Royals pitching prospect Daniel Lynch flashes potential, can’t get out of first inning
Kansas City Royals left-hander Daniel Lynch ranks among the top pitching prospects in baseball, and Los Angeles Angels outfielder Jo Adell ranks among the game’s best position player prospects.
In their matchup as minor-league titans, Lynch showed high-end velocity (96 mph) coupled with a wicked breaking ball. At one point, it looked like he’d gotten the best of Adell on a hard-biting curveball, though it wasn’t called a strike by the only opinion in the ballpark that counted — the home plate umpire.
The battle, which included a broken bat, ended when Lynch plunked Adell with a 3-2 pitch. In a way, it served as a microcosm of Lynch’s outing. Lynch allowed one run on one hit, one hit batter and two walks in the first two-thirds of an inning during a 4-3 split-squad win against the Angels at Surprise Stadium Friday.
Lynch, a 6-foot-6 former first-round draft pick, didn’t finish the inning because his pitch count climbed quickly, but he showed flashes of the ability that’s made many view him as a potential front-line pitcher in the majors.
“I think I was a little bit amped up,” Lynch said. “First guy, I walked him and then I felt like I made some pretty good pitches in the second at-bat. He just fought, broke his bat and he doesn’t put the ball in play. He had a really good at-bat. I felt like I made a good pitch to him 2-2, but, you know, I’ve got to come back and make a pitch there. I felt, obviously, not the sharpest, but I felt good about how I battled and made some pitches when I needed to.”
Lynch faced just five batters. After Adell reached base, Lynch walked the next batter, Jared Walsh, and then gave up a single by Taylor Ward that caromed off the glove of second baseman Humberto Arteaga and into the outfield grass. It came inches from being a soft line-out. Lynch struck out the last batter he faced swinging.
“When you break a bat and it just gets over a guys head, obviously you don’t feel good about that, but I made a pitch there,” Lynch said. “Definitely, to get that last guy and to settle in and make pitches to that last guy felt good for sure.”
Duffy Round 2
Veteran left-hander Danny Duffy will start Saturday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds at Surprise Stadium. It’ll be Duffy’s second Cactus League start of the year. He pitched two scoreless innings with one walk and three strikeouts in his previous start against the Oakland Athletics.
The Royals have not listed any other scheduled pitchers for Saturday besides Duffy, and Sunday’s starter had not been announced as of Friday afternoon.
Salvy Slam
Catcher Salvador Perez hit his first home run of the spring, a two-run blast with Hunter Dozier on base, in the fourth inning of Friday’s game. Perez, who caught the first five innings, slammed the 0-1 pitch from Angels left-handed pitcher Hoby Milner to deep left field.
Perez missed all of the 2019 regular season. He played in just one Cactus League game last spring before undergoing Tommy John surgery. Perez led the Royals with 27 home runs in 2018.
Junis getting closer
The Royals scratched right-handed starter Jakob Junis ahead of a scheduled start Tuesday night due to a minor lower-back strain. He threw a live session Wednesday and said felt better. He could throw another side session as soon as Sunday and then be ready to return to Cactus League play.
This story was originally published March 6, 2020 at 5:25 PM.
