KC Royals Have To Cool Off Manny Machado

Sunday, April 24th – 1:15 Central Time

Yordano Ventura Vs. Mike Wright

Yordano Ventura looks like he may have matured in the off-season. He still has a little bit of flare when he pitches, but he isn’t imploding in high pressure situations like he did in the past.

He worked his way out of trouble a couple of times against the Tigers in the last series. In one bases loaded situation that was kind of self-inflicted, Ventura regained his composure and worked his way around Migeul Cabrera and Victor Martinez.

He helped the Royals win the first game of the home stand and stayed undefeated against the Tigers.

Yordano Ventura has great numbers against the Orioles. Current batters are hitting .260 against him but they have only two extra base hits in 73 at-bats. He’s also struck out 23 batters, though 11 of those came in one outing last year.

Manny Machado is 3-7 against Ventura but all hits have been singles. Ventura has also owned Chris Davis. In seven at-bats, Davis has struck out six times. Now the Orioles will have to deal with Ventura’s changeup which has been giving hitters fits.

Mike Wright doesn’t have a lot of experience against the Royals but they are 4-14 against the tall right-handed pitcher. Lorenzo Cain is 2-3 with two home runs. Maybe Wright is the (W)right guy to get Lorenzo Cain back on track.

In 11 innings this season, Wright has an ERA of 5.73 and has struck out eight.

Next: How Do They Stack Up?