It’s just one inning. It was only 13 pitches In a spring training game in February. James Shields acquired in a trade with Tampa Bay made his Kansas City Royals debut and breezed through a perfect 1-2-3 inning. After his inning of work Shields headed to the bullpen and through a simulated inning of 15 pitches. “No breaking balls. I ended up throwing some cut fastballs, and obviously I was working my four-seam and my changeup as well,” Shields said.
Manager Ned Yost was impressed. “It’s funny,” Yost said. “There’s just something about a guy who is a No. 1 guy. There’s that special aura, and it was definitely out there when he was on the mound. It was just really fun to see him out there.”
In one of the bigger trades of the off-season the Royals gave up Wil Myers, along with pitchers Jake Odorizzi and Mike Montgomery along with third baseman Patrick Leonard for Shields, pitcher Wade Davis and utilityman Elliot Johnson.
