ANGELS BLOWN AWAY ROYALS' BAUTISTA IS OVERPOWERING WHILE BYRD IS NOT KANSAS CITY 6, ANGELS 2.Byline: Gabe Lacques Staff Writer ANAHEIM - In their efforts to scout, sign and retain pitchers, the Angels place an almost exclusive premium on powerful arms. They dig the hard thrower the way chicks dig the long ball, but with a void at the back of their rotation entering 2005, were willing to make an exception for the finesse-oriented Paul Byrd Paul Gregory Byrd (born December 3, 1970 in Louisville, Kentucky) is a Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher who plays for the Cleveland Indians. Byrd attended Louisiana State University where he pitched as part of the Tigers baseball team that won the 1991 . On Friday night, Byrd's debut for the Angels was overshadowed by the sort of power pitcher In baseball, a power pitcher is a pitcher who relies on the velocity of his pitches, sometimes at the expense of accuracy. Power pitchers usually record a high number of strikeouts and statistics such as strikeouts per 9 innings pitched are common measures of power. the Angels covet cov·et v. cov·et·ed, cov·et·ing, cov·ets v.tr. 1. To feel blameworthy desire for (that which is another's). See Synonyms at envy. 2. To wish for longingly. See Synonyms at desire. . While Byrd didn't miss many bats, Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are a professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Royals have played in Kauffman Stadium. rookie Denny Bautista Denny Bautista (born August 23, 1980 in Sánchez, Dominican Republic) is a pitcher for the Colorado Rockies. He has a career ERA of 7.11 Bautista is a first cousin of pitching star Pedro Martinez. He made his major league debut on May 25, 2004 with the Baltimore Orioles. bulldozed through the Angels lineup, leaving them amazed and confused after a 6-2 loss at Angel Stadium. ``Two words,'' Angels shortstop Orlando Cabrera Orlando Luis Cabrera (born November 2, 1974 in Cartagena, Colombia) is a Major League Baseball shortstop who plays for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He bats and throws right-handed. said of Bautista. ``Nasty. That's it. And he's ugly, too. So there's your two words.'' Bautista, 24, was acquired last June from Baltimore for the bargain price of 36-year-old reliever Jason Grimsley Jason Alan Grimsley (born August 7, 1967 in Cleveland, Texas) was best known as a professional relief pitcher. He made his Major League Baseball debut on September 8, 1989 and pitched for the Philadelphia Phillies, Cleveland Indians, Anaheim Angels, New York Yankees, Kansas City . Friday, he had the look of a frontline starter, pitching eight innings, striking out eight Angels and giving up just three hits to earn his first major league victory. He retired the first eight Angels he faced and, after Jeff DaVanon's leadoff double in the fourth inning, retired the next 14 batters before Robb Quinlan's two-out single in the eighth. Byrd, 10 years older than Bautista, is no match physically for the young Dominican's repertoire that's topped by a 96-mph fastball. Byrd relies on location and changing speeds and a veteran's craftiness, but he was nickle-and-dimed by his former Royals teammates all night. He gave up nine hits in his seven innings and was let down by a Chone Figgins error to start a two-run second inning. He kicked himself later for diving and barely missing Tony Graffanino's suicide squeeze bunt, which fell for an RBI RBI abbr. Baseball runs batted in Noun 1. rbi - a run that is the result of the batter's performance; "he had more than 100 rbi last season" run batted in single to key a two-run fifth. By the seventh, when he gave up hard-hit back-to-back doubles to Graffanino and Mike Sweeney, a smattering of boos came down from the Angel Stadium crowd of 39,167. Byrd, ever the veteran, seems to think those sentiments will change over the next six months. ``They pay a lot of money to see us play well,'' Byrd said. ``Tonight, we didn't. We'll have to turn those boos to cheers. It's a long season. I wouldn't change the way I threw.'' Manager Mike Scioscia reiterated those sentiments, noting Byrd's defense didn't adequately support him. Third baseman Robb Quinlan made his second error in four games, and Scioscia indicated Maicer Izturis might see some playing time there this weekend to give Quinlan a chance to regroup re·group v. re·grouped, re·group·ing, re·groups v.tr. To arrange in a new grouping. v.intr. 1. To come back together in a tactical formation, as after a dispersal in a retreat. . ``Right now, Q might be pressing a bit,'' Scioscia said. Byrd won 17 games for Kansas City in 2002, but almost all of those players are gone from the perennially rebuilding Royals. Two who are still around, Graffanino and Sweeney, tormented Byrd. With the Royals nursing a 3-1 lead in the fifth, Graffanino followed David DeJesus' leadoff triple with a textbook suicide squeeze bunt, which narrowly escaped Byrd's grasp for a single and a 4-1 lead. ``I'll be seeing that one over and over in my sleep,'' he said. Sweeney followed with an RBI double to make it 5-1. Byrd's night wasn't a total failure. He completed seven innings, giving a taxed Angels bullpen some much-needed relief, and the Angels still have high expectations he'll keep them in almost every game he pitches and win a bushel bushel: see English units of measurement. of games this year. The Royals have similar hopes for Bautista. After Figgins popped out to shortstop to end the eighth, Bautista, his work done, paused at the dugout steps and high-fived several teammates clearly starved for a reason for hope. Gabe Lacques, (626) 962-8811 gabe.lacques(at)sgvn.com CAPTION(S): photo, 4 boxes Photo: Kansas City's David DeJesus successfully steals second base on Friday. Chris Carlson/Associated Press Box: (1) ANGELS vs. KANSAS CITY - Gabe Lacques (2) GAME RECAP (3) HOW THE RUNS SCORED (4) ALMANAC almanac, originally, a calendar with notations of astronomical and other data. Almanacs have been known in simple form almost since the invention of writing, for they served to record religious feasts, seasonal changes, and the like. |
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