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Home , Brian Flynn (baseball), Brooks Pounders, John Lannan, Kauffman Stadium, Kyle Zimmer, Parker Morin

2016 Game Notes (1-0) @ Kansas City Royals (0-1) Thursday, March 3, 2016

CACTUS LEAGUE OPENER IN THE BOOKS--Kansas City dropped its 2016 Spring Training lid-lifter to these Rangers here yesterday by a 6-2 count...Jorge Bonifacio and solo shots in the seventh and eighth, respectively, cutting a three- deficit to one...however, Texas answered with a Nomar Mazara’s three-run shot in the the ninth for the final margin...24-year-old righty started on the hill and tossed a pair of scoreless frames, allowing just two singles while recording a pair of ...after today, KC will not see the Rangers again until March 18-19 in San Antonio as part of Big League Weekend at the Alamodome. WORLD CHAMPS GET BACK TO WORK--The two-time champion and 2015 champion Kansas City Royals opened their 35-game Spring slate yesterday...KC’s A.L. crown last year gave the City of Surprise four of the last six American League championships, with the Rangers taking the title in both 2010 Upcoming Probables and 2011, the league’s last repeat winner...the Royals play 15 “home” games in , including yesterday’s tilt, while there are five split-squad dates this spring (March Today vs. Texas Rangers @ Surprise Stadium (1:05) 7, 9, 18, 19 and 28), four more than the 2015 spring slate possessed...this spring session will Derek Holland (L), Jeremy Guthrie, Anthony Ranaudo, run through April 2, when Kansas City wraps up play with a pair in against the Sam Freeman (L), Francisco Mendoza, Tom Wilhelmsen Diamondbacks on April 1 and 2...last year’s squad finished the exhibition season with a 20- vs. 10-1 mark before heading north to claim its first-ever A.L. Central crown, followed by a run Edinson Volquez, Miguel Almonte, (L), , Sam Selman (L), Christian Binford through the ALDS, ALCS and then the first World Series title since 1985. Tomorrow @ @ Peoria Stadium (7:10) SATURDAY SALUTE TO CHAMPS--The Royals will be recognized by the City of Surprise Yordano Ventura, Matt Strahm (L), Jonathan Dziedzic (L), here on Saturday for their Championship...the Commissioner’s Trophy will Alec Mills, Peter Moylan be in attendance as well as Mayor Sly James from Kansas City and Surprise Mayor Sharon vs. Wolcott...the City of Surprise will also enshrine , Salvador Perez and Alcides Colin Rea and Carlos Villanueva Escobar into its Hall of Fame for winning a Rawlings Gold Glove last year, while and the entire team will also be honored with Surprise Hall of Fame recognition. Saturday vs. @ Surprise Stadium (1:05) Carson Fulmer, Nik Turley (L), Josh Wall, Phillippe Aumont, QUICK TURNAROUND AFTER CAMP--For the first time in Major League history, the two Tyler Danish, Matt Lollis World Series combatants from the previous season will meet to open the following year as the vs. Royals will host the for a segmented two-game series in ... Ian Kennedy, (L), Ross Ohlendorf, Scott the season opener will take place on Sunday, April 3, when a national television audience Alexander (L), John Lannan (L), Brian Duensing (L), Aroni Nina will have the opportunity to watch via ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball at 7:37...the clubs will take Monday off before a “second” home opener will occur on Tuesday, April 5, at 3:15...the Sunday vs. Angels @ (1:05) Royals will raise the World Series championship banner prior to the Sunday night affair, as , Dillon Gee, Chien-Ming Wang, Kelvin Herrera, well as present players with individual awards that were won in 2015 and then on Tuesday, Brian Flynn (L), Brooks Pounders each player and field staff member will receive their World Series prior to first pitch. vs. TBA THE COMEBACK KIDS--In winning 11 games during the 2015 postseason, the Royals had to come from behind in eight of those victories, including an unprecedented seven comebacks from a multiple-run deficit...KC rallied from a one-run deficit in Game #2 of the World Series against the Mets, while coming back from two runs behind on three other occasions during the Fall Classic, capped by the two-run rally in the top of the ninth inning of the deciding Game #5, sending the game to extra innings with the Royals plating five runs in the 12th to seal the title...Kansas City also rallied from a two-run deficit in the deciding game of the ALDS vs. the Astros to advance to the League Championship Series vs. Toronto...the Royals came from three runs back in Game #2 of both the ALDS vs. Houston and the ALCS vs. the Blue Jays...the biggest comeback of the fall matched the same scenario of the 2014 Wild Card game vs. the A’s, as KC was down by four runs to Houston with six outs to go in game #4 at , but plated five in the top of the eighth and two more in the ninth to get to a deciding Game #5 in Kauffman Stadium. VS. RANGERS--Today is the second of five spring meetings with Texas...these clubs will meet in split-squad action on March 18-19 in San Antonio, TX, for Big League Weekend in the Alamo Dome, Kansas City’s first-ever visit there...the final spring get together will be on March 30 as spring training winds down with the Royals serving as the visitors...once the spring session is completed, the Royals and Rangers will meet for keeps on July 22-24 in Kauffman Stadium and then again the following week in Arlington with a 4-game set from July 28-31. REINFORCEMENTS--Kansas City will have a trio of extra from minor league camp in uniform this afternoon to assist with depth...they are right- handers Andrew