Shortly after the Kansas City Royals defeated the Texas Rangers 7-6, the club decided to option second baseman and utility infielder Yuniesky Betancourt. Manager Ned Yost said that the decision was made because Betancourt was wanting more playing time, but Yost wants to change the losing culture by wanting team players:
"We have been living in a losing culture here for many, many years," Yost said. "We cannot get over the thump. In order for us to get over the hump, we have to have 25 guys that are solely invested in one goal and that's turning this organization around to become a champion. That's it. It's not about, ‘How much do I play?' It's not about, ‘Do I have a job?'
"This is about 25 guys with one goal: That we're going out to try to win this baseball game tonight, and you have that goal night in, night out. Anybody else that's not on page with that, we will never change our culture. It's about 25 guys who respect each other, 25 guys that have the same common goal. That's how we're going to turn this losing culture into a winning culture.
Yost appreciated what Yuniesky brought to the field but he would complain a lot when he did not get playing time.
Replacing Yuniesky on the Royals roster is Tony Abreu who has spent the season in Triple-A Omaha, and in 103 games was hitting .322 with 36 doubles and 73 RBIs.
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