NewsKC pitchers catch break with Morneau out
Kansas City (47-74) vs. Minnesota (59-63), 6:10 p.m. CT
By Dick Kaegel / MLB.com
08/22/09 1:49 AM ET
KANSAS CITY -- At least the Royals don't have to worry about Justin Morneau kicking them around this weekend.Morneau, hitting .321 with three homers and six RBIs against the Royals this season, has been ruled out of this series by the Twins. He's back in Minnesota being treated for an inner ear infection that caused him to miss three games at Texas before the Twins came to Kansas City.
Twins manager Ron Gardenhire isn't sure if Morneau will have to go on the disabled list.
"[We'll] try not to DL him, but if he's dizzy and it's gonna be awhile longer then obviously we'd have to. But hopefully not," he said.
Morneau's not here, but Joe Mauer certainly is and the Twins' catcher has been absolutely poison to the Royals this year. He's hitting .500 (16-for-32) against them this year.
Although Mauer's .400 chances are fading -- he's at .378 right now -- the subject still comes up.
"There are a lot of games left. I wish him the best, but not against us," Royals manager Trey Hillman said. "I think it'd be great if somebody would be able to do it, but I'd be really shocked with the amount of scouting reports and the way that guys have a tendency to pitch around at times. I think it'd be very difficult."
But Mauer's picture-perfect left-handed swing certainly has a lot of admirers.
"If anybody could do it, it'd be a guy like a Joe Mauer," Hillman said.
Without Morneau batting behind Mauer this weekend, perhaps the Royals can avoid the little 6-for-11 tattoo that Mauer put on them last week at Minnesota. Maybe it would be easier to work around him.
"It's always easier when there's a guy like Morneau missing, but they've still got a lot of good pieces," Hillman said. "You can't take them too lightly but you take out a hitter like Morneau, it certainly helps."
Oddly enough, one guy who might miss having Morneau in the lineup is the Royals' Saturday night starter, Kyle Davies. With Davies pitching, Morneau is pure putty -- just 1-for-16 (.063). On the other hand, Mauer is 8-for-19 (.421) against Davies. And Jason Kubel, who's batting behind Mauer instead of Morneau, is 6-for-14 (.429) against Davies.
Sometimes a guy just can't catch a break.
Oh, but the first 20,000 fans at Saturday night's game will catch one. They'll get a Royals 40th anniversary cap with a design voted best by, who else, the fans.
Pitching matchupKC: RHP Kyle Davies (4-8, 5.92 ERA)
Davies, even with a victory, had not pitched all that impressively in his previous two starts after being recalled from Triple-A Omaha. Last Sunday at Detroit, however, he went six innings and hung with the Tigers as he slipped past some jams with runners in scoring position. He left with the score 2-2. Hillman thought that while Davies had trouble commanding his changeup and curve, he was locating his fastball much better against the Tigers. Harnessing the fastball has been Davies' primary problem. Davies gets another turn against the Twins, whom he beat Aug. 11 with five innings in a blowout. MIN: LHP Brian Duensing (0-1, 5.09 ERA)
With Francisco Liriano going on the 15-day disabled list with left arm fatigue, this start has been awarded to the left-handed Duensing. Originally scheduled to start Thursday in place of Anthony Swarzak, Duensing was pushed back to this day while Swarzak kept his original start date. This will mark Duensing's second Major League start although he has had 14 relief outings. His lone start came on July 29 against the White Sox when he allowed two runs over five innings. He's appeared once against the Royals, giving up three runs in 1 2/3 innings. Crown points
Alex Gordon went 2-for-5 with two singles and a walk in the first game since being optioned to Triple-A Omaha. Brian Buchanan's grand slam ignited a 13-7 Omaha romp at Tacoma on Thursday night. ... Tony Pena had his longest stint as a pitcher, 2 2/3 innings, and gave up one run on two hits in Class A Burlington, Iowa's 5-4 loss at Quad Cities. ... Catcher Wil Myers, the third-round Draft choice this year, hit a home run in his second pro game although Rookie Burlington, N.C., lost to Johnson City, 4-2. ... The Royals got unconditional release waivers on third baseman Travis Metcalf on Friday, and he became a free agent. Metcalf, claimed on waivers April 8 from the Rangers, batted .221 in 109 games for Omaha with nine homers, 47 RBIs. ... From 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CT on Saturday, John Buck, Billy Butler and David DeJesus will join Sluggerrr in greeting fans at Worlds of Fun. ... Broadcaster Denny Matthews will sign copies of his new book, "Hi, Anybody!: Why I Love Baseball and What I'd Do to Fix It" after Saturday's game at the Royals Hall of Fame. ... Joe Jennings, 81, of Kansas City, Kan., was in the Buck O'Neil Legacy Seat on Friday night. Jennings operates J-14 Enterprises, a farm and ranch that is part of the Community Supported Agriculture Coalition. Tickets
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• Sunday: Royals (Brian Bannister, 7-9, 4.44) vs. Twins (Carl Pavano, 10-9, 5.32), 1:10 p.m. CT
• Monday: Royals (Gil Meche, 6-9, 4.73) vs. Indians (Jeremy Sowers, 4-9, 4.82), 7:10 p.m. CT
• Tuesday: Royals (Zack Greinke, 11-8, 2.44) vs. Indians (Justin Masterson, 4-4, 4.36), 7:10 p.m. CT
Dick Kaegel is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