Edwards (#77) and Kevin McCarthy (#96) as well as lefty Eric Stout (#21). WINNING WAYS--The Royals are coming off a 95-67 regular season and their first crown...the last division title won by Kansas City was the 1985 A.L. West, when the club parlayed that triumph into its first World Series crown...the 95 wins in ‘15 were the most by a KC squad since the 1980 Royals went 97-65...dating back to the start of the 2013 season, Kansas City has a 270-216 record for a .556 winning pct., the best mark in the American League and fourth best in the Majors behind only St. Louis (287), Pittsburgh (280) and the Dodgers (278). DYSON DOWN--The Royals lost outfielder yesterday to a grade two right oblique strain...the speedster will likely be sidelined for six weeks, which would include the opening of the regular season. ROSTER BREAKDOWN--The Royals open the 2016 spring season with 64 players in camp...the breakdown includes 31 pitchers (10 non-roster), 6 catchers (3 non-roster), 15 (7 non-roster) and 11 outfielders (1 non-roster)...among the 31 pitchers in camp, 11 are left-handed...southpaw Jason Vargas is listed among the 64 players on the roster, but will open the year on the 60-day disabled list as he recovers from Tommy John surgery performed last August. SPRING WORK--Kansas City is coming off a 20-10-1 exhibition ledger in 2015...the Royals have an all-time exhibition record of 651-589 with 38 ties for a .525 winning pct...the club has posted a 219-166 mark with 18 ties for a .569 mark in the Valley of the Sun...the Royals spent their first 34 seasons training in Florida, beginning with Fort Myers (1969-87), followed by a 15-year stint in Baseball City (1988-2002). A LOOK AHEAD IN 2016--KC will open its 2016 regular season at home for the second consecutive year, though the first homestand will be segmented to say the least...the Royals will battle the New York Mets on Sunday, April 3 and then again on Tuesday afternoon, April 5, in a rematch of the 2015 Fall Classic...Kansas City will then take two consecutive days off on April 6-7, before welcoming the in for a 3-game weekend series...the first road trip of the ‘16 campaign will feature a stop in Minute Maid Park and a 4-game series against KC’s ALDS foe from 2015, then wrap-up with a 3-game visit to Oakland...Kansas City’s Interleague work this year will be vs. the , with the Mets (2), Nationals (3) and Atlanta (3) visiting “The K” while the Royals will travel to play the Mets (2), Marlins (3) and Phillies (3)...KC will also play their cross-state rivals from St. Louis in a 4-game home & home series that starts in Kauffman Stadium on June 27-28 and ends in on June 29-30...Kansas City will be well represented in San Diego for the All-Star Game as manager Ned Yost and his staff will be operating for the American League squad for a second straight year. AT THE HELM--The winningest manager in franchise history, Ned Yost begins his sixth full season with the club, after taking the reins on May 13, 2010...he has a 468-469 regular season record at the helm for the Royals, surpassing ’s previous team mark of 410 wins (1975-79)...Yost is the 16th full-time manager in franchise history and enters this year sixth among active managers is games (1,896) and wins (925)...this is his second stint as a big league manager after nearly six full campaigns at the helm for the (2003-2008)...he compiled a 457-502 record with the Brew Crew including a 166-146 mark in his last two seasons. THE WEEK AHEAD--The Royals will hit the road for four games over the next four days, beginning with a trip up Bell Road tomorrow night vs. the San Diego Padres (8:10 p.m. CT)...KC’s lone home game in that span is Saturday when the White Sox visit Surprise in “Salute to the World Champions Day”, while the Royals will make a trip to Tempe on Sunday to face the Angels...Monday will feature the first split-squad of the spring, with the club sending teams to both venues in Mesa, playing the A’s and the Cubs. ON THE AIRWAVES--Today is the second of at least 20 spring radio broadcasts on KCSP Radio (610 Sports) and the Royals Radio Network..., , Steve Physioc and Steve Stewart will be mikeside all spring...today and Sunday are scheduled for 610 Sports and the Network, with the first scheduled webcast on Saturday when the Royals host the White Sox here in Surprise...the Royals are ticketed for three telecasts on FSKC, with their own announce crew working the March 22 game vs. the Dodgers, March 26 vs. the A’s and March 29 vs. the Giants...the Royals will also be on FSKC seven other times this spring using shared broadcasts with their opponents...those dates will be announced soon. ROYALS NOTES (Page 2) LAST TIME TODAY’S PITCHERS: Player Date IP H R ER BB SO HR W/L/S Scott Alexander 3/2 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - Brian Duensing 3/2 1.0 4 2 2 0 2 0 - EDINSON VOLQUEZ– 32, is in his second camp with the Royals…made five starts during the 2015 David Huff 3/2 1.0 2 1 1 0 0 0 L John Lannan 3/2 1.0 1 0 0 1 0 0 - postseason, including Games 1 and 5 of the World Series…set Royals record with 23 strikeouts in a single Peter Moylan 3/2 1.0 0 0 0 0 2 0 - postseason…won 13 regular season games for the second straight year and topped 200 innings for the Ross Ohlendorf 3/2 1.0 3 3 3 0 0 1 - first time in his career in 2015…led Royals with 19 quality starts last season and held opponents to a .202 Chien-Ming Wang 3/2 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 - Kyle Zimmer 3/2 2.0 2 0 0 0 2 0 - batting average (38-for-188) with RISP, fifth best among qualified starters.

