tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83803084102927591322024-03-13T15:46:11.308-05:00Royals KingdomMission: 2012.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.comBlogger140125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-26653889037361259122013-05-28T22:07:00.003-05:002013-05-28T22:22:03.569-05:00#garbage<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Royals
are currently on fire. They really are. The only problem is they’re on fire
underneath someone’s old mattress and currently sparking old newspapers in the
biggest dumpster fire KC’s seen since, depending on who you ask, when Scott
Pioli was fired or the last time the Royals lost ten home games in a row, which
is just a hair over 12 months in case you were wondering.</div>
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The Dayton
Moore era has failed. There’s no other way to say it. He had what seemed to be
a very tall task ahead of him when he took the Royals over in 2006, but I don’t
have to tell you that his tenure has been nothing short of a disaster.</div>
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We’ve been
subjected to Moore’s old-school baseball platitudes and ridiculous clichés about
developing winning cultures and building a championship franchise, which takes
8-10 years apparently despite EVERYONE IN BASEBALL DOING IT IN LESS TIME THAN
THAT.</div>
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Also,
apparently “building a winning culture” means inviting the team’s main rival’s
mascot to your ballpark.</div>
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Tweeted from
the official Sluggerrr account, like being buddy-buddy with another team’s
mascot is totally acceptable in professional sports. The Royals just
solidifying their brand as a loser in not just Kansas City, but the entire
region, where pretty much everywhere outside of the 816 and 913 area codes have
been completely taken over by the Redbirds. That’s what winning does. Mr. K is
probably rolling over in his grave.</div>
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This front
office has completely lost it. It’s a rogue operation. There isn’t a plan in
place here, despite what anyone out at the ballpark will tell you. Chris Getz,
Jeff Francoeur, Elliot Johnson, Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas continue to get
regular playing time, despite being five of the worst everyday players in Major
League Baseball.</div>
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The Royals
front office has not been able to develop a major league caliber player in
seven years, except for players drafted by the previous GM or through trades.
Go through the best players on the Royals roster. All but one of them, Salvador
Perez, was drafted and developed by someone not named Dayton Moore.</div>
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I wish I
could find the tweet, but I remember Rany Jazayerli tweeting a conversation he
had with an AL Central scout about the Royals talent after their brutal 2012
start. The scout said something along the lines of “The Royals have a ton of
talent and no idea what to do with it.”</div>
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Turns out
this scout was right. The Royals have taken an embarrassment of riches and
turned it into a Dollar General. The Royals had NINE players ranked in Baseball America's Top 100 prospects in 2011. To date, none of them have become stars. That's an impossibility. Usually, one out of every three of the top 100 prospects turn into at least a serviceable major leaguer. None of those nine have become stars, and three of them haven't even made it to the major leagues yet, with two of them stalling out in AA. It's not bad luck. It's a broken development system led by men who have no idea what the hell they're doing with million-dollar investments.</div>
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Eric Hosmer
was the next Joey Votto in 2011. Naturally, the Royals wrecked his swing in the
offseason. Mike Moustakas looked pretty raw, but you could tell there was
something there. Sal Perez is one of the most exciting catching prospects in a
generation, but his plate discipline makes Jeff Francouer look like George
Kottaras and Perez’s free swinging has been completely ignored by the Royals
and I could almost guarantee you that the Royals encourage him to start
swinging away, believing that plate discipline is something that just magically
appears when a player becomes respected at the major league level.</div>
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Which brings
me to the magic beans theory.</div>
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It’s not
that the Royals are too old school or not up to date on the latest sabermetric
trends, it’s that the Royals are completely lacking common sense right now. The
offense has been non-existent for nearly a month, yet the 25-man roster has
remain unchanged with the exception of an injury and a bereavement leave.</div>
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This ship is
out to sea without a map. The Royals loaded up the boat once they got the cargo
that was the Hosmers and Moustakases and Perezeses and just set sail. Little
did they know that there were Getz and Francouer –sized holes in the ship’s
hull.</div>
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There’s a
perfect misunderstanding of where offense comes from in this front office. The
magic bean theory is a legitimate thing. Moore & Co. believe that you have
to fill roles on a team before they can start winning. Look back at every
single GMDM roster and you’ll see it. Every team has soft hitting, speedy guys
on it. In fact, you could argue that each Dayton Moore team has built their
roster around these guys and just assumed that the offense would come when
Hosmer and Moustakas hit the big leagues.</div>
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Apparently,
Dayton Moore didn’t realize that you can actually go get offense for pennies on
the dollar in free agency and there actually is a third baseman tree and corner
outfielder tree and first baseman tree and second baseman tree that yields
delicious fruit every December if you actually take a look at how players
perform instead of their scouting reports alone.</div>
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There’s
supposed to be a happy balance between scouting and stats in baseball. That’s
just the world we live in. That’s the modern game of baseball. Dayton Moore has
completely ignored how other baseball teams have won in the last decade and
thinks that he can change how the game is actually won. Which is with power and
plate discipline on offense and limiting walks and home runs on the other side
of the ball.</div>
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That’s what’s
wrong with this organization. An unwillingness to change. It doesn’t take seven
years to build a winning team. The fact that David and Dan Glass fell for that
line seven years ago still blows my mind to this day. Also, there’s the fact
that this front office is obsessed with how they are portrayed in the media.
