They will gather at a baseball complex in suburban Phoenix in the next few weeks and they will think about the one who isn’t with them. He didn’t have the biggest personality in the room, not even close, but you knew when Yordano Ventura was there. Big heart. Bigger laugh. An easy smile.
Three weeks before the start of spring training, this Royals season is already largely about tragedy. The men on this team have cried. Their hearts ached. And now they must prepare to play 162 games in 183 days. A Major League Baseball season is the most draining grind in sports, even in the best conditions, and this will be more difficult than most.