MIGUEL ALMONTE – 22, in his second camp with the Royals after earning an invite to Major League Spring Training as a non-roster player last season...made his MLB debut on September 1, 2015 and went on to pitch in nine games for KC over the final month of the regular season, recording 10 strikeouts in 8.2 innings...split the season between Double-A Northwest Arkansas and Triple-A Oklahoma, posting a 4.51 ERA (52 ER in 103.2 IP) with 96 strikeouts (8.3 SO/9) in 28 appearances (23 starts)…enters 2016 ranked as the fourth-best prospect in the Royals’ organization according to .

BRIAN FLYNN (L) – 25, is in his second camp with the Royals after posting a 2.40 ERA with 14 strikeouts in 15 innings last spring…made one appearance for Triple-A Omaha in 2015 before suffering a left lat muscle injury…was placed on the 7-day DL on April 10…was recalled by the Royals on May 16 and transferred to the 60-day DL with a left latissimus dorsi tear. SPRING TRANSACTIONS

BROOKS POUNDERS – 25, is in his first camp with the Royals…had an injury-plagued 2015 season, Date Player Transaction missing the first two months before completing rehab assignments with Surprise and Idaho Falls…finished 2/18 LHP-Brian Duensing Signed to a minor league contract INF-Clint Barmes Signed to a minor league contract the season with stints at Wilmington and Northwest Arkansas…recorded a 2.01 ERA (10 ER in 44.2 RHP-Ross Ohlendorf Signed to a minor league contract IP) from August 1 to the end of the season…made three starts in the Fall League, recording 12 2/19 LHP- Signed to a Major League contract scoreless innings on no walks, five hits and 14 strikeouts. LHP-Jason Vargas Placed on 60-day D.L. 3/1 C-Salvador Perez Signed a five-year extension (thru 2021) SAM SELMAN (L) – 25, is in his first camp with the Royals as a non-roster invite…spent the 2015 season with Northwest Arkansas, recording a career-high 41 appearances…pitched to a 3.28 ERA (13 ER in 35.1 IP) through his first 25 appearances, but struggled to an 8.71 ERA over his final 16 outings... held left-handed hitters to a .211 batting average (15-for-71) with a .296 slugging percentage...tabbed Wilmington (A) of the Year in 2013 and Idaho Falls (Rookie) Pitcher of the Year in 2012.

