Bubic, Royals Primed for Outing vs. Athletics
The Kansas City Royals lost on Wednesday afternoon, and they'll look to get back to their winning ways on Thursday.
In Surprise, AZ, the Royals lost 9-5 to the visiting San Francisco Giants. Starting pitcher Carlos Hernandez, one of the Royals' brightest young talents from a year ago, struggled immensely and ended up giving up six runs in the second inning. The trio of Kyle Isbel, Edward Olivares and Salvador Perez tried their best to keep Kansas City in the game but in the end, the damage was already done and the Giants picked up the win while the Royals fell to 7-4-1 in spring training.
On Thursday, the Royals are in Mesa, AZ, to square off against the Oakland Athletics who are hosting at Hohokam Stadium. It's been a rough spring for the A's, as they carry a 3-8-1 record into their matchup against the Royals. Brady Singer, Scott Barlow and Josh Staumont are listed as Thursday's probable pitchers, with the likes of Jonathan Heasley, Angel Zerpa, Collin Snider and Taylor Clarke being on deck as probable for Friday when Kansas City faces San Diego.
Here's how the Royals will line up in this afternoon's game:
Starting Pitchers
Kansas City: LHP Kris Bubic (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Oakland: RHP Daulton Jefferies (0-1, 11.12 ERA)
Kansas City Royals Starting Lineup
- Kyle Isbel (L) - LF
- Bobby Witt Jr. (R) - 3B
- Ryan O'Hearn (L) - DH
- Edward Olivares (R) - RF
- Vinnie Pasquantino (L) - 1B
- Adalberto Mondesi (S) - SS
- JaCoby Jones (R) - CF
- Clay Dungan (L) - 2B
- Cam Gallagher (R) - C
Kris Bubic, new slider looking to continue momentum
In his Cactus League debut last Saturday against the Los Angeles Dodgers, left-hander Kris Bubic unveiled a new pitch. In two spotless innings of relief, the 24-year-old tossed a couple of sliders over the course of his outing. Developing another offering has been a point of emphasis for Bubic for quite some time now and over the offseason, it appears that he's improved it enough to throw it in games. That's a significant boost if the pitch sticks in his arsenal — even if it isn't a top-three favorite.
Bubic projects to be a major piece of the Royals' pitching staff in 2022, whether it be out of the bullpen or in the starting rotation. He split time between the two last season, performing well enough in relief to earn a promotion to the rotation. Near the end of the 2021 campaign, Bubic truly began to settle in and figure some things out. In September, he went 4-2 with a 2.20 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 32-2/3 innings of work. Bubic is looking to build on that success in spring training, and the addition of a new pitch into his mix could be the key that unlocks the door to doing so.
Can Kyle Isbel stay hot?
There's been a lot of talk about how fantastic Edward Olivares has been this spring — and rightfully so — but fellow young outfielder Kyle Isbel is also enjoying quite the slate of games thus far. In 10 contests, the lefty is hitting .286/.400/.810 with a triple, three home runs and nine RBIs to boot. 2021 was an eventful year for Isbel, as he was called up to the MLB club and promptly demoted within the same month then ended up playing much better baseball to end the year. From September 12 until his final game of the year on October 3 (16 games, 11 starts), Isbel hit .286 with an .886 OPS.
Isbel, the Royals' No. 7-ranked prospect, could force his way into the club's plans in the outfield if he keeps it up. That statement applies to Olivares as well, although he's older and doesn't carry quite the same pedigree as Isbel. With Andrew Benintendi, Michael A. Taylor, Whit Merrifield and possibly a couple of others set to log innings in the outfield at various points throughout the year, it's going to take big games from Isbel to receive a fair chance. Lucas Murphy of Inside the Royals recently wrote about Isbel's path and how it could take a turn for the better moving forward.
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Radio: Royals.com, MLB.com
Jordan Foote is the editor-in-chief of Inside the Royals, as well as the deputy editor of Arrowhead Report and a producer for Kansas City Sports Network. Jordan is a Baker University alumnus, earning his degree in Mass Media with a minor in Sports Administration. Follow him on Twitter @footenoted.