KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- It has not been a smooth rookie season for right-hander Jose Berrios, the Minnesota Twins top pitching prospect.Berrios, who turned 22 in May, starts Friday against the defending World Series champion Kansas City Royals.Berrios has not pitched since Aug. 11 when he yielded six runs (five earned) and eight hits in two innings in a loss to Houston.The last outing was not very well, Berrios said Thursday on the eve of his eighth career start.In the extra time between starts, he has been working with pitching coach Neil Allen and bullpen coach Eddie Guardado.They helped me a lot, Berrios said We throw sides the past ten days, so, we do a couple of adjustments, (on the) release point and rhythm, and so I think Ill be prepared for tomorrow.In his past two starts -- both defeats, Berrios surrendered 10 runs, 14 hits and two walks while striking out five in seven innings.Those two starts ballooned Berrios ERA to 9.32 in 28 innings. Batters are hitting .331 off him with a .410 on-base percentage, a .593 slugging percentage and a 1.004 OPS.Berrios, a 2012 first-round draft pick out of Puerto Rico, started for the World Team in the 2014-15 Futures Games, pitching a scoreless inning in each. He made four early starts for the Twins, but was demoted after retiring only two Tigers and giving up seven runs May 16.Berrios pitched well for Triple-A Rochester, 10-5 with a 2.44 ERA, earning an Aug. 1 recall. There is a learning curve for most rookies, even one as talented as Berrios that the Twins hope to build future rotations around.Now, I can learn every day and everybody here tries to help me, Berrios said. But its my first year. I have the ability. A couple of the outings have been rough, but I learn from that. I do adjustments. I keep the good things and the bad things I try to dont do it again. Thats what I do right now, learn about that.Veteran Royals right-hander Edison Volquez, who starts Friday, has a 2/3 record in his previous nine starts, but has pitched at least six innings in eight of them. Volquez is 6-3 with a 4.04 ERA at home this season.Volquez has a successful history against the Twins, a 5-1 record with a 2.29 ERA in eight career starts and one relief appearance. Volquez is 2-0 with a 2.95 ERA in three starts against them this season, allowing six earned runs in 18 1/3 innings.The Royals rotation has a 1.61 ERA in a five-game winning streak. Pitching can be contagious, said right-hander Dillon Gee, who allowed one run over seven innings Thursday in the 8-1 victory over the Twins.I think so, Gee said. I think energy alone is contagious. I think guys feed off each other. Good results tend to feed down. You watch those guys go out and there and put up the games theyve been putting up. It makes me want to do the same thing and provide for this team like they are.The only run off Gee was a leadoff home run to Brian Dozier.You just cant make mistakes to that guy, especially heaters up in the zone, Gee said. I was glad I could come back and settle down after that.With the club over .500 for the first time since July 22, Gee senses the club kicking into a higher gear to make a bid to return to postseason.Were having a lot of fun right now, he said. The guys on the bench are having a blast and keeping it loose. Guys are just having a good time out there and the results are starting to show the way weve been playing. Custom NHL Jerseys . Deulofeu injured a muscle in his right leg in Evertons 4-1 win over Fulham in the English Premier League on Saturday. Barcelona says that its team doctors will "co-ordinate" with Evertons medical staff as Deulofeu recovers. Wholesale NHL Jerseys China . PETERSBURG, Fla. https://www.chinanhljerseys.us/ . There are some early surprises in the race for the Hart Trophy, but two of the contenders are the leagues biggest stars over the past decade. There are many more players in contention for the awards than just the three that Ive named, and a good or bad week can easily alter the landscape, but through the first 20 or so games of the NHL season, this is how the awards races look to me. Fake NHL Jerseys .Y. - Rob Manfred was promoted Monday to Major League Baseballs chief operating officer, which may make him a candidate to succeed Bud Selig as commissioner. Clearance NHL Jerseys .1 million pounds ($61.2 million) on Saturday, giving the beleaguered English Premier League champions a major lift. All Blacks first-five Beauden Barrett collected an Aaron Smith pass off the back of the scrum, scythed through the Irish defence and coasted towards the line.And then disaster almost struck.The newly crowned World Rugby Player of the Year, looking to ground the ball near the posts, veered in and found himself crunched by a Johnny Sexton tackle.As the pair slid past the in-goal, the ball looked briefly to have been held up by the Irish No.10, no doubt causing Barretts heart to jump right into his mouth.But thankfully for the Hurricanes whiz, the try was awarded by TMO to put his side ahead 14-3 and on the road to an eventual 21-9 win in Dublin.It couldve been a major embarrassment in what was otherwise an imperious display on foreign soil, producing the goods in attack, defence and with the boot.I shouldve just dotted down and made life easier, Barrett told reporters.The second angle didnt look good, but I knew that part of the ball had hit the ground on the first angle, so it was just a relief.The Dublin Test marked the sides first genuine sense of hardship in the post-Richie McCaw era, as the surprise winners in Chicago looked to compound the world champions misery.No side has deefeated New Zealand back-to-back since South Africa in 2009.ddddddddddddBarrett said his side had failed to challenge Ireland with their kicking two weeks ago and looked to atone for their disappointing performance this time around.However Barretts love for the attack, instilled through countless afternoons playing footy with his brothers in Taranaki, occasionally got the better of him.Sometimes I was a little too attacking and we werent as smart as we needed to be, but I think I was better than recent weeks, the 25-year-old said.We didnt shape them enough with the kicking so we put a lot of onus on communication and calling out space.The back-to-back Tests with Ireland will serve as invaluable scouting for next years British & Irish Lions tour, with many Irish stars in line to pull on the red jumper next July.Barrett, who labelled northern hemisphere rugby more forwards-focused and set-piece heavy, said he expected to see more than a few Irishmen on Kiwi soil.Its been a challenging week, we were pretty keen to play this game last week but had to wait. 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