Showing posts with label Danny Duffy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Danny Duffy. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Royals Sign Guthrie, Make Other Roster Moves

The Royals have already made several moves this offseason, but recently the team has made some big decisions that will significantly shape next year’s roster. The biggest deal came yesterday, when the Royals resigned pitcher Jeremy Guthrie to a three year, $25 million deal.

Guthrie resurrected his career with the Royals last season after the club acquired him via a trade with the Colorado Rockies. After struggling a bit early on, Guthrie absolutely caught fire in the second half of the season and became one of the better pitchers in the American League. After joining the Royals, Guthrie posted a 5-3 record with a 3.16 ERA in 16 starts.

While many are concerned with Guthrie’s age (he is 33) and struggles in Colorado, the Royals resigned him for a decent price and showed its fan base that they are serious about contending for a playoff spot next season. Kansas City needed to upgrade its starting pitching, and with deals to Guthrie and Ervin Santana, as well as the return of Felipe Paulino and Danny Duffy from injury, the Royals suddenly have what appears to be a solid starting rotation. This rotation, paired with several key offensive players entering the prime of their career, should have Royals fans somewhat optimistic about next season.

Kansas City also was forced to remove several players from its 40 man roster, and a few have surprised Royals fans. Bryan Pena was let go after spending the last four seasons as the team’s backup catcher. The backup catching job now belongs to Brett Hayes, whom the Royals claimed off of waivers on November 2. Hayes is only 28 and is known to be a good defensive catcher who also calls a good game.

The Royals also designated pitchers Vin Mazzaro, Chris Volstad and Ryan Verdugo for assignment, as well as first baseman Clint Robinson and outfielder Derrick Robinson.

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Royals Make More Roster Moves

The Royals were busy yesterday making several roster moves, most notably the additions of right-handed pitcher Guillermo Moscoso and catcher Brett Hayes. Moscoso was claimed off of waivers from Rockies, while Hayes was acquired from the marlins.

It is unknown if Moscoso has been acquired to be a starter, although many feel he may get a shot. Last season with Colorado, Moscoso earned a 3-2 record with a 6.12 ERA in 23 appearances, including three starts. Moscoso had a much better year in 2011, when he went 8-10 with a solid 3.38 ERA in 21 starts with Oakland. The Royals recently traded for Ervin Santana, and have talented pitchers like Danny Duffy and Felipe Paulino returning from injury (both Duffy and Paulino were reinstated off the disabled list and are back on the roster). Moscoso would likely have to have a strong spring to earn a rotation spot, and may be headed to the Royals’ bullpen.

Hayes has spent the majority of his career as a backup, although he has seen some significant time in the major league. He appeared in 39 games last year, hitting .202, and played in 64 games in 2011, when he posted a .231 batting average.

Kansas City lost Blake Wood, as the right-handed pitcher was claimed off waivers to the Cleveland Indians. The Royals also designated three players for assignment – pitchers Tommy Hottovy and Jeremy Jeffress, as well as outfielder Jason Bourgeois. Catcher Manny Pina was sent to Class AAA Omaha on outright assignment.

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Danny Duffy Out For Season With Torn Elbow Ligament

Danny Duffy only lasted 13 pitches into Kansas City's 9-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox before disaster struck for the young pitcher. Duffy tore his left ulnar collateral ligament, and will likely require Tommy John's surgery. This would mean that the young lefty's 2012 season would be over, delivering a crushing blow to the Royals' starting rotation.

Kansas City already lost All-Star closer Joakim Soria to a similar injury on April 3, and now the Royals have lost two of their best arms. Duffy had a 2-2 record this season with a 3.90 ERA, and seemed to be on the verge of becoming one of the better starters in the American League.

The Royals also lost starter Jonathan Sanchez, who was placed on the 15 day disabled list last Wednesday with bicep tendinitis.

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Billy Butler's Blast Leads Royals To Victory - Kansas City News

On a day in which Texas’ Josh Hamilton made headlines by hitting four home runs in one game, Billy Butler decided to grab a bit of the spotlight as well. Butler hit a three-run homerun in the eighth inning to propel Kansas City to a 6-4 victory over Boston. The win improved the Royals’ record to 10-19 on the season.

