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MLN Newswire-www.mlntherawfeed.com-KANSAS CITY, MO (Dec. 20, 2006) - The Kansas City Royals have signed right-handed pitchers Zach Day and Brandon Duckworth to minor league contracts with invitations to Major League Spring Training Camp. Duckworth was designated for assignment by the Royals on Dec. 11 and became a free agent on Dec. 13 when he was non-tendered by the club.
Day, 28, has pitched for parts of the past five seasons in the Majors with the Expos, Nationals and Rockies.
Last season, he made just eight starts combined for the Rockies and Nationals before undergoing surgery on his right shoulder on June 6. The surgery, performed by Dr. Tim Kremchek, repaired a partial tear in his right
rotator cuff. He was 2-5 with a 6.75 ERA (40.0 IP, 51 H, 30 ER, 21 BB, 19 SO) last season, making three starts
in Colorado and five in Washington.
The 6-foot-4, 185-pound Day has a 21-27 career record with one save and a 4.66 ERA (372.2 IP, 389 H,
193 ER, 172 BB, 189 SO) in 86 games, including 60 starts. After going 4-1 with a 3.62 ERA in 19 games (two
starts) for Montreal in his 2002 debut season, Day was a mainstay in the Expos rotation in 2003 and 2004,
combining for a 14-18 record and a 4.06 ERA in 42 starts.
In 2004, he recorded a 5-10 record despite posting a
3.93 ERA after receiving just 2.47 runs of support per nine innings, the lowest total in the Majors. An extreme
groundball pitcher, Day's 2.25 groundball-to-flyball ratio since 2002 is the seventh-highest in the Majors.
A native of Cincinnati, Day attended the University of Cincinnati before being selected by the New York
Yankees in the fifth round of the 1996 draft. He and his wife, Megan, still reside in Cincinnati.
Duckworth, 30, went 1-5 with a 6.11 ERA in 10 games, including eight starts, for the Royals in 2006 after
being acquired from Pittsburgh for cash considerations on June 10. He fared better in his eight starts, recording
a 4.85 ERA.
Duckworth underwent season-ending surgery on Aug. 15 by Dr. Lewis Yocum in Los Angeles to
remove bone chips from his right elbow.
The native of Salt Lake City has a 17-26 career record with a 5.43 ERA in 101 games (74 starts) for the
Phillies, Astros and Royals. The 6-foot-1, 215-pounder resides in Bluffdale, Utah, with his wife, Janeen.