Royals Owner David Glass Remains Positive Despite Rough Start

The Royals have yet to win a home game this season in a year where many expected Kansas City to finally take a step forward in its building process. But owner David Glass doesn't seem worried.

From MLB.com:

"Baseball is an up-and-down game," Glass said on Thursday. "If you had a losing streak like we have right now in the middle of the season and your record was decent, you wouldn't think much about it. It's the fact that we started this way."

The Royals have lost seven games in a row and have scored three runs or fewer in seven of 12 games this year. Kansas City hasn't finished above .500 since 2003 and has lost at least 90 games in seven of the last eight seasons. Although the Detroit Tigers are heavy favorites to win the AL Central, many thought before the season that the Royals could make a push for second place. At 3-9, Kansas City is sitting in last in the division.

For more on the Kansas City Royals, check out Royals Review.

Cleveland's Jeanmar Gomez Suspended For Beaning Moustakas

Major League Baseball announced Wednesday that Cleveland Indians pitcher Jeanmar Gomez has been suspended for five games after it was determined he purposely hit Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas with a pitch last Saturday.

Unless Gomez appealed the suspension, it was to begin Wednesday night. Gomez's pitch caused the benches to clear for the second time in the game. It may have been a response to Cleveland's Shin-Soo Choo earlier in the inning. As a result of the scrum, Gomez, Cleveland manager Manny Acta and Cleveland third baseman Jack Hannahan were ejected. Hannahan and Acta were fined for their roles in the incident.

Gomez has pitched four innings in two appearances this season, giving up one earned run and no hits. The Indians won Saturday's game 11-9 in 10 innings and swept the Royals over the weekend.

For more on the Kansas City Royals, check out Royals Review. For more on the Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe.

Royals Vs. Tigers: Offense Quiet Again As Detroit Sweeps Kansas City

The Royals were never able to find success at the plate as Tigers pitching stifled the Kansas City bats for the third straight night and Detroit won 4-3 on Wednesday night.

The Royals scored six runs in the three-game sweep. For their part, the Royals pitchers only allowed 10 runs over the three games. Jonathan Sanchez wasn't credited with a quality start, but he gave up just two earned runs over five innings. Sanchez left with a 3-2 lead, as the Royals scored two in the bottom of the third on a home run by Alcides Escobar and one in the fourth on a double by Humberto Quintero.

But Kelvin Herrera gave up the lead with a run in the top of the seventh and Jose Mijares gave up another in the inning and eventually was credited with the loss.

Billy Butler went 2-for-3 with a run scored and a walk. The Royals have now lost seven in a row and are 0-6 at home.

For more on the Kansas City Royals, check out Royals Review.

Kansas City Royals Vs. Detroit Tigers Wednesday Lineups

The Kansas City Royals take on the Detroit Tigers tonight, looking to snap their early six-game losing streak. To do so, they're going to have to beat up on one of Detroit's promising young starters, Max Scherzer -- and they'll also need Jonathan Sanchez to tame Detroit's potent lineup.

Here are the starting lineups for Wednesday night's contest between the Royals and Tigers:

Detroit Tigers

Austin Jackson, CF
Brennan Boesch, RF
Miguel Cabrera, 3B
Prince Fielder, 1B
Delmon Young, DH
Ryan Raburn, LF
Jhonny Peralta, SS
Brandon Inge, 2B
Gerald Laird, C

Max Scherzer, SP

Kansas City Royals

Alex Gordon, LF
Yuniesky Betancourt, 2B
Eric Hosmer, 1B
Billy Butler, DH
Jeff Francoeur, RF
Mike Moustakas, 3B
Humberto Quintero, C
Mitch Maier, CF
Alcides Escobar, SS

Jonathan Sanchez, SP

Betancourt, as you may have noticed, has moved up to the second spot in the lineup, a night after hitting seventh. Brayan Pena and Jason Bourgeois are not in tonight's lineup, either, as KC looks to snap their losing skid.

For more on the Kansas City Royals, be sure to check out Royals Review.

Royals Vs. Tigers: Game Time, TV Info And More

After losing five straight games to the Cleveland Indians and the Detroit Tigers, the Kansas City Royals will try to salvage a disastrous home stand in their game Wednesday night with Detroit.

Jonathan Sanchez will take the mound for the Royals while the Tigers will run out Max Scherzer.

