An important season for Kansas City Royals right-hander Yordano Ventura has hit a snag, as he's battling an injury to his ankle.
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Ventura Leaves with Sprained Ankle
Sunday, July 3
According to Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com, Ventura exited after giving up four runs in 2.2 innings. Dillon Gee replaced him, as noted by Ryan Lawrence of the Philly Voice.
Ventura, 25, is 6-5 with a 5.26 ERA and 1.45 WHIP thus far in 2016. He's on pace for by far the worst full season of his career.
Ventura missed nearly one month last season with ulnar nerve inflammation in his pitching elbow. The Dominican star did return and was effective in the second half with a 3.56 ERA, compared to 4.73 in the first half. He was still erratic with 34 walks in 91 innings but helped himself with 98 strikeouts.
The Royals starting staff has undergone many changes after winning the World Series. They lost Johnny Cueto to free agency, added Ian Kennedy to replace him and signed Mike Minor for depth when he returns from injury.
Ventura could be the key piece to making the Royals rotation work. He's got an electric arm with an average fastball velocity of 95.6 mph last season, per FanGraphs, and a potential hammer curveball. Inconsistent control has prevented him from harnessing that raw potential.
Injury concerns aren't going to help Ventura, who could be better used as a reliever if his inability to stay healthy continues to be a problem. The Royals aren't lacking for power arms out of the bullpen, but one more never hurt.
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