Ramblings from a McMaster Graduate

June 2012

With Manny still out of the lineup, the Royals started at home to begin the month of June. They finished 4-2 on that homestand, winning both series against Oakland and the Twins. The next two weeks was interleague play. Following a strong start with two series wins against Pittsburgh and Milwaukee, Kansas City lost eight straight games, being swept on the road by both the Cardinals and the Astros. St. Louis then came into Kauffman stadium and won 2 of 3 games. The Royals finished the month on a 4 game win streak as they won a home series against the Rays and the first two of a series in Minnesota. KC ended the month with a 13-13 record, pushing their overall season mark to 37-40. They are still 3rd in the A.L. Central, 5.0 games back of the division-leading Indians.

Desmond Jennings has filled in admirably for Manny, hitting .338 with 6 HRs and 14 RBIs since being called up from AAA. Giancarlo Stanton has been on a hot streak of late, finishing the month of June with a total of 14 HRs and 42 RBIs on the year. He currently leads the team in both marks. The Royals have a total of 69 stolen bases this season, which places them second in the majors. Alcides Escobar leads the team with 17 swipes.

Joakim Soria is continuing his solid year with a total of 20 saves. In 21.1 innings pitched, he has 19 Ks as opposed to only 2 walks. Brett Anderson, acquired from Oakland before the season, has 6 wins for the Royals this year – only 3 behind league-leading Jered Weaver. Starter Jonathan Sanchez is third in the A.L. with 94 strikeouts.

June also featured the 2012 MLB Draft. With the 5th overall pick, the Royals selected 19 year old 2B Felipe Trejo. They also selected CF Jude Fold, C Emmett Bell, SS Marcellus Martin, and 3B Clifford Kears.

July keeps Kansas City on the road in order to prepare for hosting duties of the 2012 All-Star Game. Following the break, the Royals enter a 10 game homestand against the White Sox, Mariners, and Twins before heading out on a West Coast swing.

May 2012

The Royals faced a tough stretch of games in the month of May, playing the Yankees, Red Sox, Rangers, Tigers, and the A.L. Central-leading Indians. However, Kansas City managed to a record of 14-14 through the month. Bolstered by a 3-game sweep of the White Sox, the team never had a losing streak longer than 2 games during the month. They lost ground in the standings towards the end of the month as they dropped 2 of 3 to Cleveland. Currently, the Royals have a record of 24-27 which puts them 3rd in the A.L. Central, 5.5 games back of the division leader.

The offense has been lackluster so far, but the team is young. Through the first 51 games, they have driven in 200 runs, good for 20th in the majors. The bright spot of the offense so far has been free agent acquisition Manny Ramirez. He leads the team with 12 home runs, 33 RBIs, and a batting average of .296. However, he fractured his shin in the series finale against the Indians and was recently placed on the 60-day DL. Desmond Jennings has been called up from AAA to take over some of the DH duties while Manny is recovering.

While the offense is struggling, the pitching has been keeping them in games. They have only allowed 435 hits, which is tied for second in the MLB. 24 year old Jeremy Hellickson is 4th in the A.L. in innings pitched, tied for 4th for least walks allowed, and leads the A.L. with a 1.05 WHIP. In fact, 3 Royals starters are in the Top-10 in that category, with Luke Hochevar (1.09) in the 2nd spot and Jonathan Sanchez (1.16) in 10th.

June has the team continue interleague play after dropping 2 of 3 to the Diamondbacks in May. They travel to Pittsburgh, rival St. Louis, and Houston. Featured home interleague matchups see the Brewers and the Cardinals coming into Kauffman Stadium.

How did I get so many serious injuries in my Dodgers dynasty in MLB 12: The Show? Looks like I’ll have to struggle through the 2015 season without the starting left side of my infield and my number 2 starter.

Belleville has a Papa John’s Pizza AND they deliver to campus with a Loyalist student discount. The pounds will be packed on! (Taken with instagram)

Shot a 92 today. Feel really good about that.

I’ve been playing a lot of MLB 12: The Show lately. I started a Road to the Show (career mode) with a player based on me. I ended up as a second baseman in the Blue Jays organization, eventually taking over the 3rd spot in the batting order pretty early on in my career.

Needless to say, I got bored. So, I decided to make a new character in the game. I based him off Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez from the film The Sandlot. He is now in the Dodgers organization (I selected the team instead of going into the draft), starting in AA Chattanooga with the Lookouts. Instead of making him a power hitter like I made my character, he is more of a contact and speed player. With a nickname like “The Jet,” what else would he be?

Expect to see some updates on his career every now and then on this blog. Hope you enjoy!

As much as it sucked that the Blue Jays lost 12-2, I did get to see David Price pitch in person. That was pretty fantastic. (Taken with instagram)