KC Royals: Top Ten Rookie Seasons All-Time

Number Seven: Yordano Ventura – Rookie Year: 2014

When Yordano Ventura made his debut at the end of the 2013 season, everyone knew that he had a promising weapon: 100 MPH heat.

In 2014, Ventura made the team out of training camp as the team’s fifth starter and it proved to be a wise decision. He went 14-10 on the year and carried an ERA of 3.20 on the season. He struck out 159 batters in 183 innings of work and helped the Royals to their first playoff appearance in 29 years.

He posted a bWAR of 3.2 that season and showed signs of maturity in parts of that season that led many to believe he had earned the moniker ‘Ace’. It wasn’t until his second year that his passion and energy boiled over into something ugly, but that’s a different story for a different day.

Outside of his misfortune in the 2014 All-Star game, a game that he never should have found his way into, he was masterful for the Royals during their playoff run.

He pitched seven innings of one-run baseball against the Angels during second game of the 2014 American League Division Series. He also pitched well against the Giant’s in games two and seven of the 2014 World Series.

In game six, a game that the Royals had to win to have a shot at the World Series title, Yodrano Ventura took the mound with a heavy heart. His friend Oscar Tavares had died in a car accident and Ventura made it publicly known that he was dedicating that game to his recently departed friend. In the biggest game of his life and on the biggest stage, he blanked the Giants over seven innings as the Royals’ rolled to a victory.

Now he seems ready to leave a shaky 2015 campaign season in the dust. It seems fitting that a changeup is what may help Ventura get back to the ‘Ace’ he was supposed to be.

Next: Flash Gordon