Kansas City Royals: Game Preview Versus the Athletics

The Kansas City Royals take on the Oakland Athletics in Mesa, AZ today at 2:05 CST in Game 2 of Spring Training. New Royal Trevor Oaks will get the start against A. J. Puk. The Royals will look to improve over their 8-4 win yesterday.

The Royals

Looking to build on yesterdays game, the Royals will continue to evaluate who they have on their roster. Expect the Royals to play guys who did not see any action yesterday such as Donald Dewees, Cam Gallagher, Nicky Lopez, and Ramon Torres. Despite the multitude of players who were successful yesterday, it was just one game of many this spring. There’s plenty of baseball left to be played over the next month.

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Trevor Oaks will get the start, however he’ll likely pitch just a couple innings. He has yet to break into the major leagues after starting 15 AAA games last year with an ERA of 3.64. The 24-year-old pitcher will look to fight his way into the starting rotation during Spring Training for the Royals.

The A’s

The Athletics have started the spring 2-0 and will look to improve upon that record against the Royals. The A’s are looking to move closer to contending in 2018 and are figuring out which players are going to take them there. Because of that, they grabbed Ryan Buchter, Brandon Moss, and Stephen Piscotty to help them take the next step. Furthermore, the A’s aren’t just looking for contributions from their lineup – they’re expecting pitching, too.

The Athletics are hoping that A.J. Puk takes a step forward this year. The 22nd-ranked prospect according to MLB Pipeline is likely to head to AAA after camp but could grab a rotation spot if he has a successful Spring.  Last year, he put up a 4.36 ERA in 13 starts after being promoted to the AA Midland Rockhounds. Because Puk is a younger pitcher, the Royals could look to exploit that early and often.

How to follow along

Tune in to see who will make a splash and fight for a spot on the 25 man roster. The game today will not be televised, but you can listen to the game on KCSP 610 radio, online at mlb.com, or with the At Bat app. We will have a recap for you after the game.

Next: Royals defeat LAD 8-4