Kansas City Royals Biggest Disappointments in 2015

Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

It was too soon for Yordano Ventura and Danny Duffy.

When the Kansas City Royals let James Shields leave via free agency and brought in Edinson Volquez, there were certain expectations upon the pitching staff. The first was that Volquez would produce numbers similar to what Shields provided the Royals. The second was that Yordano Ventura and Danny Duffy would be able to step in and fill the void as the aces of the rotation.

While the first expectation occurred, the second did not. Ventura and Duffy have struggled for most of the season, failing to take that step forward in their development. In fact, if not for Jason Vargas needing to undergo Tommy John surgery, Ventura may well have spent a bit of time in the minors to get himself back on track.

Both pitchers have displayed signs of being on the right track lately. Ventura has posted a 1.93 ERA and has struck out 57 batters in his past 37.1 innings, even with his rough outing on Monday. Duffy, even with a couple of rocky starts, has a 3.66 ERA and a 1.254 WHiP since the All-Star Break. While that may not be a top of the rotation arm, those numbers for Duffy are still solid.

Maybe it was just too early in their development for Yordano Ventura and Danny Duffy to step up and front the Kansas City Royals rotation. Next year, however, may be a different story.

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