It appeared that Kansas City was on its way towards another frustrating loss. Despite giving up just three runs, Danny Duffy struggled and lasted 4 1/3 innings. Kansas City’s offense had a big third inning, but had been dormant since. The game was in doubt until Daniel Bard walked both Jarrod Dyson and Alex Gordon in the eighth. That would be the end for Bard, who struggled with his control all night and even had two balks. Boston’s Matt Albers relieved Bard, and three pitches later, Butler crushed a pitch to give Kansas City a lead it would not relinquish.

While Butler’s homer will get all of the headlines, several other Royals had key contributions to the win. Chris Getz and Humberto Quintero both came up with big hits in the second inning to drive in some runs. Getz has significantly improved his performance at the plate this season, and has been a pleasant surprise for a Royals team that is struggling to consistently score. Kansas City also got quality pitching from Kelvin Herrera, Jose Mijares and Jonathan Broxton after Duffy left the game. With the Royals’ starting pitching struggling lately, it is encouraging to see the bullpen step up.

The Royals’ face the Red Sox again tonight at 7:10 p.m. A victory would give the Royals a winning record in its AL East home stand against New York and Boston. Bruce Chen (0-4) will start for the Royals, while Jon Lester (1-2) will take the mound for the Red Sox.

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Loss To Red Sox Highlights Royals' Pitching Woes - Kansas City News

After splitting four games with the New York Yankees, the Royals began another AL East series last night against the Boston Red Sox. Once again, Jonathan Sanchez failed to last deep into the game, and Kansas City lost 11-5. - Kansas City News

Sanchez’s struggles are not unique to the Royals pitching staff – Kansas City’s pitchers are averaging fewer than five innings per start, which is the worst in MLB. Early in the season, it appeared that starting pitching might be a strength for Kansas City; however with the recent struggles of the staff, most notably Luke Hochevar, Danny Duffy appears to be the only starter who can keep opposing offenses from lighting up the scoreboard- Kansas City News

The poor pitching wasted a decent outing from the Royals offense, who managed to keep pace with the Sox until Boston scored four runs in the eighth to put the game away. The loss drops Kansas City to 9-19 on the season, eight games out of first place in the AL Central.

Kansas City will face Boston in game two of the series tonight at 7:10 p.m. Duffy (2-2) will get the start for the Royals, while Daniel Bard (2-3) will take the mound for the Red Sox. - Kansas City News

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Friday, May 4, 2012

Royals Beat Yankees For Their First Home Win Of The Season

As sad as it is that it came in May, the Royals won their first home game of the season last night, beating the New York Yankees 4-3. The Royals were able to hold on in ninth thanks to a fantastic play at third base by Mike Moustakas, who made a bare-handed grab to throw at Alex Rodriquez to end the game. The win improved the Royals’ record to 8-16 on the season.

Moustakas also contributed at the plate, belting a solo shot in the second inning to give the Royals an early lead, and adding two more RBIs in the fifth. The young third baseman is silently having a very good season for the Royals, hitting for a .318 average this season with 4 home runs and 15 RBIs. He has also played excellent defense at third base, and last night’s game winning throw was just one of several highlight-reel plays he has made at third base this season.

Danny Duffy pitched very well for Kansas City, and improved his record to 2-2 on the season while lowering his ERA to 3.57. The Royals bullpen was solid, save for a shaky outing from closer Jonathan Broxton. Broxton gave up a hit and a walk before a big double play got Kansas City closer to victory.

The big story before the game was New York’s loss of Mariano Rivera, who tore his ACL before the game shagging balls and may be done for his career. Rivera is the greatest closer in MLB history, and his absence surely played a part on the Yankee’s struggles. However, give a lot of credit to Kansas City, the Royals deserved the win and got the winless-at-home monkey off their back.

Kansas City will play New York again tonight at 7:10 p.m. Bruce Chen (0-3) will start for the Royals, while C.C. Sabathia (3-0) will start for the Yankees.

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Monday, April 16, 2012

Royals Swept By Indians - Kansas City News

After surviving a tough road trip out west, the Royals returned home to face one of the worst teams in the league and hopefully gain some momentum in its first division matchup of the season. Unfortunately, everything that could go wrong for Kansas City did, and the Royals were swept by the Cleveland Indians.

After an impressive start in his first appearance of the season, Luke Hochevar got absolutely rocked by the Indians in the Royals' home opener. Hochevar allowed seven runs in the first inning alone, and Kansas City fell to Cleveland 8-3. In the second game of the series, Kansas City fell behind 9-2 before eventually tying the game at 9-9 after a furious comeback. The Royals couldn’t keep the momentum going, and Cleveland prevailed in extra innings, 11-9.

