he’s keeping true to form. But he’s got a 2.45 ERA and he’s struck out 19 batters while walking five, giving him a 3.80 SO/BB ratio.

As for Kelvin Herrera’s three homers he gave up, the Royals think he tipped his pitches when he gave up his three home runs against Atlanta. Herrera is a fireball pitcher and they tend to give up home runs.

While the Royals are giving up a lot of home runs this season, how does it compare to last season? In the first 14 games of 2012, the Royals gave up 14 home runs, seven of which were solo shots, six were two-run homers and one was a three-run homer. When they didn’t give up any home runs, they went 2-5. When they only gave up solo homers in a game, they were 1-1. When they gave up a multi-run homer, they were 0-5. Meanwhile, the Royals hit 12 home runs, seven more than this year. But after 14 games, they were 3-11 and in the middle of their 12-game losing streak. Compared to this year, the 2012 Royals gave up more multi-run homers, their team ERA was 4.66, they struck out 105 batters and walked 51, which gave them a 2.06 SO/BB ratio.

The 2013 Royals team ERA is 3.30, which is third in the A.L and fifth in the Majors. They have 122 strikeouts, which is third in the A.L. and fourth in the Majors. The Royals gave up 33 walks, which is second best in the A.L. and fourth best in the Majors. This gives the Royals an impressive team 3.70 SO/BB ratio. Yes, the Royals pitching staff gives up home runs, but otherwise they’re pitching well.

But how long can the Royals pitching staff keep up their low ERA and SO/BB ratio? So far, the Royals are lucky, mainly giving up solo home runs. But they can’t run on luck all season. If they start walking more batters and throwing less strikeouts, more runners will get on base, which increases the chance of multi-run homers. Pitching coach Dave Eiland needs to work with the pitching staff and cut down on the home runs. Meanwhile, hitting coaches Jack Maloof and Andre David need to get the offense hitting more home runs. If this doesn’t happen, the 2013 season could end up being like the 2012 season.

Source: Sports Management Degree Hub

The day pitchers and catchers report is always a special day in the baseball community. It marks the symbolic end to the offseason, but another special day approaches this weekend to mark another step toward the birth of another baseball season.

The St. Louis Cardinals will open their exhibition schedule at 12:05 p.m. Saturday against the Miami Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter, Florida.  That will officially mark the beginning of spring training that more fans can follow, rather than breathlessly waiting on reports of how a second baseman looked while fielding ground balls or how a pitcher looked during a bullpen session.

Admittedly, spring training games aren’t a huge step up from regular spring training workouts. Pitchers will each throw just a few innings and batters who will eventually fill the regular-season lineup will take only one or two at bats, if at all. This year’s Cardinals roster is relatively set for Opening Day, but these will still be baseball games that will gloriously fill the afternoons throughout the rest of February and March.

Some fanatics will surely try to analyze these early games and try to draw conclusions about how a pitcher such as Shelby Miller will perform this season based on a two-inning performance in the first week of March. That outing won’t mean anything in the grand scheme of a season, but hey, it gives fans something to talk about that isn’t contract negotiations or performance-enhancing drugs.

Fans also get a bonus this year because the games will start about a week earlier than normal because the World Baseball Classic will take place during the first half of March, and teams needed some extra time with their players who would be gone for a couple of weeks because of the tournament.

The Cardinals will lose catcher Yadier Molina, rightfielder Carlos Beltran and reliever Mitchell Boggs to the World Baseball Classic, but those three already have defined roles that would only change if they got hurt, which is a whole other issue that comes with the World Baseball Classic.

Otherwise, minor leaguers will fill the field for much of the spring games, but this year fans will likely recognize several of the names in those box scores.

Outfielder Oscar Taveras is one of the Cardinals most highly touted prospects. He hit .321 with 23 homeruns and 94 RBIs with the AA-affiliate Springfield Cardinals last year, and MLB Network recently ranked him as the third-best prospect in all of baseball. In fact, the Cardinals had six players make MLB Network’s list of the top 100 prospects.

Miller came in at 25th, and he will be a strong contender for the fifth spot in the Cardinals starting rotation this year. Trevor Rosenthal ranked 43rd, and he figures to be an important part of the Cardinals pitching staff in 2013.

The other three Cardinals players on the list are unlikely to make the team, but the spring training games should give fans a chance to see second baseman Kolten Wong, as well as pitchers Carlos Martinez and Michael Wacha, for the first time.

