Royals scratch Volquez and Ventura from San Antonio trip; Gee and Wang will start in their place

— Edinson Volquez and Yordano Ventura will be held out of their upcoming starts against the Texas Rangers in San Antonio, Ned Yost said Wednesday.

Volquez is battling arm fatigue and will miss a start, while Yordano Ventura came down with flu-like symptoms earlier this week. Right-hander Dillon Gee will start in place of Volquez on Friday at the Alamodome, Yost said, while right-hander Chien-Ming Wang will start Saturday during the two-game road swing to Texas.

In most years, the Rangers play two Cactus League games at the Alamodome. The Royals will take a split-squad group to San Antonio later this week.

Yost described Volquez as suffering from "dead arm" and downplayed any concern over his condition.

"It happens," Yost said. "Can he pitch? Yeah, he can pitch. Definitely. But it’s more of a precautionary thing, more than anything else. We’ve got time to do it now, without affecting anything.”

Back in Surprise, the Royals will also play split-squad games against the Angels and Mariners on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Right-hander Miguel Almonte will start Friday and left-hander Matt Strahm will start Saturday, Yost said.

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This story was originally published March 16, 2016 at 3:34 PM with the headline "Royals scratch Volquez and Ventura from San Antonio trip; Gee and Wang will start in their place."