KANSAS CITY ROYALS NOTES:
EXTRA FRUSTRATING: The Royals suffered an 8-5 loss in 10 innings last night in Arlington to mark their 3rd straight defeat after beginning this trip with back-to-back wins…after scoring in the 8th and 9th innings to force extras, Michael Massey gave the Royals their first lead on a sacrifice fly in the top of the 10th…but with 2 outs in the bottom half, Scott Barlow yielded a game-tying RBI single to Adolis García and two batters later, Jonah Heim launched a 3-run home run to end the game…the Royals went 4-for-20 in scoring situations, their most such at-bats in a game in six years, since July 26, 2017 at Detroit, where they had 25 at-bats with a runner in scoring position en route to a 16-2 win…last night was their 1st loss when producing at least 20 such at-bats in 10 years, since Aug. 17, 2013 at Detroit, a 6-5 loss in which they went 4-for-20 in scoring situations.
The Royals are now 10-13 in extra-inning games since the Automatic Runner Rule was instituted in 2020, and they’ve scored the auto runner 16 times out of 31 (51.6%), which is below the mark of 59.2% that the league averaged from 2020-22…last night was the first time the Royals allowed 4 runs in a single extra inning in five years, since Cincinnati scored 4 runs in the 10th inning of a 5-1 Royals loss on June 12, 2018.
Last night’s 2-hour, 51-minute game was the Royals longest of 2023, but it was still 13 minutes faster than their average game time last year (3:04)…although last night’s game was quick by previous year’s standards, the Royals actually played 2 extra-inning games last year in less time, including a 2-hour, 48-minute game in 10 innings last Aug. 19 at Tampa Bay and a 2-hour, 49-minute game in 10 innings last April 9 vs. Cleveland.
LOST BUT NOT FORGOTTEN: Despite the loss, a lot of good can be taken from last night’s game…the Royals pounded out 7 hits off two-time Cy Young Award winner, Jacob deGrom, becoming the first team to do so since Aug. 9, 2020, when the Marlins had 7 hits in 5.0 innings…Vinnie Pasquantino was responsible for 3 of the Royals 7 hits off deGrom last night, becoming the first player to record a 3-hit effort vs. him in four seasons, since Anthony Rendon went 3-for-3 on Aug. 11, 2019…in 48 starts in between that game and last night, deGrom faced 1,075 batters and held them to a .164 average (167-for-1018)…and even though the Royals only scored twice off deGrom last night, they produced 12 at-bats with a runner in scoring position, matching deGrom’s total from his previous 2 starts combined…it was only the third time deGrom allowed an opponent 12 at-bats in scoring situations and the first time in seven years, since Aug. 18, 2016 against the Giants (12).
The Royals made several jaw-dropping defensive plays last night, including a diving catch in the gap by Kyle Isbel in the 1st inning that robbed Marcus Semien of extra bases…Isbel covered 99 ft. to make the grab, as the eye test supports the metrics such as Defensive Runs Saved, which rank Isbel (4) as the top center fielder in the Majors, ahead of Kevin Kiermaier (3), Luis Robert (3) and Mike Yastrzemski (3).
All 4 runs (3 ER) Texas scored in the 10th inning last night were charged to Scott Barlow, and were the 1st runs he’s allowed since last Aug. 30, snapping his career-best scoreless streak at 15.1 innings over 15 appearances, during which he held opponents to a .100 average (5-for-50) with only 1 extra-base hit.
STEALING STRIKES: Pitch framing was an area of emphasis during Spring Training, and new Bench Coach Paul Hoover—who also works with the catchers—and new Pitching Coach Brian Sweeney brought some fresh ideas to the Royals, who ranked among the worst last season in pitch framing metrics…in particular, the Royals were 27th last season in “stealing strikes,” or called strikes that were outside the zone…but through the first 12 games this season and with the same two catchers, the Royals rank tied for 4th in the Majors in this category.
Last season, Salvador Perez ranked 27th out of 40 catchers (min. 500.0 innings caught) with -4 Defensive Runs Saved…he’s already made dramatic improvements by this measure in 2023, as he ranks tied with Christian Vázquez and Gabriel Moreno for 1st among catchers with 3 Defensive Runs Saved.
DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS: The Royals and Rangers are meeting tonight for the last of 3 games this week in Arlington…these teams will meet again next week at Kauffman Stadium, which means they’ll play 6 games vs. each other over 10 days…in fact, the Royals 6-game season series vs. the Rangers will end before the Royals play a game vs. three of their four division rivals, as they won’t see the White Sox until May 8, their 1st meeting with Detroit won’t come until May 22 and their 1st game vs. Cleveland is scheduled for June 27.
The Royals went 2-4 vs. the Rangers in 2022, losing their seventh straight season series since 2015, a stretch in which they are 13-36 (.265)—including 2 losses this week—and have been outscored 251-162 (-89)…this includes a 12-game skid from July 23, 2016-July 15, 2017 in which they were shut out twice and outscored 47-22…the Royals are 4-20 (.167) vs. the Rangers in Texas since 2016, including a 7-game skid that was halted last May 11, which marked their only win at Globe Life Field, which opened in 2020.
After losing the first 2 games, the Royals are attempting to avoid what would be their first 3-game sweep at the hands of the Rangers since June 25-27, 2021 here at Globe Life Field…a loss tonight would also guarantee no better than a season series split and would mark eight straight winless season series.
These two franchises have played each other in six different ballparks, including Kansas City’s Municipal Stadium (1969-72) and Kauffman Stadium (1973-present), and RFK Memorial Stadium, where the Washington Senators played from 1962-71…the franchise became the Rangers in 1972 and played in Texas’ Arlington Stadium through 1993, before Globe Life Park was introduced in 1994…that ballpark still stands across the street from the new Globe Life Field, which opened in 2020 and is now in its fourth season.
ON DECK: Following tonight’s night’s 7:05 p.m. CT game in Arlington, the Royals will fly back to Kansas City for an off day tomorrow, their first since March 31, which will snap a streak of 12 consecutive days with a game…the Royals will begin a 6-game homestand starting Friday night with the first of 3 games vs. the Braves, which will mark Atlanta’s fourth trip to Kauffman Stadium and first since 2019…the stay will end with 3 games vs. these Rangers next Monday through Wednesday, and the Royals will enjoy another off day next Thursday, April 20 before hitting the road for a season-long 10-game trip to Anaheim (3 games), Arizona (3) and Minnesota (4) to end the month of April.
Tonight’s 7:05 p.m. start in Arlington will mark the first of 6 Royals getaway day games that will be played at night, although 4 of those games (including tonight’s) will be followed by an off day…the others will come on May 30 at St. Louis (2 off days will follow), June 7 at Miami (off day after), July 5 at Minnesota (no off day after), Aug. 10 at Boston (no off day after) and Sept. 13 at the White Sox (off day after).
PACE OF PLAY: The new pitch timer rules implemented for 2023 have already produced dramatic results through the first 13 days of the regular
season…through 159 games that have ended in 9 innings, the average game time has been 2 hours, 37 minutes, and only 18 of the 159 games (11.3%) have lasted at least 3 hours…the Royals 12 games have averaged 2 hours, 29 minutes, which is 8 minutes below the league average and is the 3rdfastest average time this season, longer only that the Rays and Twins (2:27 each)…compared to 9-inning games across the Majors last season, average time of game is down 26 minutes, while batting averages are up from .243 to .249, runs per game are up from 8.6 to 9.4 and stolen base success rates have jumped from 75.4% to 81.3%…the current success rate of steals would shatter the Major League record set in 2021 at 75.7%.
TONIGHT’S STARTERS: RHP BRAD KELLER (1-1, 2.61)
BRAD KELLER will make his 3rd start of the season—and 108th start of his career— tonight vs. the Rangers in Arlington…this marks his 4th career start (5th appearance) vs. Texas…he’s in his sixth Major League season after being acquired by Kansas City in a trade with Cincinnati, who selected him from Arizona in the 2017 Rule 5 Draft.
