KC Royals: Yordano Ventura Is Not Helping His Team

KC Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura nailed Baltimore shortstop Manny Machado in the back after exchanging words with him earlier in the game. His machismo isn’t helping the team.

The Kansas City Royals still had a chance to get back in Tuesday’s game down 5-1 after stroking nine hits and three walks through the first five innings against Orioles starter Ubaldo Jimenez. Despite the flood of base-runners, the KC Royals had managed to score once, while leaving 10 runners in scoring position.

Needless to say, the entire team had to be frustrated. Add in that Yordano Ventura suffered through a tough first inning in which the Orioles put hard hit balls just outside the reach of his infielders that led to four runs, and Ventura wasn’t exactly a happy guy.

However, Ventura appeared to settle down after giving up a home run  in the second inning to third baseman Ryan Flaherty. Ventura did engage in a barking match with Machado after he flied out later in the second frame, but Ventura cruised through the third and fourth innings without allowing a run.

Here is the second inning woofing match:

With one out in the fifth inning, Machado came to the plate and you can see what happened by clicking the video below:

Ventura was clearly aiming at Machado’s back. I don’t think there’s any doubt that the pitch was intentional. That’s completely unprofessional by Ventura.

Your team is trying to climb back into a game in the middle of a five-game losing streak. You’ve worked into a groove after a rough start and you need to keep your team in the game. Instead, you take a personal vendetta to mound and fire up the other team.

By the way, after both players got ejected, the angry Orioles slammed two dingers and scored three runs in the inning to put the game out of reach.

Rather than help his team in a tough situation, forcing them to stand up for him when they knew he was in the wrong did nothing but add to a bad stretch. I think Baltimore centerfielder Adam Jones hit the nail on the head when he said after the game:

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Last season, teams were trying to bully Kansas City Royals hitters after their AL pennant in 2014. This year, Ventura has no excuse for starting something when his team is in desperate need of a win. Instead of firing up his team, Ventura just made them feel like things are coming unglued in the KC Royals clubhouse.

That was the last thing that the KC Royals needed right now.