Who can we expect to see participating in sports tonight?
Well we have a huge Wild Card game in just a few hours, so I suppose we should know who is eligible to participate in tonight's game. Here are your playoff roster eligibility rules.
The roster for the good guys, your Kansas City Royals
Catchers: Erik Kratz, Salvador Perez
Infielders: Billy Butler, Christian Colon, Alcides Escobar, Eric Hosmer, Omar Infante, Mike Moustakas, Jayson Nix
Outfielders: Nori Aoki, Lorenzo Cain, Jarrod Dyson, Alex Gordon, Terrance Gore, Raul Ibanez, Josh Willingham
Pitchers: Wade Davis, Danny Duffy, Brandon Finnegan, Jason Frasor, Jeremy Guthrie, Kelvin Herrera, Greg Holland, James Shields, Yordano Ventura
Interesting that the Royals are keeping all their starters on the roster except Jason Vargas. Scott Downs and Francisley Bueno are left off the roster, meaning rookie Brandon Finnegan is the only lefty out of the pen. Aaron Crow also didn't make it, which seems obvious, but perhaps not to the Royals.
Here are the evil Oakland Athletics:
Catchers: Derek Norris, Geovany Soto
Infielders: Alberto Callaspo, Josh Donaldson, Adam Dunn, Nate Freiman, Jed Lowrie, Brandon Moss, Andy Parrino, Nick Punto, Eric Sogard, Stephen Vogt
Outfielders: Billy Burns, Coco Crisp, Sam Fuld, Jonny Gomes, Josh Reddick
Pitchers: Fernando Abad, Ryan Cook, Sean Doolittle, Luke Gregerson, Jason Hammel, Jon Lester, Dan Otero, Drew Pomeranz
Notable omissions include lefty-specialist Eric O'Flaherty, who is nursing a sore elbow, defensive specialist outfielder Craig Gentry who is recovering from a concussion, and catcher John Jaso who is also recovering from a concussion. Starting pitchers Scott Kazmir, Sonny Gray, and Jeff Samardzija are also left off.
Jason Hammel is a starting pitcher who can fill in if Lester has to leave early for any reason, but he had a 4.26 ERA after being dealt from Chicago. Lefty Drew Pomeranz also made ten starts this year, with a 2.58 ERA in those starts.
Stephen Vogt has been getting most of the playing time at first base lately, so it will likely either be him or Brandon Moss. If Moss doesn't start at first, expect him in left-field instead of Sam Fuld. Catcher Derek Norris has been suffering from shoulder issues, with Geovany Soto making most of the starts down the stretch for the Athletics. The A's are also carrying a Terrance Gore-type pinch runner in Billy Burns, who hit .237/.315/.302 in AA and AAA but with 54 steals in 60 attempts.
Let us go into battle!
from Royals Review - All Posts
