Melendez stands out in Royals’ 2nd intrasquad as Dozier and Heath leave with injuries
Kansas City Royals left-hander Danny Duffy got on the mound for intrasquad action for the first time Wednesday night, and a pair of outfielders left the game with injuries in just the second scrimmage of camp and several highly regarded prospects impressed at the plate.
The Royals played under the lights at Kauffman Stadium for the first time this year as they continued spring training 2.0. Duffy, the most likely candidate to be the team’s opening day starter with Brad Keller currently sidelined by COVID-19, started the game and Whit Merrifield was the first batter to step to the plate — a pair of signs that the season is getting closer.
But Royals outfielders Hunter Dozier (bruised hand) and Nick Heath (cramping) each left the game.
Duffy pitched a scoreless first inning and issued a walk, struck out a pair of left-handed hitters and gave up a single to Maikel Franco. Duffy finished his outing facing batters in the right-field bullpen, which has been converted into a batting cage.
Former first-round draft pick and pitching prospect Brady Singer made his first appearance in an intrasquad game. He was the second pitcher of the night after Duffy. He tossed one inning on the game field and recorded a pair of strikeouts, gave up a single to Erick Mejia and hit Dozier on the hand with an inside pitch.
“He’s got to pitch in, and that’s baseball,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said of Singer. “If we were playing against anybody else, they’d be doing the exact same thing.”
Dozier initially remained in the game to run the bases, but then he left and did not return to the field. Matheny described Heath’s injury as a “ful- body cramp.” Heath came up lame after chasing a ball hit off the wall in center field.
While Tuesday’s intrasquad game featured minimal offense, the bats were awake and in full swing Wednesday.
Mejia collected three hits and drove in a pair of runs and catcher M.J. Melendez hit two doubles, including one against Daniel Tillo that Melendez smoked off the base of the wall in left-center field.
Melendez, rated the No. 12 prospect in the Royals’ farm system by Baseball America, struggled at the plate last season with a .163 batting average and 165 strikeouts. Baseball America also ranked him the top defensive catcher in the Royals’ system at the end of last season, a year in which he threw out 60 percent of attempted base stealers.
“Especially from a catcher’s perspective, I thought it may end up being one of the most impressive seasons he’ll ever have through his minor-league career to have that much of a struggle offensively and still be the defensive player that he was,” Matheny said of Melendez. “His numbers were off the charts with what he was doing defensively, which tells me so much about how he was wired.”
The previous season, Melendez hit 19 home runs and drove in 73 RBIs in his first full season of professional baseball.
“Every single one of us as we look at the numbers we’re saying this is one of those seasons he’s going to grow from if he allows himself to learn the lessons that he needs to because this guy can hit,” Matheny said. “You watch him, watch the approach. You saw some flaws that he worked really hard at this winter to fix. Our development group did a phenomenal job of breaking him down and saying these are the things you need to work on, and M.J. has answered.”
Top prospect Bobby Witt Jr. swatted a pair of singles, Khalil Lee had two hits, including a double into the right-field corner. Power-hitting minor-league outfielder Seuly Matias had two hits, including a double off the right-center field wall.
Mejia also drew some kudos from teammates and coaches for a diving stop he made on Franco’s hard-hit grounder down the third-base line. Mejia snagged it and threw from his knees in time to get Franco at first.
Royals top prospect Bobby Witt Jr. played for a second consecutive day, as did minor-league outfielders Kyle Isbel, Heath and Lee, catchers Nick Dini, Sebastian Rivero, Freddy Fermin and Melendez, first baseman Nick Pratto and infielder Mejia.
Position players on the field for their first intrasquad action included outfielders Alex Gordon, Bubba Starling, Dozier and Merrifield, first baseman Ryan McBroom, third baseman Franco and catcher Cam Gallagher. Merrifield played both center field and second base.
This story was originally published July 8, 2020 at 10:24 PM with the headline "Melendez stands out in Royals’ 2nd intrasquad as Dozier and Heath leave with injuries."
