Michael Wacha pitched 1.2 innings and threw 40 pitches in his spring debut.
Every Monday, I’ll take you through Royals and Cardinals camp and get you updated and what his happening with each team. The Royals are 3-1 in Cactus League play after their 5-3 win over the Cubs. The Cardinals are 1-2 after getting their first Grapefruit League win, a 7-1 final over the Mets.
Mike Moustakas hit two home runs. He’s 5 for 9 at the plate early on. He had 20 home runs two seasons, just 12 in 136 games last year, you’d like to see a little more pop in his bat. The Royals have scored 30 runs in four games.
Danny Duffy pitched in the first game last Thursday. He came back from Tommy John surgery and started five games last August and early September. He was 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA, the Royals won all five games he started last year…they shut him down after his arm got sore. He’s fully healthy now and was happy with his first outing in Arizona.
A pair of RBI doubles by Matt Holliday and a two-run double from Pete Kozma paced the Cardinals in their first win in Grapefruit League play, a 7-1 win over the Mets. Michael Wacha loaded the bases in the first and didn’t allow a run, then got two outs in the second before reaching his limit of 40 pitches. Wacha needs to fine tune stuff after his first start.
Trevor Rosenthal, who hurt his groin last week, threw 25 pitches in the bullpen yesterday and had no issues. He’ll try that again on Wednesday, before he gets his first live game action.
If Matt Adams is going to be the everyday first baseman, he’ll need to learn how to hit lefties. So this off season, he had a left handed pitching machine that threw him curve balls so he could work on picking up the spin. Then he invited lefties who lived near him in Central Pa to throw to him. This spring, he’s faced Randy Choate and Kevin Siegriest in live batting practice. The work paid off early. Against Mets pitcher Steven Matz, a lefty, Adams singled.
Hear from Danny Duffy and Michael Wacha. Check out the video below