WINNER WINNER: Brad earned his 1st win since Aug. 7, 2022 vs. Boston in his most recent start last Friday in San Francisco, in which he covered 5.2 innings and allowed just 1 run on 3 hits and 3 walks, with 3 strikeouts, in the Royals 3-1 victory…he stranded a 2-out walk in the 1st inning but ran into trouble in the 2nd, yielding back-to-back singles to open the frame before inducing a 4-6-3 double play, however a run came around to score on a Blake Sabol 2-out RBI single…he held the Giants without a run over the next 3.0 innings and exited with 2 outs in the 6th in favor of Ryan Yarbrough, who walked his first batter but escaped the frame with a groundout. Ê His 5.2 innings pitched marked his most in an outing since last Aug. 7 (6.0 IP).
Marked his 1st career outing vs. the Giants, leaving only Arizona, Miami, the Mets and Colorado as clubs he has yet to oppose, all teams the Royals face in 2023.
DECISIONS, DECISIONS: With a win in his start last Friday in San Francisco, Keller extended his streak of starts with a decision to 17—in which he’s 6-11—which is the longest run of starts with a decision by a Royal since Tim Belcher earned a decision in 21 consecutive starts from Sept. 2, 1996-June 20, 1997…it’s the longest streak in the Majors since Clayton Kershaw went 17 starts with a decision from 2019-20 and it’s the longest run by a pitcher in the AL since Sean Manaea went 17 starts from 2017-18.
Royals Hall of Famer Dennis Leonard holds the club record with 26 straight starts with a decision (Aug. 26, 1997-June 23, 1978), in which he went 14-12.
NO TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE: Over his first 2 starts of the season, Keller has relied on his new curveball 24.7% of the time (according to Baseball Savant), which has yielded a 37.9% whiff rate and a 25.0% strikeout rate, as he has recorded 4 strikeouts in 16 plate appearances with the pitch…the 37.9% whiff rate on his curveball ranks 12th highest in the Majors off the pitch (min. 10 plate appearances) and it’s the 4th-best mark in the American League, behind only Tampa Bay’s Shane McClanahan (47.6%) and Zach Eflin (38.1%) and Houston’s Framber Valdez (41.7%).
Brad has induced 11 swings and misses on his curveball this season, which is tied for the 7th most in the Majors off the pitch, trailing leader Nick Lodolo (19).
HIGHS AND LOWS: In his fifth Major League season in 2022, Brad made 35 outings (22 starts), after a mid-season shift to the bullpen resulted in his first relief appearances since his 2018 debut season…despite the change, he eclipsed 100 strikeouts for the third year—second consecutive—but also posted an ERA north of 5.00 for the second straight season, just .30 points below his career-high 5.39 ERA in 2021.
Keller tied his career high with 14 losses (also 2019) while his 139.2 innings pitched were the most he’s thrown in a season since 2019 (165.1 IP)…despite spending the majority of the final two months of the season in the bullpen, he finished with 11 quality starts, 3 shy of Brady Singer, who led the Royals with 14. Ê He was one of two pitchers in 2022 with at least 11 quality starts and 14-plus losses, joining Seattle’s Marco Gonzales (18 QS/15 L)…that marked the second season of Keller’s career in which he posted that combination following 2019 (14 QS/14 L), and he joined Miami’s Sandy Alcantara (2019, 2021) as the only pitchers in the Majors to record those numbers twice in the last four seasons.
RISPY BUSINESS: Opponents batted just .245 (78-for-318) off Keller with nobody on base last season, however that mark rose to .319 (75-for-235) with runners on and rose even higher to .357 (45-for-126) with runners in scoring position…only two pitchers in the Majors surrendered as high of an opponents’ average with runners in scoring position (min. 125 batters faced with RISP), as Philadelphia right hander Kyle Gibson pitched to a .364 opponents’ average (47-for-129, 149 PA) and Washington left hander Patrick Corbin posted a .357 opponents’ average (60-for-168, 194 PA).
Over his first 2 starts this season, opponents are 5-for-17 (.294) vs. him with runners on base, 3-for-7 with RISP and 3-for-4 with RISP and 2 outs.
HELP WANTED: Brad went 6-13 as a starting pitcher in 2022 despite recording 11 quality starts, 2nd by a Royal to only Brady Singer’s 14…the Royals supported him with a total of 35 runs in his 22 starts, including 2 runs or fewer in 17 of his 22 starts, 1 run or fewer 12 times and no runs seven times…he finished with a franchise-low 2.57 run support average as a starter, the lowest total in the Majors among pitchers who made at least 20 starts in 2022.
