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Kansas City Star\u2019s Jaylon Thompson has more on the Kansas City Royals moving rookie catcher Carter Jensen<\/a> to the top of Friday\u2019s lineup and immediately reaping rewards.<\/p>\n \u201cWe feel really good about how he controls the (strike) zone, how he understands himself and how he puts up really quality at-bats,\u201d Quatraro said before Friday night\u2019s game. \u201cHe is swinging the bat extremely well. It gets him one more at-bat and one more crack at it when the lineup turns over.\u201d Jensen didn\u2019t waste time in his new role. He hit a leadoff double \u2014 one of three doubles for Jensen in the game \u2014 off Scherzer in the first inning. Jensen became the second player in franchise history to have a three-double performance within his first 12 games.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n Royals reliever Lucas Erceg saw his season come to a premature end on Friday<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest disappointment for me was that I went into last offseason with two goals in mind,\u201d Erceg said. \u201cOne, on the field, to minimize damage, not let innings get out of hand, and I feel like I\u2019ve done a good job with that this season. Another thing was to prepare for another postseason outing, and be ready, be available when that time comes. For me, not even making it to the end of the season, it\u2019s a disappointing feeling knowing that I\u2019m not going to finish the regular season out. The main priority is health, moving forward, thinking about next year, and what I want to accomplish next year. Even this offseason, I don\u2019t want to go into the offseason having to deal with anything more than it could end up being. Ultimately, we talked and made the decision.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n David Lesky has a good point on how Stephen Kolek\u2019s minor-league issues<\/a> just don\u2019t translate to the bigs.<\/p>\n And, to be honest, I thought there might be some witchcraft from the Padres involved because Kolek had a 4.18 ERA in 79.2 innings with the Padres, but then went to Omaha and posted a 6.63 ERA in five starts over 19 innings. In that time, he gave up 30 hits. But then I realized he also had a 6.00 ERA in 27 AAA innings with the Padres and gave up 38 hits. This is another point entirely, but I think they have to figure out something with how different AAA is from the big leagues. For a guy to have a 6.26 ERA in 11 starts in AAA and a now 3.54 ERA in 18 starts in the big leagues in the same season points to how difficult it is to evaluate in 2025. But, I digress.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n Kolek had a great start against the Seattle Mariners this week, providing some insight as to what has changed for him since coming to Kansas City<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cHopefully, it\u2019s a good kind of runway into next year,\u201d Kolek said. \u201cThis year\u2019s still going. I\u2019ll at least get another [start], and we\u2019re going to fight to the end. For now, it\u2019s focusing on today, and tomorrow, we\u2019ll worry about tomorrow. As the future goes on, we\u2019ll worry about that whenever it comes.\u201d Since coming to Kansas City, first in Triple-A and then in the Majors, Kolek has tinkered with his pitch usage, and it showed again against the Mariners. He\u2019s shifted to throwing his four-seam fastball far more often than he did in San Diego. And the last two starts have been all about his changeup. In Kolek\u2019s 14 starts with the Padres, batters were 1-for-15 with a 20.5% whiff rate on his changeup.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n View Link<\/a><\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Kings of Kauffman\u2019s Mike Gillespie makes the case for Kansas City retaining Luke Maile this offseason<\/a>.<\/p>\n It may seem counterintuitive for the Royals to think seriously about keeping Maile for another year, but hanging onto him makes some sense. He\u2019s an asset they may well want to retain. As he did this season, Maile can provide valuable organizational depth in 2026. Jensen will more than likely begin the season in Kansas City, where he\u2019ll back up Perez and probably take the majority of turns as the Royals\u2019 designated hitter. Re-signing Maile, even to just another minor league deal, will preserve him as a temporary replacement if injury befalls Perez or Jensen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n Track the Royals\u2019 tragic number<\/a>, along with other teams\u2019 magic numbers as the postseason approaches.<\/p>\n Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider was ejected in Friday night\u2019s blowout loss<\/a>, with Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker also getting an early trip to the showers.<\/p>\n Royals prospects help volunteer efforts with local charity Giving the Basics<\/a>.<\/p>\n Hannah Keyser has a response<\/a> to the MLB\u2019s self-imposed dead period for scouting.<\/p>\n Bryan Woo tripped<\/a>.<\/p>\n Clayton Kershaw\u2019s retirement is making MLB stars somewhat starstruck<\/a>.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n The long-time Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher made his final regular-season start in Dodger Stadium on Friday<\/a>.<\/p>\n Trevor Rogers is realizing some of his potential with the Baltimore Orioles<\/a>.<\/p>\n Juan Soto looks worthy of his massive contract after his first season with the New York Mets was filled with career bests<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n
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