CAMP REPORT
On the field: Centerfielder Keon Broxton left the game against Kansas City after feeling a slight twinge near the area in the right wrist he broke last September crashing into the wall at Wrigley Field. Broxton felt the discomfort in his second at-bat on a check swing and had it examined but said the issue was minor. “It just shocked it a little bit with the check swing,” he said. “But everything is fine. See how it feels tomorrow. There’s a chipped bone still in there and they said whenever you move it in a certain direction, it brushes the ligament and causes a little pain.” First baseman Eric Thames was scratched from the lineup with right knee soreness, but manager Craig Counsell said he didn’t consider either situation serious. “We’re just being cautious,” Counsell said. “It’s spring training.” The Royals scored four runs in the first inning off Jimmy Nelson but the rally started with two weakly hit, opposite-field doubles and also a double to left that Ryan Braun had trouble seeing in the sun. “Apparently, I’m not Irish,” Nelson joked about his bad luck on St. Patrick’s Day. “It’s just some of those bad breaks. They squared up some balls also but overall I felt really good about my off-speed (pitches).” Nelson worked on some differ ent sequencing with his pitches to keep hitters guessing, throwing breaking balls when behind in the count and mixing in more four-seam fastballs than sinkers. He also continued to work on his split changeup, resulting in a couple of strikeouts with that pitch. “You’ve got to stick to your process from day to day,” Nelson said. “I feel like I was in the (strike) zone pretty good today. It’s just a matter of getting the fastball down a touch.” In his first game back after pitching for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic, Wily Peralta went the final five innings, allowing three hits and one earned run, with three strikeouts. Ryan Braun and Manny Piña hit their first homers of the spring. Cactus juice: Former Brewers ace Ben Sheets was in camp with a Little League team he coaches back home in Louisiana. Sheets’ sons, Seaver and Miller, threw out ceremonial first pitches before the game. Weather: Sunny, 84 degrees. Scoreboard: Royals 8, Brewers 5. Record: 11-10-1. Saturday: Brewers vs. Cubs, 3:05 p.m. Milwaukee RHP Junior Guerra (2-0, 1.80) vs. Cubs RHP Jake Buchanan (0-1, 4.26). TV: FS Wisconsin. Radio: 620-AM. Countdown: 17 days until opening day, April 3, against Colorado at Miller Park.