Folks have talked about those prospects for more than a year, and this year’s exhibition schedule should allow fans their first chance to see how excited they should be about the Cardinals No. 1-ranked minor league system.

Miller, Rosenthal and Joe Kelly will compete for the fifth and final rotation spot, and Daniel Descalso and Matt Carpenter will battle for the second base job. Otherwise, not much of what takes place during the 32-game schedule will have much of an effect on the Cardinals’ 2013 season.

And that’s OK. The Cardinals will be playing actual baseball games.

While temperatures in St. Louis remain in the 30s and 40s, that is good enough for now.

Offseason news is dominated with big trades (like the Miami Marlins shipping a part of their roster to the Toronto Blue Jays) and wondering where star free agents like Zack Greinke and Josh Hamilton will sign. But there’s a lot of small moves Major League clubs make in an effort to improve their teams and the Royals are no different.

Last week, the Royals traded reliever Jeremy Jeffress to Toronto for cash and reliever Tommy Hottovy to the Texas Rangers for cash and our old friend player to be named later. And on Monday outfielder Jason Bourgeois elected to become a free agent. Earlier this month, the Royals designated the three players for assignment to clear space on the 40-man roster.

Jeffress, 25, appeared in 13 games with the Royals with a 6.75 ERA. He’s out of options and the Jays will give him to opportunity to make the team. Kansas City native and lefty specialist Hottovy, 31, appeared in nine games with the Royals with a 2.89 ERA and hopes to be a part of the Ranger’s bullpen. Bourgeois, 30, had a .258 average in 30 games with the Royals and has yet to sign with a team.

With their limited roles, Jeffress and Hottovy were the odd men out in an already solid bullpen. And Bourgeois was expendable since the Royals already have speedy outfielders Lorenzo Cain and Jarrod Dyson on their roster.

To be honest, Jeffress, Hottovy and Bourgeois had a small role with the Royals and they weren’t going to be a part of the team’s future. These minor moves in the middle of November will be a fading memory as the 2013 season commences. But it’s the business of baseball and I hope Jeffress, Hottovy and Bourgeois have good luck with their new teams.

KANSAS CITY, MO (November 2, 2012) — The Kansas City Royals today announced several 40-man Major League roster moves.  Following the moves, the Royals now have 40 players on the club’s 40-man roster.

The club has reinstated left-handed pitcher Danny Duffy and right-handed pitcher Felipe Paulino from the 60-day Disabled List.  Both pitchers underwent ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction (Tommy John surgery) during the 2012 season:  Duffy on his left elbow on June 13 and Paulino on his right elbow on July 3.

In addition, the club claimed right-handed pitcher Guillermo Moscoso on Outright Waivers from the Colorado Rockies and claimed catcher Brett Hayes on Outright Waivers from the Miami Marlins.

Leaving the Royals organization is right-handed pitcher Blake Wood, who was claimed on Outright Waivers by the Cleveland Indians.

Catcher Manuel Pina was assigned outright to Omaha while left-handed pitcher Tommy Hottovy, right-handed pitcher Jeremy Jeffress and outfielder Jason Bourgeois were designated for assignment.

The 28-year-old Moscoso (name is pronounced “jee-AIR-moh mahs-KOH-soh”), who will turn 29 on November 14, has pitched for parts of the past four seasons in the Majors with the Rangers (2009-10), Athletics (2011) and Rockies (2012).  The 6-foot-1, 200-pounder made 23 appearances, including three starts, for Colorado last season and went 3-2 with a 6.12 ERA.  His best season came in 2011 with Oakland when he compiled an 8-10 record with a 3.38 ERA in 23 games (21 starts), allowing three hits or fewer in eight starts.  Born in Maracay, Venezuela, Moscoso was originally signed by the Detroit Tigers as a non-drafted free agent in 2003.

Hayes, 28, has worked as the Marlins backup catcher for parts of the past four seasons.  In 39 games in 2012, he batted .202 with six doubles after hitting .231 with five home runs and 16 RBI in 64 contests in 2011.  Known as a strong defensive catcher, Hayes has caught 19 of 74 attempted basestealers in his career (26%).  The 6-foot, 201-pound right-handed hitter was the Marlins’ second-round selection in the 2005 draft out of the University of Nevada.  His father, Tim Hayes, was drafted by the Royals but never played professionally.

