Lima Time finally picks up win. Sweeney injured

Allow me to apologize in advance for the short post. Believe it or not, I have to do some work at home tonight before I go into the office tomorrow. Nevertheless, I just wanted to chime in with a couple notes...

This Jose Lima could win some ballgames. He had everything working tonight, and he finally drew an umpire who called pitches on the corner. In what seems to be a developing trend among our starters, Lima was throwing harder than usual tonight, topping out at 91-92 mph. That's a HUGE improvement over his 86 mph heater earlier this season, and he was able to work effectively off his fastball tonight. Lima was charged up for this start, and his whole arsenal was outstanding -- his changeup, slider, and splitter were all dancing all over the place.

I also noticed something else. Lima usually demands that his catcher set up far on the outside or inside corner, to the point that the catcher often has one full leg in the batter's box on whichever side of the plate Lima is throwing to. Tonight, John Buck seemed to set up much more conventionally throughout the game, even when setting up on the corner. It could be something, or it could be nothing, but I found it pretty interesting.

As for Lima, *IF* he can continue throwing like he did tonight, he's not going to go another two and a half months between victories. Nor will he be on the Royals much longer. If he can string a half a dozen or so good starts together, the Royals won't have any problem moving him to a contending team in search of another starter. I'm not going to get overexcited just yet, but I'm definitely encouraged.

Today's most important issue, however, isn't Lima's start or KC's fourth win in a row. It's Mike Sweeney's health. In the top of the fourth inning, Jayson Werth bunted the ball down the third base line and collided with Sweeney when Mark Teahen's throw sailed into the runner. Sweeney went down like a sack of potatoes, clutching his arm against his stomach. It was a scary sight, and the preliminary reports are that Sweeney has suffered a sprained wrist and a sprained elbow. During the post game report on 810 WHB, Buddy Bell said that Sweeney would undergo an MRI or X-Ray tomorrow.

I don't want to speculate too wildly before Sweeney's diagnosis comes back, but if he's going to be out for an extended period of time, the Royals are going to have an important decision to make about his replacement. At this point, it is clear to everyone except maybe Dick Kaegel that Ken Harvey is not part of the future of this club. Meanwhile, Justin Huber continues to play well at Wichita as he learns the ropes at first base.

Is Huber ready? It will be very interesting to see what happens. But in the meantime, let's all hope Sweeney will be OK.