This trend has continued over Keller’s first 2 starts of the 2023 season, as the Royals have supported him with just 3 runs in 10.1 innings (2.61 RSA).
FROM THE GROUND UP: Keller has a career 52.6% groundball rate, which ranks 3rd in the Majors since the start of his 2018 debut season (min. 600.0 IP), trailing only Dallas Keuchel (55.2%) and Marcus Stroman (54.8%)…likewise, his lifetime HR/9 rate of 0.82 (59 HR in 644.0 IP) ranks 4th in the Majors since 2018 (min. 600.0 IP), trailing Jacob deGrom (0.71), Zack Wheeler (0.75) and Max Fried (0.78)…his groundball percentage improved last season as he posted a 53.6% clip, however he allowed 17 home runs—just 1 short of matching his career high set in 2021—for a 1.10 HR/9 rate.
He induced 2 double plays last Friday and has an American League-most 79 since the start of 2018, 2 more than Seattle’s Marco Gonzales (77).
VS. TEXAS: In 4 career appearances (3 starts) against the Rangers, he’s gone 0-2 with an 8.44 ERA (15 ER in 16.0 IP) and last faced them on May 10, 2022 in Texas, where he suffered the loss after yielding 6 runs (5 ER) in 5.2 innings of a 6-4 Royals defeat, with 9 hits and 1 walk allowed… with a win tonight in Arlington, Globe Life Field would become the 17th different Major League ballpark in which Keller has won a game in his career.
ON THE ROAD: Brad has pitched into the 6th inning in 8 of his last 9 starts on the road since last April 28 at the White Sox…among American League pitchers who have recorded at least 65.0 innings pitched on the road since the start of 2022, his 7 home runs allowed are tied for the 9th fewest
TEXAS RANGERS NOTES:
WINS AND LOSSES: Texas walked-off the Royals last night, 8-5, and has won 3 straight to match its longest win streak of ‘23 (also 3-0, 3/30-4/2)…club has won 4 of last 6 G, but still has a 4-4 record since a 3-0 start…team is season high-tying 3 games above .500 for 1st time since 4/2 (3-0)…club has been .500-or-better following every game in 2023.
• The current 7-4 record is the Rangers’ best 11-G start since 2013 (7-4), and a 5-win improvement over last year’s 2-9 start…last time with 7+ wins after 12 G?: 2013 (8-4)… team opened the 2023 campaign with a 3-0 record for just the 9th time in Rangers history, the longest season-opening win streak since 2011 (6-0).
STANDINGS: The Rangers maintained sole possession of 1st place in the A.L. West for a 2nd straight day with last night’s win, alone atop the West for the 5th day overall in ‘23…TEX has been alone or tied atop the division for 12 of the season’s first 13 days, including 9 straight to begin the year…marks latest point for the club to own even a share of 1st place in the West since the final day of team’s division-winning season in 2016 (10/2/16)…from 2017-22, the Rangers had one day in which it held, or was tied for, 1st place in the West (1-0 on 7/24/20, tied for division lead). CONNECT FOUR: Should the Rangers best the Royals in tonight’s series finale at Globe Life Field:
• Would extend current win streak to season-best 4 straight, tying the club’s longest single-season winning streak of the last 2 campaigns…Texas maxed out with 4 consecutive wins 3 times in 2022: 4/30-5/4/22, 5/15-18/22, and 5/25-28/22.
• Would stretch current home win streak to 4 straight (beg. last Wed. vs. BAL), which would be the Rangers’ T2nd-longest single-season win streak ever at Globe Life Field…TEX has not won 4+ consecutive games in Arlington since setting facility record by going 6-0 at GLF from 5/15-31/22.
• Would improve to season-high 4 games over .500, 1st time to be 4-over since a 58-54 mark on 8/6/19.
• Would also secure 2nd series sweep of 2023 (also 3-0 from 3/30-4/2 vs. PHI), which would be the 1st time the club has posted multiple sweeps in series of 3+ G over one season since 2021 (2 sweeps)…Texas has not recorded multiple series sweeps (3+ G series only) before the end of April since 2011 (3 sweeps): 4/1-3/11 vs. BOS (3-0), 4/4-6/11 vs. SEA (3-0), and 4/22-24/11 vs. KC (3-0).
