Royals Rumblings - News for May 17, 2021

Royals Rumblings - News for May 17, 2021

Manager Mike Matheny was livid at the replay system after a controversial loss to the White Sox on Sunday on a wild pitch play at home.

“There’s a lot that happened in that game, and I just have to make a point that if we’re going to use video replay, there needs to be some accountability,” a heated Matheny said. “I just walked in here and had two different camera angles with this guy out, tagged before he ever even touched the plate — and very obvious.

“I don’t know what they’re doing, if they’re backing each other up. Whatever it is, it’s wrong. A game that hard-played, that well-fought all the way to the end. And they’ve got the opportunity to take that much time. From appearances, it looks like they don’t want to bring them back on the field while they’re here with this crowd. It’s just wrong. Something needs to be done about it.”

Anne Rogers gets Cam Gallagher’s perspective.

“I gave it all I had. I picked up the ball and ran as fast as I could,” Gallagher said. “Dove out there and reached for any part of his body. I don’t want to go for their arms because they’re moving around, so I was going right for his leg and that’s what I aimed for. That’s what I thought I got.”

She also writes that Mike Minor found success Saturday throwing more change-ups.

“We switched it up on them to where they couldn’t get into [the] rhythm of what I threw them last time with us going back-to-back against them,” Minor said. “You feel like you know them, but they also know you, too. You can’t keep throwing the same pitches, the same spots, the same counts. They’re going to figure it out. They’re big-league hitters, they can make adjustments, so once we see the way they swing or what they’re looking for or how they take, then that’s how we approach the next pitch. … Try to just keep them off balance. Just kind of the cat and mouse game of baseball.”

Lynn Worthy also wrote about Salvador Perez moving into sixth in club history in home runs.

“He’s got a lot of Vladimir Guerrero in him,” Royals infielder/outfielder Whit Merrifield said. “He gets extended so well. He can hit bad pitches. He can do damage on bad pitches. Well, I guess technically good pitches. It depends on what side you’re looking at it.

“When a pitcher throws a ball out of the zone, that’s not necessarily out of Salvy’s wheelhouse just because he gets extended so well. His hands and his forearms and his wrists are so strong. He can do damage anywhere in the zone. That’s what makes him dangerous when he’s on time and gets his barrel on anything.”

And Lynn wrote about Kelvin Gutierrez’s hectic callup to the big leagues.

“I’m waiting on the Uber at Terminal 1,” Gutierrez said. “(The driver) said, ‘I’m here at Terminal 2.’ I said, Okay, I’ll walk to the other terminal. When I said I’m here at Terminal 2. I don’t see you. He said, ‘Are you up or are you down?’ I said I’m down. Where are you at? He said, ‘I’m up.’”

Mike Gillespie at Kings of Kauffman has seen enough of Wade Davis.

The Royals announce they are dropping their mask mandate at Kauffman Stadium.

Adalberto Mondesi went deep in his rehab assignment for Northwest Arkansas on Sunday and will join Omaha on Tuesday.

Mike Matheny comments on Daniel Lynch’s performance on MLB Network Radio.

MLB Pipeline moves Royals pitcher Jackson Kowar into their top 100 prospect list.

Will Leitch at MLB.com has one quick fix for each team.

Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager won’t need surgery, but he’ll be out four weeks with a hand injury.

Mariners rookie Jarred Kelenic smacks his first big league home run.

A Reds fan helps Nick Castellanos troll Rob Manfred.

Phillies infielder Jean Segura and manager Joe Girardi have a dugout spat.

Tampa Bay acquires reliever Hunter Strickland from the Angels.

Albert Pujols reportedly has a deal with the Dodgers.

They also trade for former Rays first baseman Yoshi Tsutsugo.

Should MLB eliminate the dropped third strike rule?

Marcus Stroman is tinkering and it’s working.

Ashley MacLennan at Fangraphs writes that the Tigers should be further along their rebuild than they are.

The A’s and the Oakland City Council are squabbling and the fans are caught in the middle.

Nationals first baseman Josh Bell has a book club.

A minor league team is selling beer bats.

Paul Pierce, Chris Bosh, and Chris Webber headline the 2021 Basketball Hall of Fame class.

A stunning last-minute goal by the goalkeeper saves Liverpool’s season.

AT&T is reportedly in talks to merge its media business with Discovery.

How the Pentagon started taking UFOs seriously.

There will be a re-boot of Nickelodeons’ Legends of the Hidden Temple, but this time for adults.

Your song of the day is Shania Twain with Up! (h/t cmkeller).