Danny Duffy will be the Royals' Opening Day starter this season.
The team announced Saturday that the 28-year-old left-hander will pitch its first game of 2017 on April 3 against the Twins in Minnesota at 3:10 p.m. CT.
Duffy will be making his first career Opening Day start. He emerged as a potential ace for Kansas City last season, when he went 12-3 with a 3.51 ERA and 188 strikeouts, moving into the rotation in mid-May and making 26 starts.
Duffy recently returned from the World Baseball Classic, where he went 2-0 with a 1.