I wrote this article for school. We were not allowed to do any research, hence the significant lack of numbers. Leave a comment and I will revise it so there are more stats.

The Kansas City Royals pitching staff was horrific this past season, with Luke Hochevar and his 5.39 ERA, and Jonathan Sanchez giving up 7 runs in 1 1/3 innings to the Mariners. I have a proposition, which will hopefully make the Royals 2013 season the first memorable one since 1985. This would be an anomaly, as the Royals have the longest playoff drought in any professional sport since fifteen years before I was born. Being a Royals fan is difficult, as you have to get accustomed to losing. But if Dayton Moore, the Royals General Manager, would consider these ideas, the Royals may win what is expected to be the worst division in baseball in 2013.

The Royals need starting pitching. Anibal Sanchez is their best option. Sanchez started the 2012 season with the Miami Marlins, who traded him to the Detroit Tigers at the trading deadline. He struggled out of the gate, but picked it up and had a fantastic end of the season. His great performance spilled into the postseason, where he dominated the Oakland A’s and the New York Yankees. He makes the start for game 3 of the World Series, which, as I am writing this, has not occurred yet. Sanchez appears to be the best realistic option, as a Zack Greinke reunion seems to be unlikely.

Speaking of Greinke, if the Royals were to get him, I believe that it would require them to get creative. I think that I can assume you do not know who Mike Sweeney is. He was a first baseman for the Royals before he became injury plagued. The player is not the comparison, his contract is. I was reading a Rany Jazayerli article (a blogger and founder of Baseball Prosepectus) the other day, and he presented the idea of taking the unique clause out of Sweeney’s deal, that says the Royals cannot be bad. Let me explain- the clause says that if the Royals don’t finish over .500 (81-81) in 2003 or 2004, Sweeney can walk away. In the first year of his contract, (2003) the Royals won 83 games. The contract worked, as it kept what was at the time one of the best hitters in the American League in Kansas City. Greinke left Kansas City because he wanted to win, if the Royals give him this clause, if he does not win, he gets to leave.

Dayton Moore claims that he would like to pick up Kyle Lohse. I share another theory with Rany, and that is Moore should stay away from Kyle Lohse. Lohse currently plays for my beloved Cardinals, but he is a free agent this offseason. I have looked at all of Lohse’s splits, (stats) and all of them appear to say that he relies heavily on the Cardinals good defense, and luck. Since 1985, Kansas City is where luck keels over, balls up, and dies. Kansas City has a below average defense. (as a team). Lohse is going to get paid a substantial amount more than Sanchez, and Sanchez has appeared to be better over the last few seasons.

I hope that you have been able to draw a fair amount from this article, but if one thing could stick with you, it would be this; The Kansas City Royals need starting pitching, and Anibal Sanchez seems to be the answer. I am not saying that the Royals will be the best team in baseball, I am just saying that they might be competent, and competent is all that we are asking.

Amid the confusion emanating from a lineup card snafu, catcher Yadier Molina‘s dramatic, game-tying two-run homer in the ninth inning Monday night was somewhat lost in the shuffle. But Molina wasn’t overlooked Tuesday as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Miami Marlins 5-2

Homering for the third game in succession, Molina put the finishing touches on a five-run first inning keyed by two Miami errors by smacking a 3-2 pitch from Carlos Zambrano for a three-run homer.

As the Cardinals extended their winning streak to a season-high five games, their strongest All-Star candidates all had leading roles.

Besides Molina, shortstop Rafael Furcal, in line for his first fans’ election as an All-Star, turned in a remarkable defensive play to take the Cardinals out of a tough spot in the sixth. Furcal snagged left fielder Logan Morrison‘s bad-hop, high-hop smash to his left and dashed to the bag to start an inning-ending double play to help right-hander Kyle Lohse to his seventh victory.

And right fielder Carlos Beltran, a sure All-Star starter, knocked in the Cardinals’ first run of the game with a single in the first inning.

Lohse (7-2) has had four straight starts of at least seven innings.

Molina, showing he is the best all-round catcher in the National League, is just two homers off his season high of 14, achieved last year. “I don’t think about that,” he said. “I think about winning games.”

