2016 KANSAS CITY ROYALS Spring Training Game Notes Colorado Rockies (4-2) @ Kansas City Royals (2-5) Tuesday, March 8, 2016 SPLIT-SQUADS GET SPLIT DECISIONS--Kansas City sent two teams to Mesa Monday afternoon and split the pair, earning a 3-2 come-from-behind win over the Cubs, while Oakland downed the other squad, 6-4, moving the Royals to 2-5 on the spring. AT SLOAN PARK--Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez collected two-out RBI hits in the sixth inning as KC overcame a 2-0 deficit...Hosmer’s two-out RBI double tied the game and gave the first baseman the team lead in RBI with four, while Perez followed with a go-ahead RBI single...the Royals collected three of their four hits in the game during the sixth inning...Kris Medlen fired two perfect innings on the hill, retiring three of the six hitters he faced via strikeout, while Luke Hochevar, Aroni Nina and minor leaguer Malcom Culver each provided spotless frames of relief...David Huff picked up Upcoming Probables the win, despite allowing two runs in his inning of work. Today vs. Colorado Rockies @ Surprise Stadium (1:05) AT HOHOKAM PARK--Mike Moustakas blasted his first home run of the spring, while Jordan Lyles, Shane Carle, Jason Motte, Scott Oberg, 2012 First-Round Pick Kyle Zimmer allowed a run on four hits over 3.0 innings...however, Gonzalez Germen, Brian Schlitter Oakland countered with a pair of Stephen Vogt homers, including a go-ahead three-run shot vs. in the fifth...Christian Binford suffered his first loss in Cactus League action, allowing Vogt’s Edinson Volquez, Miguel Almonte, Joakim Soria, Ross Ohlendorf, second roundtripper. Brian Duensing (L), John Lannan (L) VS. THE ROCKIES--Today marks the only meeting this spring between the Royals and Wednesday SS vs. Milwaukee Brewers @ Surprise Stadium (1:05) Rockies as KC’s only visit to Talking Stick is this Saturday vs. the Diamondbacks. Wily Peralta. Josh Hader (L), Adrian Houser, Jorge Lopez vs. DID YOU KNOW???--Newly extended catcher Salvador Perez is one of four catchers in Yordano Ventura, Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis, Brian Flynn (L), history to win three Rawlings Gold Gloves and earn three All-Star Game selections prior Sam Selman (L), Alec Mills to his 26th birthday...the other three were Johnny Bench, Bill Freehan and Ivan Rodriguez. Wednesday SS vs. Seattle Mariners @ Peoria Stadium (1:05) SPRINGING TO WORK AS THE WORLD CHAMPS--The two-time American League Matt Strahm (L), Scott Alexander (L), David Huff (L), Brooks champion and 2015 World Series champion Kansas City Royals have 28 games remaining Pounders, Peter Moylan, Aroni Nina on their 2016 exhibition docket...KC’s A.L. crown last year gave the City of Surprise four of vs. the last six American League championships, with the Rangers taking the title in both 2010 Taijuan Walker, Cody Martin and 2011, the league’s last repeat winner...the Royals play 12 more “home” games in Surprise Thursday vs. Chicago White Sox @ Glendale Stadium (1:05) Stadium, while there are four split-squad dates after yesterday (tomorrow, March 18, 19 and TBA 28)...the five total split-squad dates are four more than the 2015 spring slate possessed...this vs. spring session will run through April 2, when Kansas City wraps up play with a pair in Chase Carson Fulmer, Peter Tago, Nik Turley (L), Will Lamb (L), Colin Field against the Diamondbacks on April 1 and 2...last year’s squad finished the exhibition Kleven, Matt Purke, Phillippe Aumont season with a 20-10-1 mark before heading north to claim its first-ever A.L. Central crown, followed by a run through the ALDS, ALCS and then the first World Series title since 1985. Friday vs. Arizona Diamondbacks @ Surprise Stadium (1:05) TBA QUICK TURNAROUND TO OPEN SEASON--For the first time in Major League history, vs. the two World Series combatants from the previous season will meet to open the following Patrick Corbin (L) year as the Royals will host the New York Mets for a segmented two-game series in “The K”... the season opener will take place on Sunday, April 3, when a national television audience 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 Royals will raise the World Series championship banner prior to the Sunday night affair, as well as present players with individual awards that were won in 2015 and then on Tuesday, each player and field staff member will receive their World Series ring prior to the game. 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 Minute Maid Park, 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. ADDITIONS VS. ROX--The Royals will tap into minor league camp today by adding left-handed pitcher Estarlin Cordero (#95) and righty Benino Pruneda (#82). WINNING WAYS--The Royals are coming off a 95-67 regular season and their first American League Central 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 most wins in the Majors behind only St. Louis (287), Pittsburgh (280) and the Dodgers (278). DYSON DOWN--The Royals lost outfielder Jarrod Dyson last Wednesday to a grade two right oblique strain...the speedster could be sidelined for up to six weeks, which at this point 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 infielders (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 653-594 with 38 ties for a .523 winning pct...the club has posted a 221-171 mark with 18 ties for a .561 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 Minnesota Twins in for a three-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 three-game visit to Oakland... Kansas City’s Interleague work this year will be vs. the National League East, 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 Busch Stadium 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 Whitey Herzog’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 Milwaukee Brewers (2003-2008)...he compiled a 457-502 record with the Brew Crew including a 166-146 mark in his last two seasons.