Cueto angers Royals fans by bailing on BBQ appearance
Johnny Cueto drew the ire of some very disappointed Kansas City Royals fans after failing to make a scheduled appearance Tuesday at a barbecue joint in Blue Springs, Mo.
The event, which already had been rescheduled, was to be held at Plowboys BBQ and included a look-alike contest among other activities.
But Cueto’s appearance obviously was to be the highlight, and when he didn’t show up, Plowboys took to its Facebook page to express the collective disappointment in a since-deleted post (but captured by KCTV-5) which read in part:
“It wasn’t long that it was obvious Cueto was not coming. Fans in donning Cueto jerseys, wearing dreads, and standing in a parking lot for two hours left frustrated. . . . For the fans, we are sorry that Cueto was a bust. … The sad and ironic part of this is that Cueto’s agent came to us saying that Cueto wanted to “connect more with the fans”.
Cueto’s agent since has issued an apology on behalf of the pitcher.
“Johnny regrets what happened today. He was running an hour late due to treatment that he received from his personal trainer and massage therapist. By the time he was done with the session and on his way, the event was cancelled. He is sorry for missing the event and apologizes to the fans that waited for him, the restaurant, and the radio station.”
Cueto hasn’t exactly been the dominant pitching force the Royals expected since they acquired the pitcher in a July 26 trade. After two decent starts to kick off his tenure with the Royals, Cueto put on a dominant performance in a four-hit shutout in his home debut at Kauffman Stadium, fanning eight in a 4-0 win over the Detroit Tigers, much to the delight of the rabid Royals fans.
But since then, he has struggled mightily, with the team going 1-4 in his last five starts, including a clunker of a performance in his most recent game, in which he only lasted three innings while giving up five earned runs in what turned out to be a 7-5 loss to the Chicago White Sox.
More from Sportress of Blogitude:
