Is it time for Royals to suffle the lineup?
KANSAS CITY, Mo. While the focus the past few days on the Royals, at least by some observers, has been on the team's leaky bullpen and Ned Yost's decision to pull James Shields for Greg Holland in Monday's gut-wrenching loss, there remains a far greater concern for Yost:
His toothless offense.
It should be agreed that less than 30 games into the season is far too early...
Painful loss will once again test Royals
KANSAS CITY, Mo. Once again, the resolve of the Royals will be tested.
The Royals, who have bounced back brilliantly from agonizing defeats throughout the early portion of this season, must do so again after Mondays had-it-lost-it 2-1 defeat in 11 innings to the Chicago White Sox.
The loss stained an otherwise promising homestand in which the Royals (17-11) finished 6-3.
What...
Indians-Royals game rained out
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) Just what the Kansas City Royals did not need was another off day.
The Royals and Cleveland Indians were rained out Friday night with the game postponed about 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. The game has been rescheduled as a doubleheader Sunday, the first day-night doubleheader in Kauffman Stadium history.
The Royals have had six days off in...
The Worst of the Best: The Week’s Wildest Pitches
Let us begin with a few notes! First, hello, welcome to the first part of the fourth edition of The Worst Of The Best. Thank you for reading because without you I would be literally penniless unemployed. Second, this post has a lot of .gifs in it. All of the posts in this series have a lot of .gifs in them, and you have no right to complain about browser locking, because you should...
Royals Win Emotional Series in Boston
by John Viril—
This weekend, the Kansas City Royals drew the unenviable task of being the first baseball team to play against the Red Sox in Fenway after the Boston Marathon attack. The weekend featured an emotionally charged atmosphere that included Neil Diamond appearing live to sing “Sweet Caroline” and a pre-game speech by Red Sox DH David Ortiz on Saturday. After blowing...
2013 Fantasy Baseball: The Week 3 Closer Report
Welcome back to the Closer Report. As always, we have news from the most volatile position in fantasy baseball. On with the show…
Boston Red Sox
This is the next hot spot in bullpens across MLB. I can see a lot of carnage here before the season is out. Joel Hanrahan was in trouble at the end of last season. His walk rate spiked to 5.4/9 after back to back seasons below 3.5. He’s...
Greg Holland and Wade Davis struggle early this season
What a difference a week makes. After starting 0-2, the Royals won their third game against the Chicago White Sox. Next, they took two of three from the Phillies and swept the Twins in three games. Now the Royals are 6-3 and first place in the A.L. Central. The offense is scoring runs, the defense only has one error and the starting rotation is pitching well, despite giving up a...
Royals go for three-game sweep of the Twins
(AP) -- The Kansas City Royals' bats got off to a slow start last week, but now they continue to string hits together.
Kansas City will also look to string together its fourth straight win on Wednesday night as it seeks its first three-game sweep of the Minnesota Twins in nearly two years.
The Royals (5-3) began the season with two losses while totaling two runs on 12 hits...
Twins look to get back on track in K.C.
The Kansas City Royals' bats got off to a slow start last week, but now they continue to string hits together.
Kansas City will also look to string together its fourth straight win on Wednesday night as it seeks its first three-game sweep of the Minnesota Twins in nearly two years.
The Royals (5-3) began the season with two losses while totaling two runs on 12 hits. They'...
10 Most-Owned Players I’m Worried About
I’m not trying to start any fires here, but there certainly are people who were way over-drafted in most leagues. I’m not one to shy away from making my opinions known either. The following are players I wouldn’t have drafted anyways, but many did. Some are loved by many, others are not. Without any further ado, here are 10 players that are owned in over 75% of leagues (both...
Debunking the myth of the proven closer
In what is becoming an annual tradition, the anointed Proven CloserTM for more than a few ballclubs has found himself in hot water, inciting panic in their respective fan bases, dugouts and front offices. In Chicago, Carlos Marmol needed all of four appearances before he lost his job as closer to Kyuji Fujikawa. For John Axford, it only took three before his job security was put...
Yost has faith in Holland, but for how long?
KANSAS CITY, Mo. Amid all the excitement surrounding the Royals' thrilling 3-1 win on opening day, there is one issue still lurking for manager Ned Yost: Stabilizing the closer's role.
Incumbent closer Greg Holland was shaky in Chicago, blew a save Saturday in Philadelphia, and struggled again Sunday against the Phillies before being bailed out by Kelvin Herrera.
On Monday...
Closer-by-Committee?
by John Viril—Something very interesting happened in the 9th inning of yesterday’s 3-1 comeback victory over the Twins in Monday’s home opener. Royals manager Ned Yost sent Aaron Crow to get the save. By eschewing nominal closer Greg Holland and heir-apparent Kelvin Herrera, has Yost instead decided to go “closer-by-committee”?
Of course, the official answer is no. Yost...
