Royals Rumblings: News for May 25, 2023

Mike Mayers came through in his spot start on Tuesday:

“I would have liked to have gone a little deeper, but I was able to throw strikes with all of my pitches,” Mayers said. “When you do that, it keeps hitters off-balance. I definitely relied a little more heavily on my slider, but it was working and the command was good tonight.”

Mayers got ample support, primarily from second baseman Michael Massey and the Kansas City bullpen, which continues to be an overall bright spot.

Recent heavy usage of the bullpen caught up to the team last night:

Had the Royals been able to put a fully loaded bullpen behind Greinke against the Tigers, the formula may have been just right. But after going all-in with its primary bullpen pieces through the opening two games of the series, Kansas City suffered a sixth-inning glitch that led to a 6-4 loss to Detroit at Kauffman Stadium. Left-hander Josh Taylor came on for Greinke in a 1-1 game and had runners at first and third with one out when right-handed-hitting Zack Short came off the bench to deliver a telling blow.

Short’s three-run homer to left-center put Detroit ahead to stay and reinforced the notion that Kansas City is going to need more length from an injury-plagued starting rotation so that the bullpen doesn’t have to pick up a plethora of innings on a nightly basis.

Brady Singer only worked 3 2/3 innings in the series opener. Mike Mayers, who generally operates out of the bullpen, was excellent in a spot start on Tuesday. But Mayers finally wavered in the fifth after a strong 4 2/3 innings. Greinke then held the Tigers to a Riley Greene solo homer through five, but he needed 91 pitches to get those 15 outs.

Keith Law has the Royals taking GCU shortstop Jacob Wilson in his latest mock draft ($):

This link has been going around for weeks, and would fit their college position player approach from last year’s first two rounds, although I’ve also heard about the Royals heavily scouting the last wave of high school position players — like Mitchell, Colin Houck, Colt Emerson and Sammy Stafura. I would guess that’s for their second pick, maybe as an overpay, but in 2021 the Royals reached for Frank Mozzicato and cut a below-slot deal with him to go over slot on some later picks.

Speaking of Frank Mozzicato, he’s been dealing in Columbia:

The 2021 seventh overall pick continues to re-establish the excitement around his profile in his second season at Single-A Columbia. Mozzicato has struck out at least seven batters in four straight starts, and his 29 strikeouts lead the Carolina League since the streak began on April 29. Walks have been a bit of an issue (13 in 20 1/3 innings), but the amount of whiffs is more noteworthy for the 19-year-old lefty with a killer curveball.

Aroldis Chapman has been the hardest throwing lefty in baseball this season.

No team has been shut out more often than Kansas City this year.

Boston will move two-time Cy Young winner Corey Kluber to the bullpen.

Carlos Correa has plantar fasciitis, a foot injury that played a big role in Albert Pujols’s decline.

Super Regionals in the NCAA Softball Tournament starts today.

The Florida Panthers completed their sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes to improbably reach the Stanley Cup Finals.

Patrick Mahomes is prioritizing winning over money.

Reflecting on the legacy of Carmelo Anthony.

Tina Turner passed away at the age of 83.

A new supernova has appeared that is visible in the night sky.

This climbing season on Mount Everest is on pace to be one of the deadliest on record.

Evidently today is Geek Pride Day, so I posit to you, what is your geekiest hobby or interest?

Some captchas are really starting to get out of hand.

Your song of the day is All Night by Icona Pop.