Here’s a tip: do your job well enough and don’t tell people it takes 8-10 years
to do your damn job and you won’t have to worry about how you’re perceived in
the media. Your obsession with public relations reeks of insecurity.</div>
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It’s been a
long time coming. Dayton’s gotta go. I’d argue him as not only the worst GM in
baseball right now, but also as one of the worst GMs in baseball history.</div>
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Seven years.
Seven freaking years. Also, roughly 25% of the Royals current playoff drought.
Dayton Moore has been at the helm of a sinking ship and remains fervent that
the entire side of the ship that’s missing is just being patched up and we’ll
be back on course in no time, hoping that a “winning culture” will spring up
out of the ground after generation(s) of ineptitude. All is well.</div>
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Time for a
change, but I don’t know what kind of good that’s gonna do with the group of
geniuses currently in charge of the team that let garbage like this happen at
their home ballpark Tuesday night:</div>
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<img href="http://pbs.twimg.com/media/BLZlMK1CEAIA1hP.jpg#twimg" src="”<a" />http://pbs.twimg.com/media/BLZlMK1CEAIA1hP.jpg#twimg</div>
”><br />
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After having worked in professional sports for three years, it was obvious to all of us in the front office what the most important thing was. Respecting your fans. After pulling crap like this and alienating what few die-hards you have left for the last three decades, it's a wonder how any of the people in this front office have jobs. Dollar hot dogs probably.<br />
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Time to blow it all up. I'm sick of it.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-66091392582073977012013-03-31T16:30:00.000-05:002013-03-31T16:30:00.358-05:00Opening Day Special: Royals Must Follows on TwitterEach year as baseball season beckons, I feel it is my duty to inform the electoral public about the best Royals follows on Twitter. Seeing as I am the authority on all things Royals baseball and everyone else can suck it, I give you the 2013 Blogger Formerly Known As Royals Kingdom Royals Twitter Must Follow List Extravaganza. Note that these are in no particular order.<br />
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Play this and announce the names in Mike McCartney's voice while you read the list. Thank me later:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/oTZ-nzKQojw" width="420"></iframe><br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/thejeffreport">@TheJeffReport</a>- Blogger for 610 Sports and Royals aficionado. Movie and TV critic and an even-keeled Royals fan.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/mhays83">@mhays83</a>- SB Nation Kansas City's resident Royals columnist, Iowa native and Karl Welzein enthusiast.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/sungwoolee">@SungWooLee</a>- Get a view of the Royals from half-way around the world. Sung Woo is a South Korean national living in his home country and following the Royals 14 hours ahead of us here in KC.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/sorryroyalsfan">@SorryRoyalsFan</a>- The handle says it all, but Nick Blevins is one of the many Royals fans who have mastered the art of self-degradation and self-loathing on Twitter.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/goroyalsgo">@GoRoyalsGo</a>- Just another funny Royals fan. Another solid member of the Royals Twittersphere.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/minnesotaroyal">@MinnesotaRoyal</a>- Gage Matthews Twitter handle will confuse the hell out of you. He lives in Nashville, not Minnesota, but whatever. I guess he went to college there.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/doublestix">@doublestix</a>- Keith Blackburn knows baseball and Royals prospects.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/scottsportsman">@scottsportsman</a>- A good friend and fraternity brother who is an expert in the plight of the KC sports fan.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/royalsfbfans">@RoyalsFBFans</a>- Take a look inside the short bus of the internet, the Royals Facebook comments section. Everything from radically misspelled names of players to questions as to whether the stadium is still next to Arrowhead.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/creepyroyalsfan">@CreepyRoyalsFan</a>- This one explains itself. Normally, I'm not a fan of parody accounts, but whoever is behind this one is a deviant, but a hilarious deviant.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/clintt13">@ClintT13</a>- Sportswriter for St. Joe's paper, a paper that employs a fantastic team of Royals tweeters who fill out a good chunk of this list.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/markschremmer">@MarkSchremmer</a>- Reporter for the Joplin paper. Great follow for up to date quotes, scores and solid writing with a little bit of humor mixed in.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/cupcakesarenice">@cupcakesarenice</a>- I think she's the only gal on the list, but she's the resident sports broad of the Royals twittersphere. She's funny, not just for a girl, and hates being a Royals fan just like the rest of us.