Sanchez lasted only 2.2 innings in his last start, giving up 5 home runs and 4 walks to the Indians on April 14. Scherzer has been inconsistent this season as well, lasting only 2.2 innings in his first start before throwing a gem in his second, striking out 11 batters in 6 innings against the Chicago White Sox.

Kansas City's offense has been stifled in their first two games against Detroit, although a lot of that has to do with All-World pitcher Justin Verlander, who gave up only 2 runs in a dominant 9 inning performance.

The 7:10 PM game will be broadcast on Fox Sports Kansas City.

For more news and analysis on the Royals, head over to Royals Review while Bless You Boys is your one-stop shop for all the latest on the Tigers.

Royals Vs. Tigers: Offense Quiet Again In 3-1 Loss To Tigers

For the second straight night, a Tigers starter quieted the Royals bats, as Kansas City fell 3-1 on Tuesday night.

Detroit pitcher Drew Smyly made his second-career start and gave up one unearned run over seven innings. The Royals had nine hits in the game and went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position.

Kansas City got another quality start as Bruce Chen gave up two earned runs over seven-plus innings, but the Royals couldn't provide any support for him. The game was tied at one entering the the eighth, but Detroit hit four singles in the top of the inning, scoring two runs. The Royals could only manage two hits off a combination of three Tigers relievers.

Billy Butler went 3-for-4 with a double as the only Royal to have multiple hits. Alex Gordon went 1-for-4 with the lone RBI for Kansas City. The Royals have lost six games in a row and are 0-5 at home this season.

Tigers Vs. Royals: Game Preview, TV Info And More

The Kansas City Royals are still looking for their first home victory of the season in the second matchup of an American League Central Division series against the division-leading Detroit Tigers.

There was little the Royals could do against Justin Verlander on Monday, but Danny Duffy did his best to combat the superstar pitcher.

In the second game, Bruce Chen will get the start for Kansas City, while the Tigers will put Drew Smyly on the mound. Chen has started two games this season and pitched 11 innings in which he has given up seven hits, two earned runs and struck out seven batters.

Here is a look at the game schedule and television information for Tuesday's matchup:

Date: Tuesday, April 17, 7:10 p.m. CDT

TV: Fox Sports Kansas City

Radio: KCSP 610

Read more about the Kansas City Royals at Royals Review and for more on the Tigers go to Bless You Boys.

Justin Verlander Represents Exactly What Royals Need Most

It's an easy headline that could apply to any team for sure. I'll admit that up front. Every team could use an arm like Justin Verlander. After all, history has written so few stories about the MLB player who pitches well enough to win the Cy Young and take the MVP trophy home as well. But this isn't about someone as super-human as Verlander. It's about the Detroit Tigers having an ace in their deck -- a card the Royals can't seem to find anywhere.

The steps taken this season so far by Danny Duffy are positive, and the team has reason to hope that he turns into a solid starter every fifth day. They also have live arms that can look promising as well, but those timelines will come later this season or even over the next several. But for right now, the Royals have an ace-sized problem that will not go away. Until they do, the notion that the team can be competitive will be an elusive one.

Dayton Moore did well to trade for Jonathan Sanchez using the Melky Cabrera trade chip. Sanchez has the right "stuff" and it's a good flier to take a guy with the upside enough to throw a no-hitter and look good amid the loaded Giants staff. Thus far, however, Sanchez has been the same volatile product since the start of spring training that he's been throughout his career -- short sample size with KC notwithstanding.

Bruce Chen? Luke Hochevar? Luis Mendoza? Felipe Paulino? None of these names conjure up images of the ace that so many teams are missing. Tonight the Royals got a solid pitching performance from Duffy, Aaron Crow and Greg Holland, but it just wasn't good enough. The reason? The ace was better.

"It was a big task facing Verlander," said Royals manager Ned Yos after the game. "We gave him a good game, but it's not the way we wanted it to end."

While there are precious few pitchers of Verlander's stature, there are a few ace-type pitchers available here and there. You just have to break the bank to get them. The Nationals sent a load of players to the A's for the chance to harness Gio Gonzalez's stuff. The Cincinnati Reds sent even more to the Padres for the chance to rely on Mat Latos. Whether those deals were good or not, there's a reason that GMs are making them: the value of an ace is over-the-top if your team somehow can't manufacture one yourself.

Unfortunately as good as the Royals system is, it doesn't even resemble a fellow miserable franchise like the Pirates. Pittsburgh has Gerrit Cole, Jameson Taillon and others waiting in the wings with a number of guys that look to anchor a rotation. The Royals are loaded with position players, but the pitching has yet to match the rhythm.

