Mike Matheny on Daniel Lynch Against Twins: ‘He Keeps Getting Better'
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The Kansas City Royals are riding a three-game winning streak and just secured their first series win of the season, and LHP Daniel Lynch is playing a role.
On Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium against the visiting Minnesota Twins, Lynch got the nod as the Royals' No. 5 starter. In five innings of work, the 25-year-old allowed just four hits and a walk while striking out two hitters. He had just five balls that were classified as "hard hit" and overall did a tremendous job mixing things up and locating his offerings. After the game, Royals manager Mike Matheny praised his young lefty for the start he had.
Apr 12, 2022; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Daniel Lynch (52) pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
"Even better version than what we saw in his first start, and he was really good in the first," Matheny said. "Thought he had everything working — both sides elevated, down when he needed it, changeup was good, breaking ball was swing-and-miss again. He controlled the counts, everything we asked him to do, and then we had some really pretty defense behind him."
In his first start of the season, against a potent St. Louis Cardinals lineup, Lynch had another five-inning slate of work. He recorded numerous strikeouts in the contest and his good was quite impressive. His bad, though, led to three mistakes that ended up past the outfield wall as home runs. Matheny praised Lynch following the outing for battling through adversity, and Lynch's latest start brought more positives.
While Lynch induced just a pair of strikeouts by Twins hitters, he forced eight swings and misses on the night. He led the game by a very comfortable margin in Win Probability Added, checking in at plus-26.7 while the second-closest player (Hunter Dozier) logged a plus-6.6 mark. Lynch varied his location, recording multiple strikeouts with mid-high fastballs and down or inside sliders:
Perhaps the most promising element of Lynch start is how he went at quality hitters. He didn't back down from All-Star and former Rookie of the Year Carlos Correa, attacking him with a fastball-slider combination that induced multiple whiffs. Lynch made Minnesota settle for soft contact on pitches all night long, which was a good change of pace from Carlos Hernandez's rough outing the night before. When asked about Lynch's progress, Matheny said the lefty is a quick learner.
"He learns in a hurry," Matheny said. "His stuff is what it is, and that's above average. He just keeps learning every time he's out there and he keeps getting better."
Aug 17, 2021; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Daniel Lynch (52) celebrates with Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (13) after the third inning against the Houston Astros at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
Matheny is right about Lynch's "stuff." The lanky lefty possesses a fastball-slider-changeup mix that he goes to primarily, but he's mixed a few curveballs in this year as well. Lynch has gone to the fastball 43.2% of the time this year, inducing Whiff and PutAway percentages of 26.5 and 18.8. Last year, he tossed the pitch 40.5% of the time and recorded Whiff and PutAway rates of just 12.2 and 9.1. His slider usage is up significantly this year, going from 28.6% in 2021 to 40.7% this year.
Against the Twins, Lynch had plenty going in his favor. He was composed on the mound, he delivered good pitches and he got good results. His baseline numbers may not be the most appetizing, but he's flashed plenty of positives in two starts. As he begins to settle in, the Royals will be keeping an eye on how he strikes a balance between overpowering hitters versus simply finding his spots effectively. If Matheny's comments are any indication, Lynch is off to a good start.
