Royals Rumblings

Royals Rumblings - News for July 11, 2016

Salvy 4 Perezident.

By Max Rieper@maxrieper Jul 11, 2016, 8:00am EDT

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Royals Rumblings - News for July 11, 2016

Dayton Moore is looking to a stronger Royals club in the second half.

The future is always a consideration, but they remain firmly fixed in the here and now. That means they continue to covet not merely a wild-card berth but the division title, general manager Dayton Moore said. And bet that they’d double down on that before they fold.

"There’s no reason to think that we’re not going to do everything in our power to improve this team in the second half," said Moore, reminding that even as the Royals "piece things together" every other team has its own stuff to shore up.

Injury updates:

Wade expected to back back sometime during the Detroit series. LoCain timetable still steady, hopeful for return during CLE series. #Royals
— Dylan Miles (@DylanOnDeck) July 10, 2016

GMDM says he is hopeful that Mike Minor could make some appearances with the ML club sometime in August/September. #Royals
— Dylan Miles (@DylanOnDeck) July 10, 2016

Ned sets his second-half rotation:

Ian Kennedy will start Friday’s game at Detroit, followed by Danny Duffy and Yordano Ventura. When the Royals return to Kauffman Stadium for a series with the AL Central leading Indians, Edinson Volquez will start the opener on July 18, "then the fifth starter," Royals manager Ned Yost said.

Jason Vargas threw his first simulated game since Tommy John surgery.

"It just felt good that I didn’t stop early," Vargas said. "It was the first time back on the mound, so you definitely don’t want anything to make you feel like you’ve got to stop. That was good. Everything else that went along with it was just icing on the cake."

Manager Ned Yost said Vargas will throw live batting practice on July 18 in Surprise, Ariz., continue to do the same in Kansas City through this month. If all goes well, Vargas could begin a rehab assignment around the second week of August and could rejoin the team in September.

Ned Yost talks prospects, including outfielder Jorge Bonifacio.

"I was very impressed with him this spring," Yost said of Jorge. "He keeps making big strides. Every time I see him his body [6-foot-1, 195 pounds] fills out more. He's got a solid lower body, but he has kept his mobility in the outfield. He can move out there."

Bonifacio is hitting .290 at Omaha with 13 homers and 54 RBIs through Thursday. "We talked about him [as a potential callup] at one point," Yost said, "but we wanted [Brett] Eibner to get first shot. But Boni is not far away."

Bonifacio drew two walks, and Hunter Dozier hit into a fielder's choice and stole a base in the Futures Game.

The Defensive Runs Saved All-Stars snub Salvador Perez and the rest of the Royals.

Boston acquires reliever Brad Ziegler from Arizona because Craig Kimbrel will miss 3-6 weeks.

Daniel Murphy destroyed his former team, the Mets, over the weekend.

A minor league team celebrated cats over the weekend.

Minor leaguer Cody Stanley gets a 162-game suspension, but denies PED usage.

Politics is polarizing some MLB clubhouses.

What would have happened if the 1994 season was completed?

Derek Jeter marries model Hannah Davis over the weekend.

Serena Williams wins Wimbledon, an unprecedented 22nd Grand Slam title.

The Tour de France is infested with llamas!

Could "zipper merge" be coming to Kansas and Missouri? (h/t Gaines)