Volquez leaves team for father's funeral

(AP) - Royals pitcher Edinson Volquez, whose father died shortly before he started Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday night, returned home to the Dominican Republic on Wednesday to attend the funeral and spend time with his family.

Volquez plans to rejoin the team when it heads to New York later in the week.

Daniel Volquez, 63, died of heart failure earlier Tuesday. It was the elder Volquez who introduced his son to the game, even purchasing the boy his first glove.

''I can definitely understand what he's going through right now,'' said Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas, whose mother Connie died of cancer in August. ''When someone loses a family member, that takes priority over everything that happens. Baseball is baseball, but family, things that happen like that - that's something that is more important than baseball.''

Royals pitcher Chris Young's father, Charles, also died of cancer last month.

''For all the stuff that's happened this year to all of our parents, and a couple other people that have had some bad luck with their families, it has to bring us closer together,'' Moustakas said. ''This is our family.''