DETROIT -- When Olympian Shaunae Miller of the Bahamas captured a gold medal in the 400 meters on Monday night by diving head first toward the finish line, Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer felt a little vindicated.
See, that's one of Hosmer's specialties, diving head first into first base, a practice that has irked Royals coaches, front-office members and fans for years.
"I saw the Olympics last night and some people had fun with me on Twitter last night after seeing that," Hosmer said. "The first thing some of my buddies thought was me diving into first. ... I'm sure some people in Kansas City thought the same thing."

Not that Hosmer needed much vindication to keep doing what he does.
"I know I can get there faster. I don't know why," Hosmer said. "My thing is, you're not running through a base technically. You touch a base. I feel like if I lean forward, and into it, instead of getting that last gallop and getting the foot down, I just lean and get my hand down there and get it out of the way."
Royals first-base coach Rusty Kuntz said he has never compared times of Hosmer diving into first vs. running through it. Kuntz is more concerned about injury.
"It's OK when an Olympian does it because they have four years to recover," Kuntz said. "Someone like Hosmer has 24 hours."
Hosmer doesn't believe he'll get hurt.
"I've got it down pretty good where I can get my hand down there and I haven't gotten hurt," he said. "I don't do it all the time. If I think there's a lot on the line and it's going to be a close play, I'll do it.
"I know there are people in the organization that aren't for it. Sharpie [assistant general manager Scott Sharp] used to mess with me and said he'd fine me every time I did it. They tried to get me to stop. It's just kind of competitive thing with me."
Minor Leaguer suspended
Minor League right-hander Miguel Medrano has been suspended 72 games for testing positive for Stanozolol, a performance-enhancing substance. The suspension of Medrano, who is currently on the roster of the rookie-level Dominican Summer League Royals, is effective immediately.