Five Thoughts on a Non-Simmering Closer Controversy
Whatever else was made of the Royals’ off-season makeover, most agreed that the bullpen was a strength. Tim Collins and Aaron Crow had shown to be good relievers who might even be worthy of closing for some teams, but were only the the third and fourth options in the Royals bullpen. Kelvin Herrera came up and dominated in 2012 with a fastball that touched triple digits, and projected...
Should Holland lose Closer Role?
by John Viril—Coming into the season, the Royals bullpen looked rock solid. However, Royals manager Ned Yost turned to Kelvin Herrera bail out struggling closer Greg Holland to finish Sunday’s 9-8 win in Philadelphia. After also blowing a 3-1 9th inning lead on Saturday and a unsteady finish in Thursday’s victory against Chicago, Holland’s status has suddenly come into question...
Sunday Save Chasing Opportunities
Some of you may have used up your weekly allotted transactions already, picking up guys who got off to hot starts or streaming pitchers. However, I imagine many fantasy GMs still have a few left over. If this is the case, what are you waiting for? If I gave you $6 to spend this week, would you only spend $5? Numerous potential new closers have emerged this week, and if you have a...
Phillies rally for win off Holland, Royals
PHILADELPHIA (AP) Kevin Frandsen rounded first after his big hit, looked up to see all the runners circling the bases and prepared himself for a celebration.Frandsen hit a bases-clearing, three-run double with two outs in the ninth off closer Greg Holland to lift the Phillies to a 4-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night in front of the smallest crowd in Philadelphia...
Phillies 4, Royals 3
Pinch-hitter Kevin Frandsen hit a bases-clearing, three-run double with two outs in the ninth off closer Greg Holland to lift the Phillies to a 4-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night in front of the smallest crowd in Philadelphia in four years.
The Phillies had just two hits and trailed 3-1 to start the inning. Holland (0-1) walked Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and...
Phils Rally in Ninth; Top Royals, 4-3.
Final: Royals 3, Phillies 4.
WP: Antonio Bastardo (1-0, 0.00 ERA) LP: Greg Holland (0-1, 16.20 ERA)
The Phillies could not have asked for much more from John Lannan, the fifth starter, making his debut in a Phillies uniform Saturday evening in the second game of the series. Lannan lasted seven innings, allowing a respectable three runs on five hits. He walked none, and struck...
Royals Fanfest 2013 Announced
KANSAS CITY, MO (December 3, 2012) – The Kansas City Royals have announced that the 2013 Royals FanFest, presented by Sprint and Teva Neuroscience, will take place Saturday, January 19 at the Overland Park Convention Center. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Royals Charities.
Royals FanFest will feature more autograph opportunities than ever before, with continuous autograph...
Jonathan Broxton Reds: Current Value of Aroldis Chapman, Greg Holland
Will Chapman keep his K/9 numbers as a starter?
Jonathan Broxton cashed in on his last season in a big way, with a 3-year deal with the Cincinnati Reds, and he will assume the closer role for Manager Dusty Baker’s squad.
Take a look at what Broxton last year:
IPs
Ks
Saves
Holds
Wins
ERA
WHIP
58
45
27
10
4
2.48
1.26
This means a few things for a few people who...
Should Soria stay, or should he go?
Last week, the Royals declined closer Joakim Soria‘s $8MM 2013 option and invoked a $750,000 buyout, making him a free agent. This wasn’t a surprise move, seeing Soria spent 2012 recovering from Tommy John surgery and he’s not expected to pitch until May or June of 2013.
The Royals would like to sign Soria to a lower cost deal with performance bonuses. But his agent, Oscar...
Holland named Royals pitcher of the year
KANSAS CITY, Mo. With the trade of Jonathan Broxton to Cincinnati last summer and the Royals' decision to pass on Joakim Soria's contract option last week, the path has been cleared for Greg Holland to become the Royals' closer perhaps for years to come.
But Holland, 26, isn't exactly relieved they're gone.
"Sure, I'd love to be the closer for years...
Holland named Royals pitcher of the year
KANSAS CITY, Mo. With the trade of Jonathan Broxton to Cincinnati last summer and the Royals' decision to pass on Joakim Soria's contract option last week, the path has been cleared for Greg Holland to become the Royals' closer perhaps for years to come.
But Holland, 26, isn't exactly relieved they're gone.
"Sure, I'd love to be the closer for years...
Holland Takes Home Bruce Rice Award
Kansas City, MO (November 6, 2012) – The Kansas City Royals have announced that right-handed reliever Greg Holland has been named the 2012 Bruce Rice Pitcher of the Year. The award was voted on by the Kansas City Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA).
Holland, who will turn 27 on November 20, made 67 appearances for the Royals, finishing 7-4 with...
THE ROYALS HOT 25
| Latest Rumors | The Backyard | Going Viral |
|
|
Today's Best Stuff |
For BloggersJoin the Yardbarker Network for more promotion, traffic, and money. |
Company Info |
Help |
What is Yardbarker?Yardbarker is the largest network of sports blogs and pro athlete blogs on the web. This site is the hub of the Yardbarker Network, where our editors and algorithms curate the best sports content from our network and beyond. |
