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Kansas City Royals: All eyes should be on younger pitchers in rotation

By Leigh Oleszczak

Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Jakob Junis gets a pat on the head from second baseman Whit Merrifield as third baseman Mike Moustakas and catcher Drew Butera look on while Junis waits to be relieved in the eighth inning against the Detroit Tigers on Sunday, May 6, 2018, at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. (John Sleezer/Kansas City Star/TNS via Getty Images)
Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Jakob Junis gets a pat on the head from second baseman Whit Merrifield as third baseman Mike Moustakas and catcher Drew Butera look on while Junis waits to be relieved in the eighth inning against the Detroit Tigers on Sunday, May 6, 2018, at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. (John Sleezer/Kansas City Star/TNS via Getty Images) /
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The Kansas City Royals are rebuilding and that means all eyes should be on the younger players. This is especially true for the starting rotation.

Kansas City Royals fans haven’t been all that thrilled with their veteran starters in the rotation, but in a season like 2018, the attention shouldn’t be on those players. The attention should be firmly locked on the younger pitchers, like Jakob Junis and Eric Skoglund.

Junis and Skoglund have had two different seasons so far, but both are hopefully going to be a big part in this rebuild. Junis has been on fire since the start of the season, currently posting a 3.53 ERA, 1.039 WHIP, and 4-3 record.

Junis has had a few “meh” starts, but for the most part, he’s been on point. He’s just 25 years old and is only in year two of his major league career. The Illinois native won’t hit free agency until 2024, so the Royals have to be loving what they’re seeing out of him right now.

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As for Skoglund, he’s had a much different path than Junis. Skoglund also debuted last year, but after his MLB debut, he struggled big time.

The plan this season probably wasn’t supposed to consist of having Skoglund as the five starter (at least not right away), but Nate Karns‘ injury forced him into the role. Skoglund hasn’t been great, but he’s had a few decent starts and shown flashes as to why Dayton Moore feels comfortable in him moving forward.

Skoglund’s most recent start saw him go 7.2 innings and only allowing two runs against the Rays. Had his offense given him more than one run of support, Skoglund would have had his second win of the season.

Skoglund currently has an ERA of 5.58, WHIP of 1.240, and a 1-3 record. He hasn’t been tremendous, but he’s improving and in a rebuilding season, why not let the 25-year old go out there and work out the kinks on the mound?

As for the rest of the rotation, they’ve been very disappointing. Danny Duffy has been terrible, Ian Kennedy‘s contract is looking like a bigger mistake with every start, and Jason Hammel clearly doesn’t have it anymore.

The good news is that these three aren’t really part of the future. Sure, Duffy has another three years left on his deal, but the franchise will probably be just starting to turn things around in the final year of his contract. That’s assuming the Royals don’t trade him before then.

While it’s not ideal that the veterans aren’t carrying the rotation as they should be, it’s a positive sign that Junis and Skoglund are two of the better performers as of late. That’s a good sign of what’s hopefully to come for the Kansas City Royals.

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