VS. KANSAS CITY: The Rangers and Royals are scheduled to meet 6 times in a 9-G span over 10 days from 4/10-19… Texas is 2-0 in the first 2 G of this series, as club has taken 5 of 6, 10 of 12, 13 of 17, 16 of 22, and 20 of last 27 against KC overall (beg. 5/25/18)…TEX has won 7 straight season series against KC (2015-19, 2021-22)…have a 32-10 (.762) mark vs. KC since the start of 2016, 3rd-highest win pct. for any team against any opponent (min. 25 G) over that span behind OAK (32-9, .780 vs. DET) and CLE (29-9, .763 vs. LAA)…TEX is 16-4 in last 20 G in Arlington, and is 7-1 at Globe Life Field…in the all-time series, Rangers hold advantages overall (279-264-1) and in Arlington (154-116).
SERIES STUFF: TEX secured a series win vs. KC (2-0 + 1 G) with last night’s win, now sitting at 2-2-0 in series play this season…entered this homestand having dropped back-to-back series from 4/3-5 vs. BAL (1-2) and 4/7-9 at CHC (1-2)…club is 3-0 in series finales on the young campaign… Rangers are 2-1-0 in home series, and have gone 3-2-2 in last 7 series at Globe Life Field dating back to 2022.
AT HOME: The Rangers are 6-2 (.750) at home to begin the year, this after 2-6 starts at GLF in both 2021-22…TEX had a 34-47 record at home in 2022, 2nd-lowest in the A.L. and T4th-lowest in MLB for the year…it was 2 fewer home wins than 2021 (36-45), T3rd-lowest Arlington win pct. in Rangers history (.403, 31-46 in 1972; .407, 33-48 in 2014; .420, 34-47 in both 2018/2022)…Rangers have a 92-108 all-time record at Globe Life Field (2020-23).
ROSTER MOVES: The Rangers today announced that the club has placed SS Corey Seager on the 10-day Injured List with a left hamstring strain…to take his place on the active 26-man roster, the team has activated OF Leody Taveras from the 10-day IL (Left oblique strain).
• Taveras will be seeking his first Major League action of the year…he played on Tues. for Triple-A Round Rock vs. Tacoma, going 2-for-4 with a home run, 5 RBI, walk, and 2 runs… his HR in the game was a 4th-inning grand slam.
HEIM TIME: After going 0-for-4 with 3 strikeouts in his first 4 trips to the plate last night, Jonah Heim belted a 2-out, 3-run, walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the Rangers their 1st walk-off win of 2023…it marked Texas’ 1st walk-off hit since 9/13/22 vs. OAK (Mark Mathias HR) and the 3rd walk-off HR of Heim’s career, as he also connected for game-ending HR in back-to-back TEX wins on 7/31-8/1/21 vs. SEA…additional notes on Heim’s walk-off exploits:
• Heim’s 3 career walk-off homers (all w/ TEX) are T6th-most in Rangers history (beg. 1972), as just 12 players have ever hit 3-or-more walk-off blasts in a Texas uniform…the most recently rostered player on that list is Adrián Beltré (also 3 walk-off HR), who last appeared for the club in 2018.
• The 3 walk-off HR are tied for the most in MLB since the start of 2021, with Heim matching NYY’s Aaron Judge and COL’s Elias Diaz for the league lead over that span.
• 2 of Heim’s 3 career game-ending blasts have come in games in which he served as Texas’ catcher (last night & 7/31/21 vs. SEA)…he joins Bobby Johnson, who hit walk-off homers on 7/11/83 vs. MIL and 10/3/81 vs. CAL, as the only players in TEX history to hit multiple walk-off HR as a catcher.
• Last night’s game-ender was the 15th walk-off HR of 3-or-4 runs in Rangers history, and the 1st by a catcher…the last Texas batter with a walk-off HR of 3+ runs was Adolis García on 5/21/21 vs. HOU (3-R HR off Bryan Abreu).
