Baseball – Page 23 – North Platte Post Archive

Salvador Perez Due for Even More Time Behind Plate

Posted on November 7, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) — After making the most starts behind the plate of any big league catcher in a century, Salvador Perez wants more.

The Kansas City Royals star was among 29 players on the roster announced Friday for the Major League Baseball all-star postseason tour of Japan.

Game 7 of the World Series last week was Perez’s 158th start at catcher during the regular season and postseason, the most since at least 1914, according to STATS. Perez topped the 156 starts made by the Chicago Cubs’ Randy Hundley during the 1968 regular season.

Also on the roster from the AL champion Royals are Game 7 starter Jeremy Guthrie; backup catcher Erik Kratz and shortstop Alcides Escobar. No members of the World Series champion San Francisco Giants are making the trip.

Royals, Orioles each Win 3 Gold Gloves, Molina 7th

Posted on November 4, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) — St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina has won his seventh Gold Glove in a row while three players from both the Kansas City Royals and Baltimore Orioles have been honored for fielding excellence.

Rawlings announced the winners Tuesday. Managers and coaches voted for the awards in their own leagues. The Society for American Baseball Research’s Defensive Index factored about 25 percent into the results.

Left fielder Alex Gordon, catcher Salvador Perez and first baseman Eric Hosmer won from the AL champion Royals. Center fielder Adam Jones, right fielder Nick Markakis and shortstop J.J. Hardy won from Baltimore.

There were six first-time winners — Mets center fielder Juan Lagares, Miami left fielder Christian Yelich, Colorado second baseman DJ LeMahieu, Seattle third baseman Kyle Seager and pitchers Dallas Keuchel of Houston and Zack Greinke of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Kershaw Finalist for NL MVP and Cy Young Award

Posted on November 4, 2014

Clayton Kershaw (Photo courtesy of ESPN.com)

NEW YORK (AP) — Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw is among the finalists for the NL Most Valuable Player and the Cy Young Award, in position to become the first NL player to sweep both honors since Bob Gibson in 1968.

Kershaw is joined by Pittsburgh outfielder Andrew McCutchen — the 2013 winner — and Miami outfielder Giancarlo Stanton as the NL MVP finalists, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America announced Tuesday.

Cincinnati’s Johnny Cueto and St. Louis’ Adam Wainwright are competing with the Los Angeles left-hander for the NL Cy Young.

In the AL, the MVP finalists are Cleveland outfielder Michael Brantley, Detroit designated hitter Victor Martinez and Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout, who finished second to the Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera in each of the last two votes. The Cy Young finalists are Chicago White Sox left-hander Chris Sale, Seattle’s Felix Hernandez and Cleveland’s Corey Kluber.

Rockies Add Steve Foster as Pitching Coach

Posted on November 4, 2014

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Rockies brought in Steve Foster to be their pitching coach and Darren Holmes the bullpen coach.

Foster spent the last few seasons as a special assistant to the general manager and pitching coordinator for the Kansas City Royals. Foster played three seasons in the majors with the Cincinnati Reds before a shoulder injury derailed his career.

The 48-year-old Foster also served as the bullpen coach for the Royals (2010-12) and the Miami Marlins (2007-09).

Holmes returns to the organization that picked him in the fifth round of the 1992 expansion draft from Milwaukee. He was a member of the team’s inaugural opening day roster in 1993.

He was the biomechanics pitching consultant for Atlanta last season.

Tom Runnells returns as bench coach and Blake Doyle the hitting coach.

Kershaw Voted Top Player by Major Leaguers

Posted on November 3, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) — Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw has been voted the player of the year in balloting by his fellow major leaguers.

The players’ union said Monday that Kershaw also won the Marvin Miller Man of the Year award.

Kershaw was 21-3 with a major league-best 1.77 ERA. He was voted the NL’s outstanding pitcher and became the first player to win three Players Choice awards in one season since voting began in 1992.

Voting was conducted Sept. 16. That was before Kershaw went 0-2 with a 7.82 ERA in a pair of postseason starts against St. Louis.

The Miller award is for a player who most inspires others through his efforts on and off the field. Kershaw and his wife, Ellen, funded construction of homes for homeless children in Lusaka, Zambia.

Rockies Extend Qualifying Offer to Michael Cuddyer

Posted on November 3, 2014

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Rockies extended a $15.3 million qualifying offer to outfielder Michael Cuddyer on Monday.

The 2013 NL batting champion has until Nov. 10 to accept. Should Cuddyer decline and be signed by another major league team before June 8, the Rockies would receive a compensatory draft pick at the end of the first round of next year’s amateur draft.

Cuddyer is coming off a frustrating season in which he was limited to 49 games because of a strained left hamstring and fractured left shoulder. He hit .332 with 10 home runs and 31 RBIs.

The 35-year-old Cuddyer was signed by the Rockies as a free agent on Dec. 20, 2011, after 11 seasons with Minnesota. He’s hit .307 with 46 homers in three seasons in Denver.

Rockies Decline $12M Option on Anderson

Posted on November 2, 2014

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Rockies declined left-handed starter Brett Anderson’s $12 million option for 2015 on Saturday.

The Rockies will pay Anderson a $1.5 million buyout, and he became a free agent.

Anderson went 1-3 with a 2.91 ERA in an injury-filled season, his first in Colorado after a five-year stay with the Oakland Athletics.

Anderson had two stints on the 60-day disabled list The first was with a fractured left index finger and the second with lower back problems. He ended up starting just eight games, finishing with 29 strikeouts and 13 walks.

Anderson is 27-32 with a 3.73 ERA in his career.

Royals Decline 2015 Option on DH Billy Butler

Posted on November 2, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Royals have declined their option for next season on Billy Butler, making the former All-Star designated hitter a free agent for the first time in his eight-year career.

The Royals elected to pay Butler a $1 million buyout rather than exercise their $12.5 million option for next season. There is still the chance Butler could sign a new contract with the club that chose him in the first round of the 2004 amateur draft.

Butler was an All-Star two years ago, when the game was played in Kansas City. But he hit just .271 with nine homers and 66 RBIs this season, far below his career averages.

He hit .262 with eight RBIs during the playoffs as the Royals reached World Series.

Hawkins’ $2.25M Option Exercised by Rockies

Posted on November 1, 2014

DENVER (AP) — Closer LaTroy Hawkins’ $2.25 million option for 2015 has been exercised by the Colorado Rockies.

The 41-year-old right-hander, who will be entering his 21st major league season, was 4-3 with a 3.31 ERA and 23 saves in 26 chances for the Rockies this season. His saves total was his highest since 2004 with the Chicago Cubs.

Colorado had until Friday to make a decision on the option, which carried a $250,000 buyout. Hawkins also made $2.25 million this year.

The Rockies also said infielder-outfielder Matt McBride had been sent outright off the 40-man roster to the minors.

Nielsen: 23.5 Million saw Game 7 of World Series

Posted on October 31, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) — An estimated 23.5 million people watched the San Francisco Giants’ 3-2 win over the Kansas City Royals in Game 7, enabling the matchup to escape the distinction of least-watched World Series.

The Nielsen company says more people watched Wednesday night’s contest than any series game since the 2011 Game 7 between St. Louis and Texas.

It was also 10 million more people than tuned in to any of the previous six games between the Giants and Royals. Overall, the series averaged 13.8 million viewers, second only to the Giants’ four-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers in 2012 as the series with the lowest viewership.