Yordano Ventura Sent Down to Minors

On Monday the Royals optioned SP Yordano Ventura to the minors to make room for Jason Vargas who is coming off the DL. Just a day after he surrendered a season high 6 runs and was pulled from the game with no outs in the 5th inning.

The young right hander signed a 5-year $23 million contract extension before the start of the season and has been hampered by injuries. Off the field incidents also may have put his maturity into question. 

Ventura was named the opening day starter, and many believed that in his sophomore season he would be even better than the year before, but it hasn’t turned out like that. Yordano has failed to make it past the 5th inning in his last 3 starts, and after giving up the 6 runs on Sunday, his ERA ballooned to 5.19 .

This will leave a void to fill for the Royals, who most expect to be active before the trade deadline. They will be in the market for a starting pitcher with names like Mike Leake and Johnny Cueto being rumored as possible pitchers on their radar. 

Ventura will have to work his way back to the big league club and show he belongs there. The Royals believe he is a future ace, so this move could benefit the young 24-year-old and get him back on track. The only question is will he be brought back up this year? Time will only tell.