JA-K-OB deGROM: Not to be overshadowed by Heim’s lategame heroics, Jacob deGrom produced another dominant start in last night’s win (ND, 7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R-ER, 0 BB, 9 SO)…his 27 strikeouts thru 3 starts in ‘23 are the most ever by a Texas pitcher in his first 3 outings as a Ranger (Stathead), surpassing previous high mark of 26 by Nolan Ryan in 1989…it is also the 3rd-most strikeouts ever by a TEX pitcher through his first 3 outings of a season, topped only by Yu Darvish in 2013 (28) and Ryan in 1991 (28)
• deGrom has issued just 2 walks in 2023, becoming the 1st pitcher in WSH/TEX franchise history to post 27+ SO and 2-or-fewer BB over his first 3 outings of a season…it is just the 15th instance in the Modern Era (beg. 1901) of a pitcher recording 27+ SO/2-or-fewer BB in first 3 G of a season, with deGrom now responsible for 2 of those occurrences (also 28 SO/1 BB in first 3 G of 2022)…the only other MLB hurler to pull the trick twice in a career? Curt Schilling in 2001-02.
PUNCH OUT: Texas pitchers rank T3rd in the A.L. with 112 strikeouts (122-CWS, 118-MIN, 112-HOU/TEX), easily a club record for most team strikeouts thru the first 11 games of a new season (prev. 100 in 2022, 2020, & 2018).
H-TOWN BOUND: Following tonight’s homestand finale, the Rangers will take a short flight to Houston where they will have an off day on Thursday…on Friday, Texas will open a 6-game road trip featuring series at HOU (3 G) and KC (3 G), the club’s 1st multi-city trip of 2023…the Rangers went 5-14 (.263) in 19 G against the Astros in 2022, incl. a 3-7 record in 10 G at Minute Maid Park…TEX has gone 5-29 (.147) in last 34 G in Houston dating back to the beg. of 2019, the lowest win pct. by any team at any venue (min. 15 G) over that span.
SHORTS: The roof at Globe Life Field is expected to be open for tonight’s game, as Texas is unbeaten (4-0) this season in contests at GLF that began with the roof open (roof closed mid-game on 3/30 vs. PHI)…TEX owns MLB’s 4th-best run differential in ‘23 (+63-TB, +28-MIL, +27-NYY, +23-TEX).
TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER – #17 Nathan Eovaldi, RHP (1-1, 4.22)
TONIGHT: The 33-year-old right-hander is set to make his 3rd start of the season in today’s series finale against the Kansas City Royals…took the loss in his 2nd start of the season on Fri. at CHC (5.2 IP, 2 R-ER), a 0-2 defeat…earned win in his TEX debut on 4/1 vs. PHI (5.0 IP, 3 R-ER), exiting with a 7-3 lead before the Rangers piled on for a 16-3 victory…Eovaldi (ee-VAHL-dee) signed a 2-year free agent contract with the Rangers on 12/27/22…produced a 1-0 record, 2.35 ERA (4 ER/15.1 IP), and 19 strikeouts/2 walks over 4 ‘A’ game starts this spring… experienced tightness in his left side following spring debut on 2/25 vs. KC, but resumed throwing on 3/8 with no reported issues since…in 2022, his final season with Boston, went 6-3 with a 3.87 ERA (47 ER/109.1 IP) over 20 G/GS…ranked among A.L. leaders (min. 100.0 IP) in SO/BB (8th, 5.15) and BB/9 (9th, 1.65)… was slowed by a pair of IL stints: 6/9-7/14 (low back inflammation) and 8/19-9/28 (right shoulder inflammation)…the Texas native is seeking a return to his 2021 form, when he was an All-Star with the Red Sox and finished 4th in A.L. Cy Young Award voting…his Red Sox stint included a historic postseason stretch during the team’s 2018 World Series run, as he appeared in 3 of club’s 5 games during that year’s Fall Classic…from 2019-22, induced misses on 26.1% of swings by opposing batters, the 9th-best rate in the A.L. over that span (min. 400.0 IP)… has averaged 96.1 mph on his fastball over the course of his career, the 4th-highest figure in MLB since 2011…from 2020-22, led all A.L. pitchers (min. 300.0 IP) in both walks per 9 innings (1.64) and strikeouts per walk (5.65)…has 241 games/222 starts with LAD (2011-12), MIA (2012-14), NYY (2015-16), TB (2018), BOS (2018-22) and TEX (2023)…joined Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan as the only graduates of Alvin (TX) High School to reach the Major Leagues.