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/codythorn">@CodyThorn</a>- Hot sports takes here, sports fans. Cody has opinions and is also a member of the St. Joe Royals Twitter mob. I believe they meet at Denny's every Wednesday.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/pcbearcat">@PCBearcat</a>- Sports editor of St. Joe's paper and inventor of the #CountryBreakfast phenomenon. What an idiot.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/scobes15">@scobes15</a>- Don't mention Alex Gordon around him because you'll only make the situation awkward. Former pitcher with an Uncle Rico complex and ferverous disdain for everything Dayton Moore.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/michaelengel">@michaelengel</a>- Head honcho over at Kings Of Kauffman, Fansided's Royals blog who has squired a rock solid team of Royals bloggers. Also a co-host of the KC Baseball Vault with a couple other guys. I forget their names.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/grogg">@grogg</a>- Everyone's favorite. Greg Layton is the best. He tweets a lot about a lot of things, mostly Royals and Cubs baseball. #SummerOfGrogg<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/kevinmcgannon">@KevinMcGannon</a>- He's my brother and loves taking pictures of himself. Don't let that discourage you. He's got youthful optimism about the Royals. It's admirable.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/speck60">@Speck60</a>- Jared Speckman loves reminding everyone that he invented the #BooCano movement that gained KC so much notoriety in the summer of 2012. Idiot.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/dannyparkins">@DannyParkins</a>- I tried to stay away from most media guys on this list, but Danny is a good baseball mind and my favorite radio guy in KC at the moment.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/bhindepmo">@BHIndepMO</a>- He's been a staple on this list ever since it's inception and a member of the old guard of the Royals twittersphere.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/kevin_agee">@Kevin_Agee</a>- One of the most knowledgeable and sarcastic Royals fans out there, which is impressive considering we're all grumpy most of the time.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/dblesky">@DBLesky</a>- Writer over at Pine Tar Press. Just a solid Royals follow.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/benhill88">@benhill88</a>- Another friend of mine, but also another former baseball player with Uncle Rico syndrome. Idiot.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/tjfsports">@TJFSports</a>- Tom is an enjoyable Twitter follow. Versatile and funny. If you like basketball, NBA or college, he's a great follow for that too.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/gjalexander">@GJAlexander</a>- There's a special knack for mastering humor on Twitter, and Gavin has it. I'm running out of superlatives, so forgive me if these summaries run short.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/greg_schaum">@Greg_Schaum</a>- I feel like he invented Royals Twitter. Was the first guy I followed on Twitter way back in 2009 and he's the former boss over at Pine Tar Press. Solid go-to for any and all questions about the Royals farm system.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/mimonfishbaum">@MimonFishbaum</a>- Just another funny dude who hates to love the Royals.<br />
<br /><a href="http://twitter.com/oldmanduggan">@oldmanduggan</a>- Josh Duggan is one of the best Royals writers out there and has had it out for Dayton Moore for a long time, and rightfully so.<br />
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<a href="http://twitter.com/royallyspeaking">@RoyallySpeaking</a>- Another one of the good guys over at Kings of Kauffman. One of the first guys I followed on Twitter as well. Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-10745538284776830332012-07-01T22:17:00.001-05:002012-07-01T22:18:18.551-05:00Join me at Big KC's Salute to Baseball this weekendAttention any and all bloggers, stat nerds and fans alike. The premiere event in KC during All Star Week is most certainly going to be Big KC's Salute to Baseball.<br />
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I will be in attendance, gladhanding MLB Hall of Famers, Royals greats and the upper crust of baseball royalty.<br />
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If you're serious about expanding your blog, website or just want to be in the presence of greatness, this is a must attend event.<br />
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Tickets are decently affordable. If you've got some money to spare or can't afford to go to the game itself, this is a great opportunity.<br />
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Information on the event can be found <a href="http://www.kcchamber.com/Programs-Events/Celebrate-125-Years/Big-KC-s-Salute-to-Baseball.aspx">here</a>.<br />