It appeared that the Royals were going to salvage game three of the series early, when Kansas City took a 3-0 lead off of the struggling (and recently suspended) Ubaldo Jimenez. Cleveland erased that deficit in a hurry, scoring six runs in the third inning and cruising to a 13-7 victory. That loss dropped the Royals to 3-6 on the season, and Kansas City current sits in fourth place in the AL Central standings.

The entire series was an ugly one for Kansas City. After a fantastic start to the season, the Royals’ starting pitching was terrible all weekend. The Indians officially have Kansas City’s number, and the Royals will have to find a way to start winning more games against division opponents.

Kansas City starts another AL Central series today against the Detroit Tigers. Danny Duffy (1-0) will get the start for the Royals, and will face one of the best pitchers in the game in Detroit’s Justin Verlander (0-1).

Kansas City News, official kc news site with breaking stories on The Kansas City Royals, Chiefs, charity events, the 2012 MLB All Star Game, weather, sports, MU, KU, ufo sightings, dui checkpoints, Kansas City neighborhoods, nightlife, concerts, the Sprint Center, the Power and Light District and current Kansas City news articles.

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Royals Take Series Against Indians

With a strong performance from Danny Duffy and some timely hitting, Kansas City was able to defeat Cleveland today, 5-3. The win gave Kansas City a series victory over their struggling AL Central rival, and the Royals have now won eight of 12.

Duffy, who was filling in for the injured Kyle Davies, was able to escape several jams and struck out six in five innings of work. He gave up eight hits, but was also able to pick off two runners. Joakim Soria picked up the save, his 20th in 26 chances.

Offensively, the Royals were aided by Alex Gordon, who has been putting on a clinic during Kansas City's hot streak. In the month of July, Gordon batted .323 with four home runs and 13 RBI, and has raised his average on the season to .302. Gordon's emergence, paired with strong seasons from Jeff Francoeur and Billy Butler, has given the Royals offense some much-needed consistency.

Kansas City has tomorrow off, then starts a home series against Baltimore on Tuesday. The game is scheduled to start at 7:10 pm

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Royals Take Series Vs. White Sox, Pitching Continues To Impress

After Felipe Paulino and the Royals bullpen shut down the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, Bruce Chen delivered an even better performance yesterday. Chen only allowed one run in six innings of work, and Kansas City won 4-1. The win gave the Royals a series victory over the White Sox.

Kansas City's offense quickly gave Chen a lead, highlighted by Eric Hosmer's eighth home run of the season. Hosmer now has three multi-hit games in the last four days, and he has given the Royals' offense a major shot in the arm since being called up.

The biggest story of the day, however, was Chen. Time and time again, he was able to escape jams while keeping Chicago's batters off balance all day long. Starting pitching was a major concern a few weeks ago, however Paulino and Chen's recent performances have given Kansas City fans some renewed hope. The team still needs to address its starting rotation if it wants to compete in the future, but the situation doesn't seem nearly as dire as it did earlier in the season.

The Royals begin a new series tonight against the struggling Detroit Tigers. Danny Duffy (1-3) will get the start for Kansas City.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Royals Fall to Padres

Kansas City couldn't keep the momentum going after taking a series from the Cubs, dropping game one of its series vs. San Diego 4-3. Kansas City never lead, and its comeback effort came up just short against the struggling Padres.

The Royals got off to a poor start, and found themselves in a quick 2-0 hole afterRyan Ludwick blasted a two run homer in the first. The third inning wasn't much better, as San Diego scored on a Jeff Francis wild pitch as well as a throwing error by Eric Hosmer. Despite all the mistakes, the Royals only trailed by one after six innings due to Brayan Pena's two run double. However, the offense soon stalled and the Royals never got any closer.

Jeff Francis (3-9) never got it going against the Padres, and his performance on the road this season has been downright terrible. In games away from Kansas City, Francis is 1-5 with a 6.75 ERA. Kyle Davies is ready to come off the disabled list, who has been just as bad as Francis this year. Hopefully manager Ned Yost continues to use rookie Danny Duffy, who has pitched well this year, and sends either Francis or Davies (or both) packing.

Game two against the Padres starts tonight at 9:05 p.m. Felipe Paulino (0-1) gets the start for Kansas City, as he looks to rebound from his first loss as a Royal.

