Royals' Shields to start Game 1 of World Series; Ventura gets the ball for Game 2
As expected, the Kansas City Royals will send James Shields to the mound for Game 1 of the World Series at Kauffman Stadium on Tuesday with right-hander Yordano Ventura to follow in Game 2, reports Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star.
James Shields will start Game 1. Yordano Ventura will start Game 2.
— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughStar) October 18, 2014
Though he's known affectionately by his moniker "Big Game James," Shields hasn't exactly dominated through the first three rounds of the postseason. The 32-year-old right-hander owns a 5.63 ERA over three starts thus far and has not pitched beyond the sixth inning in any of his last seven postseason outings, a stretch that dates back to October of 2008.
Ventura, meanwhile, will look to improve upon his mediocre outing in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series when he takes the mound for his first career World Series start Wednesday in Kansas City. The hard-throwing 23-year-old yielded four runs on five hits and three walks over 5 2/3 innings in his last start, an eventual 6-4 win over the Baltimore Orioles, though he tossed seven innings of one-run ball against the Los Angeles Angels in Game 2 of the ALDS.