KANSAS CITY -- Royals left-hander Eric Skoglund finally has something to build on.
Because of off-days and postponements, the club's No. 5 starter took the mound for his season debut on Tuesday night having not pitched since March 17 in Spring Training. The result wasn't what Skoglund was hoping for, as the Mariners got to him for six hits and five earned runs over 4 2/3 innings en route to an 8-3 victory. But considering how much rust there was to knock off, Royals manager Ned Yost was left to feel there are much brighter days ahead for Skoglund.