Two days before welcoming the Yankees to Kansas City, Royals manager Ned Yost sat in his office in Kauffman Stadium on Wednesday morning and rolled his eyes.
His team possessed the worst ERA in baseball. All three of his veteran starters, who are owed a combined $39 million this year, had each allowed nine runs in the last week.
A shift had taken place: A bad month for his bullpen gave way to a bad May for the starting pitchers the Royals counted on to stabilize their rotation.
But, no, Yost said. It is not time to scrap the plan.