SURPRISE, Ariz. _ Two weeks from Thursday, on March 29, the Royals will return to Kauffman Stadium for their season opener.
And for the second year in a row, left-hander Danny Duffy will make the first start of the season. James Shields is the only other pitcher to make consecutive season-opening starts for the Royals since 2010.
Duffy, 29, will take the bump for the Opening Day tilt against the White Sox, a mid-afternoon affair on March 29.
After being named the Royals' Opening Day starter last year, Duffy posted a 3.81 ERA and recorded 130 strikeouts in 24 starts. He missed more than a month of the season when he landed on the disabled list with an oblique strain at the end of May. He also was sidelined with elbow soreness from Aug. 26 to Sept. 17.
"We just like Danny," manager Ned Yost said. "We just felt like Danny was in line. We like the way that our rotation sets up in the first two. It was a hard decision between Ian (Kennedy) and Danny."
Kennedy, instead, will start the second game of the season. In nine innings spanning three Cactus League starts, the 33-year-old has allowed three earned runs and tied for the team lead with 10 strikeouts.
A hamstring strain in May derailed Kennedy's season last year. He finished with a career-worst ERA of 5.38 and pitched the fewest innings (154) in his career, dating to his first major-league season in 2010. Still, Kennedy made 30 starts and extended his streak of 30 or more starts in a season to eight.
This spring, Duffy's allowed nine runs on 10 hits spanning 8 2/3 innings in three starts. He's struck out seven batters and issued four walks.