Manager Mike Matheny said Molina’s offense added to his defense make him “the best in the game” at his position. Matheny said pitchers have so much trust in Molina that “you go into the meetings and some of the guys are snoozing because they know Yadi’s going to take care of them.” Lohse said, “A lot of people are paying attention to what he’s done at the plate. But I don’t remember the last time I shook him off.”

Items of note
–RHP Chris Carpenter, whose throwing session was canceled on Monday when his shoulder felt weak, said he felt stronger on Tuesday. He said that after a couple days of rest he could be cleared to resume throwing again. But he also said he still expected to consult with doctors when the club returns to St. Louis after Wednesday’s game.

–RF Carlos Beltran, who leads the National League in homers with 20, said he had not yet been approached about participating in the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game and didn’t know if he would accept such an invitation. Chances are that Beltran would accept, though, because he spent seven seasons playing with the Kansas City Royals, hosts of this year’s All-Star Game.

–RHP Kyle Lohse has beaten the Miami Marlins twice in two meetings at the new stadium in Miami. The Cardinals opened this season there with a one-game series. Lohse took a no-hitter into the seventh inning that night and scored a 4-1 victory. “People forget he led the team in wins and ERA last year,” said manager Mike Matheny. “People kind of overlook him a little bit, which is understandable because we’ve had some big-name pitchers who have had big years.”

–3B David Freese, riding a six-game hitting streak, got a scheduled day off. Freese will be back in the lineup on Wednesday night.

–LF Matt Holliday, who had hit .556 (20-for-36) over his last nine games, went hitless but drew two walks and also reached base on a Miami error. Holliday has a good chance of being named an All-Star reserve for the National League.

–SS Rafael Furcal, contributing his strong offensive play after a recent 2-for-39 nosedive, reached base on a single and a walk and scored the Cardinals’ first run. He also made the game’s best defensive play, a double play to end the sixth inning, after fielding Miami LF Logan Morrison’s angry, high-hop smash to his left. “He’s been playing at Gold Glove caliber,” said manager Mike Matheny. “It looked like he just threw his glove in the air, anticipating a high hop.” Said Furcal, “I didn’t have time to get in front of it … that ball was hit so hard.”

BY THE NUMBERS: 8 — Consecutive wins by the Cardinals over the Marlins in the last two seasons, including seven straight in Miami.

QUOTE TO NOTE: “Anytime you give up a ball hit that hard, you aren’t expecting anybody to catch it.” — RHP Kyle Lohse on a stellar double play turned by SS Rafael Furcal to end the sixth inning.

MEDICAL WATCH:

–LHP Jaime Garcia (left shoulder strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to June 6. After further examination, it was determined that he has tearing in his rotator cuff. He won’t throw until at least late July and is out until at least mid-August.

–1B Lance Berkman (torn meniscus in right knee) went on the 15-day disabled list May 20. He had arthroscopic surgery May 25, and no ACL damage was found. He might be able to resume baseball activity in late June

The St. Louis Cardinals might have a new manager, pitching coach and offensive stars, but their results have been the same as the 2011 team during its run to the World Series championship. The games have also been less stressful to watch, thanks in part to new manager Mike Matheny.

The Cardinals started the 2012 season with two of the cleanest wins a baseball team can have, especially to begin a season. They beat the Miami Marlins 4-1 Wednesday before traveling to Milwaukee and beating the Brewers 11-5 Friday.

Sure, they got beat in starting pitcher Adam Wainwright’s return Saturday to the tune of a 6-0 shutout, but Brewers starter Zack Greinke pitched a brilliant game. He was also the third elite pitcher the Cardinals had faced in as many days.

Overall, the Cardinals have shown early signs that they will play a much cleaner game than they did while Tony La Russa was the manager. It’s foolish to say La Russa’s teams didn’t play good baseball. His team’s won a lot of baseball games, but they also maintained an edge to their game that was never completely comfortable to watch. They could certainly come back after falling behind several runs early in a game, but just as well could let a similar lead disappear.

A good bullpen is certainly a major factor in how those situations play out, but La Russa’s heavy use of his bullpen played a role. His theory of using several relievers in one game was meant to keep them available night after night without wearing down one particular pitcher. But, that always left opportunities for one of those pitchers to have an off-night and blow the game.

Although it’s very early, Matheny hasn’t shown any tendencies to take a lot of risks. His decisions have been calculated, and have not tipped the game for or against his team. Those moments where his decision wins or loses a game will surely come, but his approach is a smart one for a new manager with an experienced team.