Give the Royals another year to nurture more talent and they might have enough to make the mega-deal to bring in the ace pitcher. After all, the Nationals' own general manager Mike Rizzo stated that they could not have made the Gio trade just a year ago. The Royals can also hope that another year of growth finds an elite pitcher emerging from the farm. But something has to give and it has to start soon or else the Royals will continue to run into the products of other teams -- and find themselves in the loss column because of it.

For more Royals talk, check out Royals Review. For more news and notes from around Major League Baseball head over to Baseball Nation.

Danny Duffy Pitches Great, Takes Loss On Himself

Danny Duffy stood toe-to-toe with Justin Verlander all night on Monday evening and nearly bested the Tigers' Cy Young pitcher, but it wasn't meant to be in the 3-2 loss.

Duffy left a pitch up in the fifth inning to Brandon Inge, in what ended up being the winning two-run home run. However Duffy finished with 6.2 innings pitched, allowing three runs on seven hits. He struck out seven, while walking just one. 74 of his 106 pitches went for strikes.

On the year Duffy is 1-1 with a 2.13 and quickly becoming the Royals' best pitcher. For the year Duffy has 15 strikeouts against five walks after two outings.

What I enjoy greatly is he didn't try to pin this loss on his teammates for their lack of run support. Facing Verlander or not, Duffy spoke to the media after the game and reiterated how glad he is to be a member of this organization and how it was his fault for leaving the ball up in the zone against Inge. He held himself accountable, when he easily could have pointed the finger at others.

These losses are becoming a tough pill to swallow this early in the season, but Duffy's continued progress provides hope that the Royals are finding a true ace on the staff.

Royals Vs. Tigers: Rally Falls Short As KC Loses Series-Opener

Against the high-powered Tigers offense, Danny Duffy held his own, but Justin Verlander frustrated the Royals offense all night and a late rally fell just short as the Tigers took the series-opener 3-2 on Monday night.

Duffy gave up three runs over 6 2/3 innings, striking out seven batters, but Justin Verlander was more masterful. The reigning AL MVP gave up one run on five hits through eight innings and the Tigers let him go out for the ninth with a 3-1 lead. The Royals scored a run on a Humberto Quintero single to cut the deficit to one and Kansas City loaded the bases with two outs. But Alex Gordon struck out looking, ending the game.

Billy Butler went 2-for-4 with an RBI and Mitch Maier went 2-for-3 with a walk. Aaron Crow and Greg Holland didn't give up a hit in 2 1/3 combined innings out of the bullpen for Kansas City, which moved to 0-4 at home this season.

For more Royals talk, check out Royals Review. For more news and notes from around Major League Baseball head over to Baseball Nation.

Royals Lineup Against Justin Verlander And The Detroit Tigers

Going into tonight's game, manager Ned Yost is going with a lineup of

Alex Gordon LF

Chris Getz 2B

Eric Hosmer 1B

Billy Butler DH

Jeff Francoeur RF

Mike Moustakas 3B

Humberto Quintero C

Mitch Maier CF

Alcides Escobar SS

Butler has the most success of any current Royals with a .359/.405/.615 line against Justin Verlander in his career which includes two home runs among his 14 total hits. Meanwhile Frenchy has 5 hits in 13 at-bats versus the Tigers star pitcher. Quintero is the lone Royal in the starting lineup who has yet to face Verlander.

Meanwhile the Tigers have limited success against Kansas City starter Danny Duffy, with the exception of Miguel Cabrera. In eight at-bats, Cabrera has three hits (including two doubles).

If the Royals are to break the current four-game losing streak and obtain their first win at home, they must do so this evening facing a tall task.

AL Central Standings: Royals Sit 3 Games Behind Tigers

The AL Central was expected to belong to the Detroit Tigers when all was said and done in the 2012 MLB season. Little did anyone expect that it would be handed over so easily. The Tigers already lead the division in the early going, and based on the way their rivals look, it might be the easiest competition in all of baseball. The Royals hope to reverse that direction today in the start of their series at Kauffman.

Here's the latest updated AL Central standings heading into today's games:

For more Royals talk make sure to head on over to Royals Review. For more news and notes from around Major League Baseball head over to Baseball Nation.

Royals vs. Tigers: Game Time, TV Info and More

Justin Verlander comes to town looking for his first win of the season. He went 3-0 against Kansas City last year.