SO FAR THIS SEASON: Fell one out short of a quality start and suffered his first loss of the season in his last appearance on Fri. at CHC…it was his first loss against an interleague opponent in his last 15 starts…against CHC, threw 5.2 IP and allowed 2 R-ER despite the loss…it was the 2nd time a TEX starter took a 2-0 loss with 5.2+ IP and 2-R-or-less allowed this season…made his Rangers debut in club’s 2nd game of the season 4/1 vs. PHI, a 16-3 TEX victory (5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R-ER, 2 BB, 6 SO, 82 pitches/49 strikes)…became 1st Texas starting pitcher to be awarded a win in his first start with the club since A.J. Alexy on 8/3/21 vs. COL…the Alvin, TX native became the 5th native Texan ever to earn a win in his Rangers debut (last Kip Wells on 8/2/06 at MIN)…induced 11 swing-and-miss strikes (5-Splitter, 3-Cutter, 2-Four-Seam Fastball, 1-Curveball) according to Statcast…averaged 95.9 mph on his fastball, well in line with his career average (96.1)…did not allow a run over his 1st 3 innings, but permitted 2 R in a 29-pitch 4th inning…is tied for 2nd on team with 12 SO and is the only TEX starter that has yet to allow a HR to an opponent.
VS. KANSAS CITY: Is 3-1 with a 3.66 ERA (13 ER/32.0 IP) in 7 G/ 5 GS over his career against the Royals…started the 1st of 2 exhibition games against the Royals on 3/27 (ND, 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R-ER, 1 BB, 6 SO, 2 HR, 80 pitches/55 strikes), allowing 4 runs (all earned) in his 4th and final tune-up outing of the spring, surrendering back-to-back HR to Michael Massey (2-run) and Hunter Dozier (solo) in the 4th inning…faced them last season w/ BOS on 8/6/22, allowing 4 R-ER on 7 H in 6.0 IP….owns a 3-0 record with a 2.45 ERA (6 ER/22.0 IP) when pitching against KC at home…has lasted at least 5.0 innings in 4 out of 5 starts against the Royals, with a combined total of 4 BB and 24 SO, good for a 1.34 WHIP… Eovaldi’s lone career save opportunity came against Kansas City on 8/7/19 as a member of the Red Sox (which he did not convert).
SPRING TRAINING: Registered a 1-0 record, 2.35 ERA (4 ER/15.1 IP), and 2 walks/19 strikeouts over 4 Cactus League ‘A’ game starts this spring…was inactive for several days after experiencing tightness in his left side following 1st outing of the spring 2/25 vs. KC…resumed throwing in light bullpen session on 3/8, and threw another bullpen 3/10…pitched in Double-A Frisco’s game vs. Northwest Arkansas (KC AA) on Field 2 in Surprise on 3/13 (2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 29 pitches/22 strikes).
Date Opp. Dec. ERA IP H R ER BB SO HR P/S
2/25 vs. KC — 0.00 2.0 0 0 0 0 4 0 —
3/13 vs. KC (AA) — 0.00 2.0 2 0 0 0 2 0 29/22
3/17 vs. MIL — 0.00 3.1 4 0 0 0 5 0 —
3/22 vs. CWS W 0.00 5.0 5 0 0 1 4 0 —
3/27 vs. KC — 2.35 5.0 7 4 4 1 6 2 80/55
‘A’ Totals 1-0 2.35 15.1 16 4 4 2 19 2 —
AT HOME / IN ARLINGTON: Has traditionally performed better at home (31-31, 3.96 ERA) than on the road (37-38, 4.36 ERA) in his career.
• The Texas native is undefeated (3-0) in 3 career starts in Arlington, one at the former Globe Life Park on 4/25/16 at TEX w/ NYY (W, 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 SO) and two here at Globe Life Field, 4/1 vs. PHI (W, 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R-ER, 2 BB, 6 SO) & 4/30/21 at TEX w/ BOS (W, 6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R-ER, 2 BB, 5 SO).