Friday, June 3, 2011

Royals Fall to Twins

Fresh off a dramatic walk-off win over the Angels, the Royals fell flat on their faces last night. Kansas City got embarrassed by the Twins, 8-2, as starting pitcher Sean O'Sullivan continued to struggle.

I'm not sure if it is possible for anyone to pitch as poorly as Sullivan has recently. He gave up five home runs in less than three innings of work last night, and he has struggled all season long. It is time for Kansas City to explore other options and to cut ties with Sullivan. He has proven he doesn't have what it takes to make it in the big leagues, and Kansas City has plenty of prospects ready for a shot.

The lone bright spot for Kansas City was Jeff Francoeur, who had a big day at the plate. Francoeur hit two doubles and a triple, and was responsible for batting in both of the Royals' runs. Francoeur now leads the team with 32 RBI, and continues to be a pleasant surprise for the team. Joakim Soria, in his first appearance since losing his closer role, retired all six batters he faced.

Kansas City will face the Twins again tonight at 7:10 PM. Carl Pavano, who has struggled this season, will get the start for Minnesota. Danny Duffy will get the start for the Royals, as he continues to search for his first major league victory.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Royals Fall to Orioles

Kansas City fell to Baltimore 5-3 last night, and has now lost 8 of its last 10 games. Royals closer Joakim Soria continued to struggle and gave up a two run walkoff homerun to Adam Jones.

Kansas City appeared to be in position to win the game, entering the ninth inning with a 3-2 lead. However, Soria quickly gave up two doubles which allowed Baltimore to tie the game. He then delivered a fastball that Jones, who hadn't hit a homer in over a month, blasted into the bleachers to send Kansas City on its way to another late inning loss.

Soria's meltdown wasted a solid effort from rookie pitcher Danny Duffy, who was in position to pick up his first major league win before Baltimore's late game heroics. Duffy gave up two runs and five hits in 5 1/3 innings, and has looked good in his first two starts as a Royal. Duffy's emergence could be a big boost for a pitching staff that is struggling, and the fact that he is only 22 years old has to have Kansas City fans excited about the future.

Alex Gordon homered for the second time in two games, and Billy Butler hit an RBI single to give Kansas City its 3-0 lead. The Royals play again tonight at 6:05.

Monday, May 23, 2011

Royals Drop Series to Cardinals in Wild Fashion

The Royals dropped a wild 9-8 game to the Cardinals, losing the 1-70 series and falling to 22-24 overall. The loss moves Kansas City to eight games back of Cleveland in the AL Central.

The Royals pitching yesterday was downright terrible at times, as Kansas City walked 13 batters. However, St. Louis was called for only walk, which upset catcher Matt Treanor and manager Ned Yost so much that they both were ejected during the seventh inning. Kansas City had fallen behind by as much as six runs, but was able to battle back and tie up the game before eventually losing in extra innings. Kansas City's poor pitching and defense (the team's streak of 11 games without an error was broking) wasted a terrific offensive effort from the Royals, as Alex Gordon, Wilson Betemit and Jeff Francoeur all homered during the comeback.

The Royals have an opportunity to get a once promising season back on track in its next series against Baltimore. Danny Duffy has showed some promise, and he will get the start tonight against the Orioles.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Injuries Force Royals to Move Duffy Up

Injuries to Royals starters Kyle Davies and Bruce Chen have forced Dayton Moore to call up young gun Danny Duffy. Vin Mazzaro was seen as a possible in the rotation, but after his awful outing on Monday, the team had to look elsewhere. In the midst of a 4 game skid and a possible drop out of the division race, the Royals know something must be done with a starting rotation that is second to last in the American league in ERA.

Davies left in the first inning Monday night and went on the 15 day DL before Mazzaro's meltdown. Bruce Chen has been sidelined since last week with a strain in his back, and likely won't see action at Major League level until early June. That leaves Duffy and fellow rookie Nate Adcock to fill the void. Duffy has a 3-1 record this year at AAA Omaha, with a 3.00 ERA and 43 Strikeouts in 36 innings, he has been regarded as a top pitching prospect since being drafted in the 3rd round in 2007.


Nate Adcock was a Rule 5 draftee in the off season and has been excellent out of the bullpen this year for the Royals compiling a 2.08 ERA in 8 appearances. Adcock will likely get the start on Saturday in Davies's spot in the Rotation.

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