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James Shields passed a kidney stone during the ALCS
KANSAS CITY — The Kansas City Royals considered bringing back right-hander James Shields for Game 4 of the American League Championship Series this past Wednesday, but instead decided against it and went with lefty Jason Vargas.
There was the matter of the kidney stone Shields had just passed.
Everything worked out, with the Royals beating the Baltimore Orioles 2-1 to advance to the World Series. And Shields is feeling better after getting 11 days of rest before facing the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night at Kauffman Stadium in Game 1 of the World Series.
Reporter Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star broke the news that Shields hadn't been feeling so hot recently. Actually, Shields said the pain was "excruciating":
Shields underwent a CT scan to determine the source of his discomfort. By then, the team’s medical staff deduced he had already passed the stone. Shields still looked wan on Monday afternoon, when a rainout of game three allowed the Royals the opportunity to use him on regular rest for the fourth game.
Instead, they went with Vargas as they swept the Orioles. In part, the team felt compelled to keep Vargas fresh for this upcoming engagement with San Francisco. But Shields also benefited from the extra time off.
Neither the reporter or the player made a connection between Shields' kidney stone pain and him not pitching up to par. Shields has a 5.63 ERA and has allowed three homers in three postseason starts so far. Do those results have anything to do with passing a kidney stone? Even if they did, Shields probably would deny it:
"I haven't pitched the way I wanted to," Shields told a bigger media gathering. "There is no doubt about it. I feel like I definitely could pitch better. But with that said, I feel really good. My bullpen sessions have been really good, and I feel as good as I can feel right now.
"So I'm a big believer in amnesia. I've been doing it my whole entire career, and I've had a bunch of bad outings, and I've also come back from them, so I'm not too really worried about it."
Not that he'd remember this, either, but one of Shields's best starts of the season came against the Giants in August. He threw a four-hitter in a 5-0 victory, part of a three-game sweep that was part of an eight-game winning streak.
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David Brown is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rdbrown@yahoo-inc.com and follow him on Twitter!
