Royals pitcher Jakob Junis finally dipped his toe into the spring training waters
Not only did the Royals finally unveil starting pitcher Jakob Junis, but he pitched into the fourth inning during his first Cactus League start of the spring.
Junis allowed one run on three hits, a walk and four strikeouts in three innings before the Arizona Diamondbacks busted the game open on their way to handing the Royals a 13-5 loss in front of a sellout crowd of 11,355 at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on Saturday afternoon. The Royals committed four errors.
Junis pitched three scoreless innings before he gave up two hits, a walk and one run without recording an out to start the fourth.
“Four ups for the first time going out there against live hitters, I don’t think I’ve ever done that,” Junis said. “But I’m glad that they threw me back out there to push it a little bit. That’s the only way I’m going to get built up and be ready for opening day.
“I don’t have too many regrets out there. I made some bad pitches and they took advantage of it.”
Junis, who went 9-12 with a 4.37 ERA in 30 starts last season, had pitched in simulated games and bullpen sessions while building up his pitch count this spring training.
Infielder Humberto Arteaga had three hits including, including his first extra-base hit of the spring (a double). Jorge Bonifacio hit a triple.
Home again: Infielder Chris Owings, who spent the first 10 years of his professional career in the Diamondbacks organization, went 3-for-3 with two runs scored, two doubles and an RBI against his old team. He’s now hitting .310 this spring.
Staying hot: Catcher Meibrys Viloria, who appears destined to start the season in the minors with the news of the Royals adding veteran free-agent Martin Maldonado, continued his strong spring performance with the bat. He started Saturday’s game and went 2-for-3 with a home run and two runs scored to push his average this spring up to .444. Viloria spent last season at High-A before being called up to the majors in September.
Up next: The Royals host the San Diego Padres in Cactus League play at 3:05 p.m. Sunday in Surprise Stadium. The Royals list right-hander Jorge Lopez as the starting pitcher, while Michael Ynoa, Josh Staumont, Conner Greene and Richard Lovelady are also scheduled to pitch. KCSP (610 AM) will broadcast the game on radio.
This story was originally published March 9, 2019 at 6:27 PM with the headline "Royals pitcher Jakob Junis finally dipped his toe into the spring training waters."
