Royals Rumblings - News for June 27, 2016

Royals Rumblings - News for June 27, 2016

Hunter Samuels at Baseball Prospectus Kansas City notes that Alcides Escobar has struggled with fastballs this year.

I don’t know if that one at-bat is representative of his entire month, but he certainly has struggled more than usual against heaters in June. He’s whiffed on nearly a quarter of his swings at the four-seamers, after only doing so 11 percent of the time last season. His overall swinging strike rate isn’t out of line with last year’s, but it’s concerning that he’s struggling so much with the kind of pitches he’s been able to handle in the past.

It seems tough to suggest Escobar’s bat is just slowing down, although it is a possibility. To these untrained eyeballs, his bat speed still appears to be good enough. I think the most likely explanation is that his timing is off, partly due to poor pitch recognition.

Lee Judge explains why the Royals are a better team at home.

The difference in park dimensions explains the difference in home runs at Kauffman Stadium and home runs on the road, and the fear of road home runs explains the rest. In Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City pitchers can be more aggressive. They can go right at the opposing batters and count on the park size and their outfielders’ speed to get them outs. On the road, Royals pitchers might lose that aggression and start to nibble. And nibbling usually leads to falling behind in the count. And that leads to walking batters or throwing pitches down Main Street.

Eric Hosmer is ready to make his first All-Star Game.

You see, no T-shirts have been made for Hosmer this season. He doesn’t need them. While Cain has fallen to fifth in outfield voting, Hosmer is the leading vote-getter in the American League at first base with 2,054,642 votes. Last year, Hosmer had a strong first half but was not selected to the All-Star Game, making him the lone young Royals star in the lineup who didn’t get to play in the Midsummer Classic. "It’s something I would have liked to attend and something I would have liked to have been a part of," Hosmer said. "But I wouldn’t say I was disappointed because you’re happy for the organization and the team."

A Kris Medlen update:

Ned says Kris Medlen will need more starts on his rehab assignment. Medlen threw 75 pitches last night and gave up one earned run for Omaha

— Jeffrey Flanagan (@FlannyMLB) June 26, 2016

Are the Indians pulling away from the Royals?

The Mets reunite with shortstop Jose Reyes, recently suspended for domestic abuse.

Will the Yankees buy out Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira?

Kansas City native Trevor Rosenthal loses the closer's role in St. Louis.

The White Sox are stuck between contention and rebuilding.

Who are the biggest bounce-backs in baseball this year?

A visit by the Cuban National baseball team shows that US baseball relations are stuck in the past.

Some dude ran on the baseball field during the middle of a play.

NASCAR fights are a disgrace to baseball.

Are Facebook and Google using copyright scanners to suppress extremist speech?

The FDA has approved a new weight-loss device that lets you drain your food out 30 minutes after eating.

Fivethirtyeight wants to know - why do you comment online?

Your song of the day is the Old 97s with "Nineteen."