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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, APRIL 22, 2014
PAGE 9
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
"He's pressing a little bit, but not nearly as much as he did last year. He's going to be OK And that's just signs of maturity."
Manager Ned Yost said to the Kansas City Star of Moustakas during his hitless streak
FACT OF THE DAY
Baltimore catcher Matt Wieters, selected fifth overall in the 2007 draft, has 90 home runs in his career.
baseball-reference.com
TRIVIA OF THE DAY
Q: How many home runs does Atlanta outfielder Jason Heyward, the 14th overall pick in 2007, have?
A: 75
- baseball-reference.com
THE MORNING BREW
Moose and the Royals swing their way to five-game streak
The Moose is loose. At least that's what it seems as of late. The Kansas City Royals' third baseman Mike Moustakas is one of the main reasons for the Royals' recent success, including a five-game win streak, which ended on Sunday. The Royals have since lost two consecutive games.
It took six games and 24 at bats before Moustakas got a measly single in the ninth inning that would receive a standing ovation out of pity in Kauffman Stadium. It took another six games before Moose went yard, in a clutch home run as a pinch hitter in the eleventh, to beat the Houston Astros on the road.
Since that crack of the bat, it seems as if Moose and the Royals have been on a whole different level. The late-game road heroes by the lefty helped the Royals win game two at Minute Maid Park and would turn into a five-game win streak, after beginning the year 4-8. Now they sit in second place in the American League Central after a slow
start out of the gates and Moose leads the team in home runs.
To be fair, Moose was not the only boy in blue that had gotten off to a slow start at the plate. He became the scapegoat in what was beginning to look like another disappointing season from the former second overall pick in the 2007 draft. Moose saw a stint in the minors, after underperforming in the big leagues again last year, and like the franchise, he understood the importance of 2014.
With perhaps a defining year around the corner, Moose became a new man in the offseason. He shed some excess
weight and got married. He also worked on his swing in Venezuela with hitting Coach Pedro Grifol. Moose, who was often criticized as pulling too often, worked on becoming more of a complete hitter.
It seemed as if the new approach transitioned into spring training, as Moose came alive in the Cactus
League hitting a batting average of .429 with four home runs and 19 runs batted in. But as we saw last year, when the third baseman came alive in spring training, he stumbled out of the gates in the regular season.
Unlike last year, Moose has recovered a lot faster from a sluggish start. Even though it is a very small sample size, it's reassuring to see from one of the cornerstones of the franchise. It's vital that Moose takes that next step as a premier bat in this lineup if the Royals have any hopes of making the postseason for the first time since 1985.
As his first draft pick in the Royals regime, General Manager Dayton Moore selected Moustakas second overall in the 2007 draft. He picked Moustakas, a shortstop at Chatsworth High School, ahead of MLB all-stars Matt Wieters, Jas o n Heyward and others, purely based on the potential power scouts raved about.
Now in his fourth year of his major league career, fans have yet to see the power come alive, as he has just 39 bombs in his 390 game career, with 20 home runs coming in 2012. Still, fans remain optimistic that Moustakas' recent success is him turning the corner. They must to have that mindset because their season, and ultimately his career, may just depend on it.
This week in athletics
- Edited by Austin Fisher
Tuesday
No events
Wednesday
Track and field
Drake Relays
All day
Des Moines, Iowa
Baseball Missouri State 6 p.m. Lawrence
Thursday
Track and field
Drake Relays
All day
Des Moines, Iowa
Women's tennis
Iowa State
10 a.m.
Fort Worth, Texas
Friday
Softball Baylor 6:30 p.m. Waco, Texas
Track and field
Drake Relays
All day
Des Moines, Iowa
Men's golf
Big 12 Championship
All day
Trinity, Texas
Baseball
Women's golf
Big 12 Championship
All day
Austin, Texas
Saturday
Softball Baylor 3 p.m. Waco, Texas
Baylor
6:35 p.m.
Waco, Texas
Track and field
Triton Invitational
All day
San Diego, Calif.
Men's golf Big 12 Championship All day Trinity, Texas
Women's golf Big 12 Championship All day Austin, Texas
Baseball
"We're marathon runners. We know how to endure," said Dennis
Baylor
3:05 p.m.
Waco, Texas
Men's golf
Big 12 Championship
All day
Trinity, Texas
Sunday
Women's golf
Big 12 Championship
All day
Austin, Texas
Softball
Baylor
Noon
Waco, Texas
Baseball
Baylor
1:05 p.m.
Waco, Texas
RUNNING
RUNNING In show of defiance, 32,000 run Boston Marathon
No events
With the names of the victims scrawled on their bodies or their race bibs, more than 32,000 people crossed the starting line Monday at the Boston Marathon in a powerful show of defiance a year after the deadly bombing.
Monday
BOSTON — Some ran to honor the dead and wounded. Others did it to prove something about their sport, the city or their country. And
some were out to prove something to themselves.
Murray, a 62-year-old from Atlanta who finished just before the explosions last year and came back to run again. "When they try to take our freedom and our democracy, we come back stronger."
The two pressure-cooker bombs that went off near the end of the 26.2-mile course last year killed three people and wounded more than 260 in a hellish spectacle of
clamps, smoke and broken glass. The runners this time hit the streets under extraordinary security that included a battery of surveillance cameras, more than 90 bomb-sniffing dogs and officers posted on roofs.
By late afternoon, as runners continued to drag themselves across the finish line more than six hours into the race, state emergency officials reported no security threats, other than some unattended bags.
Meb Kef Zeighi, a 38-year-old, became the first American in 31 years to win the men's race.
As he was presented with the trophy and laurel wreath, "The Star-Spangled Banner" echoed over Boyleston Street, where the explosions rang out a year ago.
Later in the day Monday, at 2:49
p.m., the time the bombs went off,
a moment of silence was observed at
the finish line. It was followed by
some of the loudest cheers of the day.
Associated Press
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