CHRISTIAN BINFORD – 23, is in his second camp with the Royals as a non-roster invite after tossing 5.0 scoreless innings with six strikeouts last spring…split the 2015 season between Northwest Arkansas and Omaha, posting a combined 5-11 record with a 5.22 ERA in 22 starts...entered the 2014 season rated as the 10th-best prospect in the Royals’ organization by Baseball America and was also rated as the prospect with the “Best Control”...in 2014, tabbed a All-Star and also pitched a scoreless inning in the SiriusXM Futures All-Star Game at .

2016 SPRING SCHEDULE (all times local) Date Day Opponent Site Time/Result Record WP LP ATT March 2#* Wednesday TEXAS SURPRISE L, 2-6 0-1 Faulkner Huff (0-1) Klein 8,993 March 3* Thursday TEXAS SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 4*MLB Friday at San Diego Peoria 7:10 p.m. March 5 Saturday CHICAGO WHITE SOX SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 6* Sunday at Tempe 1:10 p.m. March 7*MLB Monday at (ss) Mesa 1:05 p.m. at Oakland Mesa 1:05 p.m. March 8* Tuesday COLORADO SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 9* Wednesday MILWAUKEE SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. at Peoria 1:10 p.m. March 10 Thursday at Chicago White Sox (ss) Glendale 1:05 p.m. March 11 Friday ARIZONA SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 12TV Saturday at Arizona Scottsdale 1:10 p.m. March 13 Sunday CLEVELAND (ss) SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 14 Monday CHICAGO WHITE SOX SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 15*TV/MLB Tuesday at Cincinnati Goodyear 1:05 p.m. March 16*MLB Wednesday CHICAGO CUBS SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 17 Thursday at Glendale 1:05 p.m. March 18TV Friday at Texas (ss) San Antonio 7:05 p.m. LOS ANGELES ANGELS (ss) SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 19TV/MLB Saturday at Texas (ss) San Antonio 2:05 p.m. SEATTLE (ss) SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 20MLB Sunday at Chicago Cubs Mesa 1:05 p.m. March 21 Monday OFF DAY March 22*MLB/TV Tuesday LOS ANGELES DODGERS SURPRISE 6:05 p.m. March 23*MLB Wednesday at Cleveland Goodyear 1:05 p.m. March 24TV/MLB Thursday at Milwaukee Maryvale 1:05 p.m. March 25 Friday at Scottsdale 1:05 p.m. March 26TV Saturday OAKLAND SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 27 Sunday at Oakland Mesa 1:05 p.m. March 28 Monday SAN DIEGO SURPRISE 1:05 p.m. March 29*MLB/TV Tuesday SAN FRANCISCO SURPRISE 6:05 p.m. March 30* Wednesday at Texas Surprise 12:05 p.m. March 31 Thursday OFF DAY April 1*TV Friday at Arizona Chase Field 6:40 p.m. April 2 Saturday at Arizona Chase Field 12:10 p.m.

# Denotes Charity Game (game and stats will count in Cactus League) Record Attendance * Game broadcast on KCSP-610 AM in Kansas City (4 more radio broadcasts will be added in mid-March) Home: 0-1 Home: 8,993 TV Broadcast on FOX Sports Kansas City Road: - Home avg.: 8,993 MLB Broadcast on MLB Network (Live broadcasts: 3/4, 3/22, 3/29; Delayed: 3/7, 3/15, 3/16, 3/19, 3/23, 3/24 ) vs. A.L.: 0-1 Road: - NOTE: All games webcast on royals.com vs. N.L.: - Road avg.: -