Royals’ Rotation Order Officially Announced

Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

Anyone paying attention to the Royals over the last few months didn’t really need to be told who would be the team’s starting pitcher on Opening Day, but Ned Yost decided to make the announcement anyway. In a statement as surprising as saying pizza is awesome, Yost said Yordano Ventura would be taking the hill on April 6 in Kauffman Stadium.

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Ventura is the most talented pitcher in the rotation, and is coming off a terrific rookie season, capped off with seven shutout innings in Game 6 of the World Series, when the Royals’ backs were against the wall. He’s already proven capable of handling a big moment, so there should be no worries about him dealing with Opening Day.

He threw 183 innings with a 3.20 ERA in the regular season, along with 7.8 strikeouts per 9. His combination of an electric fastball and already-good-but-still-getting-better secondary pitches could easily lead to even better numbers in Ventura’s sophomore campaign. At 23 years old, he still has room to improve, which should absolutely terrify the rest of the American League.

Yost also lined out the rest of the team’s rotation, and for anyone who has paid attention to Spring Training, that announcement shouldn’t come as a shock, either. Danny Duffy will pitch after Ventura, followed by Edinson Volquez, Jason Vargas, and Jeremy Guthrie. That’s the order the Royals have used since camp opened, so once again, no surprise there.

Using that rotation will put the Royals’ two best pitchers at the top, with some solid, innings-eating veterans behind them, while also maintaining the desired right-left-right balance the organization loves. It’s a nice mix that won’t allow any opponents to get terribly similar looks in consecutive games.

The White Sox will be dealing with fire thrown from all angles in that first series, while the Angels’ hitters get to face three entirely different pitching styles in the second series of the season. Obviously not every pitcher will always pitch his best, but forcing teams to face a mix of pitching styles could provide an extra boost to the team’s run prevention. Yost is happy with how it should work out.

Speaking of the White Sox, they officially announced that Jeff Samardzija will be their Opening Day starter, since Chris Sale is sidelined for now with a foot injury. That means Jose Quintana and Duffy will face-off in the second game of the year, in a battle of two quality lefties. That series cannot get here soon enough.

Next: Fact or Fiction: Royals Spring Training Edition