The Kansas City Royals shored up their rotation this offseason by re-signing Chris Young and adding Ian Kennedy in free agency, among others. However, the team is likely relying on Yordano Ventura to produce another campaign like his 2014 rookie year. Will he return to form in 2016?
Ventura, 24, had an up-and-down year in 2015 and finished 13-8 with a 4.08 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 156 strikeouts in 28 starts (163-1/3 innings). Kansas City actually optioned him to Triple-A Omaha in July when he was 4-7 with a 5.19 ERA, but injuries forced the team to recall him to the MLB roster just days later.
His ERA was a 5.29 on Aug. 6, but he calmed down at the end of the year and finished with a 7-1 record and 2.42 ERA in his final 11 starts, which the team likely hoped would continue into the postseason. Well, it didn't.
Ventura made five starts in the playoffs against the Astros, Blue Jays and Mets, but he went 0-2 with a 6.43 ERA. During spring training, he owns a 9.69 ERA and 1.62 WHIP in four starts (13 innings), and his opponents are hitting .351 off him. He was looking good early on, but a terrible start against the Giants last night really ruined his stats and deflated his momentum heading into Opening Day.
On top of that, his questionable behavior from last season, which got him into some scuffles with Mike Trout and Adam Eaton, might still remain an issue even though manager Ned Yost seems to irresponsibly overlook and deflect his antics.
Is Ventura ready to mature and put up another admirable campaign like he did in 2014 when he finished 14-10 with a 3.20 ERA in 31 games as a rookie?
The right-hander said earlier this month that his "body was feeling tired" last year, but he says that he's all muscle and no fat this time around. Yost said that he looked "real sharp" in mid-March with his pitches, but a major setback like last night's outing featured poor pitch locating due to a lapse in his mechanics. Assistant general manager Rene Francisco said that he'll be working with pitching coach Dave Eiland to fix that issue.
But if the Royals are hoping he's going to develop into an ace, there's little room for error. He can't be surrendering 10 runs in a spring training game to a Giants lineup that doesn't even have all of its top players. He can't be taunting veterans and getting suspended for acting like a rogue teenager. Those aren't signs of developing into an ace.
Last year could have very well been a sophomore slump, but 2016 will be a true test for Ventura to prove that he's ready to become a mainstay atop the Royals' rotation. He'll need to increase his strike percentage (mostly with his secondary pitches), which was just 62.2 percent in 2015 and good for 67th in baseball. Usually, this wouldn't be an issue if a pitcher gets hitters to swing and miss on pitches outside the strike zone, but batters made contact on 76.9 percent of his four-seam fastballs outside the zone, 78.5 percent of his two-seam fastballs, 44 percent of his changeups, 33.3 percent of his cutters and 29.3 percent on his changeup. On top of that, he got hitters to swing and miss on his best pitch (fastball) just 7.4 percent of the time.
But most of all, his attitude will need to change. Yes, he's a young guy and was riding high after he helped the Royals appear in the 2014 World Series for the first time since 1985, but he acted out too much in 2015, and it may have caused a lapse in the mental aspect of his game. He can't be blamed for acting so emotional because he's young and passionate about the sport, but channeling such emotion is key to one's development.
We'll see how this goes for the youngster in 2016, but it's much too early to assume or even predict he's ready to be the ace of the Royals starting staff.
