Royals Rumblings - News for July 5, 2021

Royals Rumblings - News for July 5, 2021

Sam Mellinger sits down with Dayton Moore to discuss the disappointing slide.

“Everything begins and ends with starting pitching,” Moore said. “It puts the whole game in rhythm. Why does the offense struggle? Well, because the rotation struggled and those same guys that have to hit are on their feet the whole time. And psychologically they’re getting beat down, like, ‘Holy cow, we have to score all these runs.’

“And when you’re standing around, you lack energy energy and you lose concentration on a ball or two. Then, you could see it: When Mondesi comes back, everybody’s like, boom. When Mondesi got hurt, the whole thing’s like (down).

“I’m just trying to explain things. I’m not making excuses for anybody. When you’re a major-league player, (or) you’re a major-league general manager, (or) you’re a major-league manager, you have to find solutions and you have to get better and you can’t make excuses. Because everybody deals with the same stuff every single year. That’s why it’s so damn hard to win.

Brad Keller looked much better with the slider in a Sunday loss to the Twins, writes Anne Rogers.

“Felt like I was able to throw it for strikes, bury it in the dirt, get some swing-and-misses on it,” Keller said. “Especially in big situations today. Probably the best I’ve felt with it. I’ve been working on it a lot in my last few starts, sitting back more. I feel like this past month I was really picking up my leg and rushing down the mound, and it was really hard for my hand to get on top of really anything, but especially my slider.

“Today, I really felt like I sat back better, really [was able to] drive the ball to where I wanted to go and get my hand on time.”

Danny Duffy likes this team’s attitude in the face of adversity, writes Lynn Worthy.

“Obviously it’s a lot more fun to win,” Duffy said after Saturday’s game. “We’ve done our fair share of losing as of late. I love seeing the guys never give up, never say die.”

Edward Olivares was sent down again to make room for Andrew Benintendi.

“He’s trying really hard to take it well,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said of Olivares. “He’s been as a professional as possible. But every time I call him into the office, I tell him I don’t know how to say it differently than I said it the last time. But this is where we are.

“It’s not something we take lightly. He hits a homer ... and gets sent down today. What part of that makes sense? Except for the fact, young players with options and without opportunity. This is how it works. It’s unfortunate.”

Bobby Witt, Jr. exited his game on Sunday with a calf injury.

Royals outfielder Bubba Starling will represent Team USA at the Olympics.

The Royals gave out player of the month awards in the minors.

MLB announces All-Star pitchers and reserves.

Yankees reliever Chad Green pitches an immaculate inning.

Aroldis Chapman may have lost his closing duties in New York.

Kyle Schwarber has leveled up his power.

Before Shohei Ohtani, there was a two-way player in the Negro Leagues named Bullet Joe Rogan.

The Dodgers put Trevor Bauer on administrative leave after allegations of sexual abuse.

Padres prospect C.J. Abrams is out for the year after a collision.

Money could be a reason many broadcasters are still calling games remotely.

Is it time for radical realignment in baseball?

The Blue Jays submit a proposal to the Canadian government to return home by the end of the month.

Joey Chestnut wins his 14th Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency faces criticism after suspending track star Sha’Carri Richardson from the Olympics for marijuana.

A researcher finds certain network names can disable Wi-Fi on iPhones.

Would Fast and Furious 9’s space car actually work?

An oral history of the 1996 film Independence Day.

Your song of the day is Miley Cyrus with Party in the U.S.A.