Is the offense turning things around?
Jaylon Thompson writes about last night’s offensive explosion.
KC finished with 11 hits. The increased scoring chances could bode well for the offense finding a rhythm moving forward.
“I wasn’t concerned with the at-bats,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “I mean, we are going to have stretches throughout the season where things go the way that they have. And we are going to have plenty of stretches where they go much better. So, six games into the season was certainly not the time to worry.”
He also writes about the changes in Maikel Garcia.
Garcia worked hard to reverse course. He added strength and rediscovered better contact balance to aid his swing.
Now, Garcia is reaping the benefits of his hard work. And he has become the hottest, and perhaps, the most dangerous, hitter in the Royals lineup early on.
“He’s always been able to do that and he’s making the most of it,” Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. said. “It’s great to see the work he puts in and everything he is doing. That’s just how he is. He is a five-tool player all around.”
Anne Rogers writes the offense can turn around quickly.
“The worst thing you can do is look at the scoreboard,” Pasquantino said. “… You don’t want to look up and [the number begins with] less than a one, a one or a low two. But we’ve gotten to a point where we know what our team is like, and I’m going to be in there, so I got to do what I can to help this team win. I can’t worry about my numbers.”
“It can change,” Pasquantino continued, snapping his fingers, “like that.”
David Lesky breaks down some of the offensive issues.
The part that maybe isn’t quite as irresponsible is that they simply don’t make good swing decisions, and that’s nothing new. This year, they’re chasing 30.8 percent of pitches out of the zone. Somehow with adding Jonathan India, Cavan Biggio and Mark Canha, that’s worse than last year. I say somehow, but three of the top four culprits are guys who are expected to be their 2-3-4 hitters. We know Salvador Perez chases like crazy, but Witt has chased 40.4 percent of the time while Pasquantino has chased 36.6 percent of the time. Witt’s been at 30.8 percent each of the last two years, so never good but this is something different. And Pasquantino’s chase rate is way higher in his career than I would have guessed it would be in 2022, but he was at 30.5 percent last year. Bring those two down just to their average and things look much better.
Brittany Ghiroli at The Athletic writes about how frugal some players can be. [$]
Seth Lugo, Royals: I hate paying for shipping.
A look at the dogs at Bark at the Park last night.
The Dodgers lose for the first time all year, thanks to a baserunning blunder.
José Ramírez homers three times in a Cleveland win over the Angels.
Aaron Judge matches Babe Ruth with 321 home runs in his first 1,000 games with the Yankees.
Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman lands on the Injured List.
Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte lands on the Injured List.
Rockies top pitching prospect Chase Dollander will make his MLB debut Sunday.
The Yankes already cut ties with veteran reliever Adam Ottavino.
Infielder Matt McLain turned down a long-term contract offer from the Reds.
Bryce Harper says only “losers” complain about the Dodgers’ payroll.
Alex Ovechkin scores his 894th goal, tying Wayne Gretzky for most all-time.
Thomas Müller will leave Bayern Munich ending his 25-year career with the club.
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