Matheny’s has also made judicial use of his bullpen. It helps when his starters pitch deep into ballgames, but he has not made pitching changes just for the sake of making pitching changes. Matheny has a good understanding of the rhythm of a baseball game, and has shown a more gentle touch than La Russa.

Matheny is no teddy bear, by any means. He will fight with his team to the death just as La Russa would have, but Matheny will likely trust his gut instinct rather than what the numbers say in the matchup book.

That will be a stark change for Cardinals fans who have grown to fear a righty-lefty matchup simply because the pitcher and hitter don’t have the same dominant hand. The hand a pitcher throws with is sometimes less important than how the pitcher is throwing that day.

Even if a pitcher, particularly a reliever, was cruising along, La Russa would yank him simply to play the matchup game. Matheny appears to be more likely to let a pitcher who is dominating go ahead and work a full inning regardless of who comes up next in the order. This certainly won’t always be the case, but it will be nice to watch a game that doesn’t include at least six pitching changes every night.

Also, the team’s baserunning has been much better. Former first baseman Albert Pujols was often more of a factor in this problem than La Russa. Pujols was a very aggressive baserunner, but he would also run himself into an out because of that aggressiveness.

The 2012 Cardinals might not be the most explosive team in Major League Baseball, but if the first week is any indication, this should be a very fundamentally sound team that could win a lot of baseball games.

Having a manager who fosters that type of a team will certainly help.

So far, the St. Louis Cardinals are making it look easy in 2012. And while no one would say anything in 2011 was easy—maybe when they put Game 7 of the World Series out of reach…maybe—the Cards are playing a lot like they did at the end of last season.

And that’s no small feat, for a couple of reasons. Mike Matheny and his revamped coaching staff may not have been tested with any chess match-type of games, but so far the rookie manager has not made any mistakes either. The Cards are 2-0 facing two different teams in their home openers and against their aces: The Miami Marlins threw Josh Johnson, and the Milwaukee Brewers sent out Yovanni Gallardo. The Redbirds handled them both, and without the benefit of having an ace on the mound either time.

There are a lot of similarities between this year’s squad and last year’s World Champs. The Cards have gotten two really solid starts from their rotation already. The team plays good defense, and the middle of the order is hitting the ball well. Even David Freese looks the same; every time he comes up with runners in scoring position and two outs, he gets a hit. It’s getting to be a shock when he does not. But the 2012 Cardinals are doing some things a little differently, too. They already have three stolen bases this season, and one was (gasp!) while the #3 hitter was up to bat. And for the second game of the season, Matheny trotted out the exact same lineup he used in the first game of the season. It’s almost as if he is just taunting Tony La Russa now…

But the first big test comes Saturday in Milwaukee. Adam Wainwright makes his regular season debut just 13 or so months after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Wainwright will probably be his old self, but his stats at the end of the game will not be the whole story. What really matters on that mound Saturday is how many pitches he’s able to throw before he tires. And then the next story will be how he feels on Sunday. The Cardinals have no idea when Chris Carpenter will be back; they need Wainwright to be the go-to guy indefinitely this season. And that may require him to throw fewer innings based on how he recovers after each start. In the meantime, it will be great to see him on the mound.

The Cardinals are coming out of the gate with guns blazing, but it can’t last. Their stats will fall back down to near their averages. But this is so much like what happened in the 2011 season end and postseason. Imagine that: solid pitching, timely hitting, and good defense lead to wins. Still, the Cardinals have to be careful not to kick back and think they have things in the bag. That is one reason the stolen bases are so significant: they represent a bit of a culture shift. The Cards are exploring new—or, at the very least, expanded—ways to “get ‘em on, get ‘em over, get ‘em out” and there is nothing wrong with that.

Couple it with the “never say die” attitude of last year’s team and maybe the Cardinals will be as good as the team that won it all last year. Maybe they will even be better.

The St. Louis Cardinals will open the season with a one game set with the Miami Marlins.

Friend of the site, and founder of Why I Like Baseball, Cecilia Tan recently attended the two game exhibition between the Marlins and the New York Yankees.  Thanks to the trusty camera she had with her, she has agreed to share the sites of the new stadium with our fans.

Consider this a sneak peek at the stadium and a warm-up for your Opening Day viewing pleasure.

Marlins Park

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