Today was a big start for Bubic as he looks to transition to the rotation after making his return to Kansas City out of the bullpen last season. The Royals were looking for Bubic to go deep in this one to stretch out his arm for the regular season so he is fully ready to pitch a starters load come opening day.
Bubic had a solid outing with his off-speed stuff looking solid as always. He was able to go 3.1 innings in the game and his velocity was still sitting in the very low 90s on his fastball but he was effective when commanded properly. The biggest struggles for Bubic came against Elly De La Cruz who managed to slam a homer off a fastball Bubic left in the middle and then worked a walk in the 3rd.
The Royals were able to bring it back with a two out rally in the top of the 4th and tied it up with hits from Nelson Velasquez, Harold Castro and Brian O’Keefe. Unfortunately almost immediately after, Bubic struggled with command and was pulled from the game in favor of Andrew Hoffman and the Reds were able to regain the lead.
The Reds were later able to extend their lead to 7-2 after Taylor Clarke came in and was struggling to get outs as well as one run given up by Chris Stratton in the 7th.
The Royals rallied late in the game, fighting at the plate, moving the line with hits and walks in the top of the 8th and were able to bring it back with an INSANE 9 run 8th inning. The Royals took the lead 11-7 and never looked back, only giving up one more run and walking away with the win.
Winners
Royals hitters, especially outfielders looked great, being disciplined at the plate and giving the team a real decision on who to bring with the team on opening day. Nelson Velasquez opened the game two for two and had much needed success as he is on the roster bubble and will be in competition for one of the outfield positions.
Harold Castro was also effective and showed that he is capable of making an impact if the team needs him on the major league roster at some point in 2025. He went 1-1 with a double and a walk to start the game.
Joey Weimer went two for two and had a big double in the 8th to give the Royals the lead and really made a strong case to make the opening day roster. Nick Pratto was one for one with a walk as well and helped boost his case to crack the roster as well.
Losers
The losers for the Royals today were almost all of the pitchers. From start to finish, Royals pitchers seemed to be holding something back as they couldn’t avoid contact and velocitys were down across the board.
Unfortunately, there were struggles for Kris Bubic today, and when the team was hoping to see a big outing from him, he struggled some and was taken out early due to some struggles with command.
Taylor Clarke struggled to get outs and gave up two runs in the bottom of the fifth as well. Clarke is on a minor league deal and is looking to show that he has the skills to get up to the major league roster at some point in 2025.
Carlos Estevez was able to get some key outs for the team in the sixth but his velocity was down and there may be some concern about that going forward. His fastball (which averaged 97 in 2024) was sitting around 93-94 in the game today. Despite this, Estevez was effective and his off-speed stuff was impressive. He did say later in the game that he was focused on his movement and being consistent and that the dip in velocity was not a significant concern to him.
Chris Stratton also gave up a run and a lot of contact and had trouble avoiding bats today in his outing. He is on the bubble but with his contract is likely in for the bullpen, but if someone steps up, his slow performance could hurt him down the line.