Call this season Jakob Junis’ initiation into the major leagues.
Of course, he's not a rookie anymore. But the Royals' sophomore pitcher hasn't stumbled into an unrelenting road block yet in his short career.
Junis led the Royals to a 5-2 win over the New York Yankees at Kauffman Stadium on Friday night. Facing the best team in the major leagues for the second time this month, he again showed his mettle. (When he threw a quality start in Boston against the Red Sox on May 1, the Red Sox were then baseball’s leaders.)
Although he labored after retiring nine of the first 11 batters he faced on Friday, he scattered the seven hits knocked against him.