--RHP Brian Bannister is 4-0 with a 0.62 ERA in four day starts, beating the Tigers, Yankees, Twins and Orioles. In those starts, he has allowed 12 hits, no home runs, and two earned runs in 29 innings, while walking seven and striking out 18. Bannister, however, has lost all four of his night starts and has an 8.02 ERA, allowing 19 earned runs and 33 hits, including five home runs, in 21 1/3 innings. Those night defeats were to the Angels, Rangers, Indians and Athletics. "Pencil me in for day games," Bannister said. "I think I need them to install another couple of banks of lights at night."

--RHP Joakim Soria has tied a Royals record for scoreless appearances, 15, to start a season. RHP Hipolito Pichardo in 1997 was the last Royals pitcher to begin the season with 15 scoreless appearances.

--IF Alberto Callaspo is 0-for-13 on the home stand, dropping his average to .275.

--C Ken Huckaby, 37, who has caught in the majors with the Red Sox, Blue Jays, Orioles, Rangers and Diamondbacks, has been released by the Royals' Class AAA Omaha club. Huckaby was in spring training with Kansas City as a non-roster invite. C Damaso Espino, 25, came off the Omaha disabled list.

--1B Ryan Shealy, who was the Royals' 2007 Opening Day first baseman but spent a bulk of the season on the disabled list with hamstring injuries, was placed on the Omaha disabled list with a hamstring injury.

BY THE NUMBERS
4-0, 0.62 -- RHP Brian Bannister's record and ERA in day games.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"I hurt as badly losing that many games in a row to the Baltimore Orioles as if I had been here for all of them. I want to turn the pride factor up for this organization as high it can possibly be turned up. It's irrelevant that it wasn't exactly the same group of guys, or the same staff or the same manager. Losing that many games in a row to anybody is embarrassing. It's a difficult pill for me to swallow and the players to swallow. The talk in the lunchroom before the game is that we had to do something positive to finally get that off our shoulders and beat these guys." -- Royals first-year manager Trey Hillman, on beating the Orioles 4-0 Sunday, snapping a 12-game losing streak to Baltimore.

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