Royals Pitching Perspectives (2/25-3/2)

Welcome to the 1^st edition of an article I hope to do on a weekly basis covering the performance of the Royals pitchers from the previous week. During the regular season I plan on this being a far more robust article each week when I can actually watch the games, so this week’s edition is largely a statistical summation of the week that was.

The Royals finished their first week with a 3-2-1 record. What is encouraging thus far in the spring is the Royals offense, which has scored 40 runs in the 6 games they have played. Hopefully the rotation will not be far behind.

The order of the rotation I am listing below, is the order I would put them in if I was managing the team.

Zack Greinke pitched Friday against the Giants and put in a stellar 2.0 innings of work. He didn’t allow a hit, did not walk a single batter, and struck out one. He is the ace of a questionable rotation, which means the Royals need a whole lot more of what he showed in his first outing.

Gil Meche pitched Sunday against the Angels and I think it is safe to say his Spring Training debut didn’t go as planned. Meche pitched only 1.0 inning giving up 4 hits, 3 earned runs, walked 1 and struck out 2. He is a veteran and knows how to get ready for the regular season, so I’m not going to sweat this one start too much, but it does bear watching since he struggled out of the gate in 2008.

Kyle Davies pitched Thursday against Texas. He went 2.0 innings, allowing 2 hits and 2 walks, but he did not give up a run while striking out 2. It was a so-so debut, but it was followed up by what he did today. This afternoon, he came into the game against the Giants following Ho-Ram and Devon Lowery. He pitched 3.0 innings allowing only 1 hit, walking none, and striking out 1. If he can continue his late season success from 2008 and solidify the 3^rd slot in the rotation, the Royals could go from being an improved team, to a team that could push for the division.

Brian Bannister pitched Saturday against the Padres. His 2.0 innings were perfect, not allowing a hit, run, or walk, while not striking a batter out. He is probably somewhere in between the pitcher he was in 2007 and 2008, but the upside is very limited on what he can be.

Luke Hochevar came into the game on Saturday against the Padres after Bannister. He did not experience the same success. In 2.0 innings, he gave up 2 hits, 2 earned runs, walked 1 and struck out 1. He has a long way to go, but unlike Bannister and Horacio Ramirez has significant upside. Hopefully he can stay healthy, and the Royals will keep in the major league rotation to develop.

Horacio Ramirez pitched the Spring Training opener against the Rangers. He made it only 0.2 innings allowing 7 hits. He gave up 6 runs, 3 of them earned, while not allowing a walk and recording 1 strike out. He got his second start this afternoon against the Giants. He pitched 2.1 innings giving up 5 hits, 3 unearned runs, walked 1 and struck out 1. It was a better outing than his 1^st but he is doing very little to earn the rotation spot the Royals are trying to hand him. It also seems that the Royals are having trouble playing defense behind him. Of the 7 unearned runs scored on Kansas City pitching, Ho-Ram has been on the mound for 6 of those runs. The fact he is in consideration for a spot signifies how few options the Royals have at this point.

It was a week of mixed results for the Royals rotation in their 1^st week of work. They got 3 excellent, 1 decent, and 3 poor starts. Unless someone steps up, I fear that it is a trend we will continue to see throughout the 2009 season.

Kansas City

ERA

WHIP

2/25-3/2 Starters

13.0

4.15

1.77

Below is the performance of the rest of the pitchers in camp.

Kansas City

ERA

WHIP

Henry Barrera (R)

2.0

0.00

1.00

Roman Colon (R)

2.0

0.00

0.50

Dan Cortes (R)

1.0

0.00

2.00

Lenny DiNardo (L)

4.0

0.00

0.75

Brandon Duckworth (R)

4.1

8.31

18.71

Hamulack, Tim (L)

2.0

9.00

3.00

Devon Lowery (R)

1.2

0.00

0.60

Franquelis Osoria (R)

2.0

9.00

2.00

Joel Peralta (R)

2.0

9.00

2.00

Heath Phillips (L)

3.0

3.00

0.67

Julio Pimentel (R)

3.0

3.00

1.00

Carlos Rosa (R)

2.0

0.00

1.00

Joakim Soria (R)

1.0

0.00

Robinson Tejada (R)

2.0

0.00

1.50

Doug Waechter (R)

1.0

0.00

2.00

Jamey Wright (R)

2.0

0.00

0.50

Matt Wright (L)

1.0

0.00

1.00

Yasuhiko Yabuta (R)

2.0

4.50

2.50

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