Jason Vargas helps Royals to stay unbeaten in Cactus League

The mark of a successful outing for a starting pitcher in an exhibition game is when he’s sent to the bullpen after his two innings of work.

That was the case of Royals left-hander Jason Vargas, who needed just 24 pitches — 19 of them strikes — to get through two innings in his initial start of the spring Monday against the Milwaukee Brewers.

The plan was to work two innings or 35 pitches, so Vargas went back to the bullpen during the Royals’ 5-4 win and threw 10 more pitches to a couple of simulated batters.

“It’s definitely a different feeling than getting in all your pitches on the mound,” Vargas said after the Royals ran their Cactus League record to 6-0. “But anytime you can get out there with less pitches than you should, it’s always a good thing.

“For the most part, we were getting ahead and got a couple quick outs. The goal was to get guys out. I’ve never been one to go out there and try to work on any one specific thing other than to try to compete. The more you can compete and not worry about what you’re trying to work on has worked better for me.”

Vargas’ outing wasn’t perfect. He allowed two hits and a run in the second but struck out the side.

Milwaukee’s Khris Davis reached first when the third strike eluded catcher Eric Kratz for a wild pitch, and he scored on Martin Maldonado’s one-out triple to right.

“The ball took a funny hop and got by Kratzie,” Vargas said. “They put another good swing on the ball, and it got by the outfield, but we were able to strand him at third.”

Other observations from the game:

▪ Third baseman Mike Moustakas continues to avoid defensive shifts by successfully hitting to the opposite field. He drilled a two-run double to the left-field corner in his second at-bat after grounding out to deep shortstop. Then, for good measure, he singled to the right side.

▪ Kelvin Herrera labored some in his inning of work. He began the third by walking No. 9 hitter Logan Schafer, who promptly stole second and third as Herrera didn’t pay much attention. But Herrera stranded him there.

▪ Speedy infielder Raul Mondesi continues to be an adventure on the bases. He nearly was thrown out at third going from first to third on a single by Alcides Escobar, and he was later picked off second by Martin Maldonado, the Brewers’ catcher.

Royals-Brewers spring training summary - March 9

This story was originally published March 9, 2015 at 6:20 PM with the headline "Jason Vargas helps Royals to stay unbeaten in Cactus League."