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This should be a great night. Hope you can make it.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-25072533503197105572012-06-22T00:12:00.003-05:002012-06-22T00:22:13.762-05:00I Know This FeelingI know this feeling. It's all too familiar to Royals fans like you and me. The Royals sit just 4.5 games back of first place in the most winnable AL Central division in recent memory on June 22. The sputtering St. Louis Cardinals (that has a nice ring to it) are coming into town and KC will be at a fever pitch in anticipation of the most meaningful series played between these two teams since...well, since 1985.<br />
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I know this feeling. The Royals are right on the cusp of doing the unthinkable. Something that Royals fans my age have never seen. Can this team make a run? Can they? History and my intuition say absolutely not.<br />
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In 2008, the Royals were 6.5 games back in the Central and seven games under .500 in late June. I thought maybe Gil Meche and Zack Greinke could carry that team to a spectacular finish. The only highlight for the rest of the season was David DeJesus walking off against the Mariners in mid-July and then the most vicious tease in recent Royals history as the team went 18-8 in September and set off unbridled and unfounded optimism.<br />
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We go to 2009. The Royals teased us yet again, starting 18-11 with the best pitcher in baseball heading a decent rotation. A few injuries here, a Trey Hillman unicycle ride there and it was over in the blink of an eye.<br />
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2010. Ned Yost takes over for Trey Hillman. The Royals sit eight games out in early July. After a sweep of Seattle, the Royals head into Chicago with a chance to make major headway in the division race. They don't.and proceed to lose seven of their next eight games, effectively ending pipe dreams of a miracle run.<br />
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2011. The Royals were never really in it, but finished strong.<br />
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And here we are. It's the final installment of the 2012 I-70 Series on the side of the state that actually cares about it (B.S. St. Louis cares about it. Ask them how they feel any time we beat them). The Cards are ripe for a sweep, but I'll take a series win.<br />
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The Royals are somehow scratching and clawing their way back to .500. I won't truly believe in a miracle second half run until this team reaches an even win-loss record. It wouldn't be fair to put myself through that kind of heartbreak again.<br />
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But the reality is that the Royals are winning ballgames with a lot of their best players either injured or in the minor leagues. Jeff Francouer continues to suck the life out of the heart of the order, but there's Brayan Pena, hitting walkoff doubles. Here's Yuni Betancourt hitting go-ahead shots in the umpteenth inning while Rex Hudler giggles like a school boy in the booth. Sal Perez is making his long-awaited return this weekend, Felipe Paulino is making rehab starts in Northwest Arkansas, while Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi are waiting in the wings. <br />
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I want to believe that this team has a miracle run in them. It's happened before to other teams. There is about to be an influx of talent to the roster. Humberto Quintero will likely not be catching nearly every day. Jeff Francouer may very well be on the trading block. Eric Hosmer and Alex Gordon are returning to their 2011 forms. Billy Butler and Mike Moustakas are keeping this offense's head above water. The Royals are surviving. Maybe that's all they had to do up until this point, just weather the storm of injuries and atrocious luck that plagued them through the first 77 games of the season. They could very well be just a game under .500 at the official halfway mark of the season.<br />
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I say it every year, if this team can scrap and claw their way back to .500 by the time August rolls around, anything can happen. Especially in this division.<br />
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Strap on those #RallySandals and hope. Now is not the time to "believe", it's merely a time to hope. Hope that this team can push the boulder up the mountain. Belief has it's time. It has not come yet.<br />
<br />
But damnit, are we deserving of a miracle here in KC.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-50961505920428693362012-04-02T15:36:00.004-05:002012-04-02T16:23:31.485-05:0027 Must Follow Royals Twitter Accounts before Opening DayIt's been awhile. My apologies. Odds are, you probably follow me on Twitter and get enough of my opinion there. But it's time for me to give you people what you want. Fake accounts and grown men who wear capes have been omitted (but you can follow <a href="http://twitter.com/thefakened">them</a> <a href="http://twitter.com/kcroyalman">here</a>). Here it is, without comment, must follows for "Mission-2012-Our-Time-Yuni-Getz" extravaganza. Hug for u.<div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/Kevin_Agee">@Kevin_Agee</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/levipayton">@LeviPayton</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/dblesky">@DBLesky</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/benhill88">@benhill88</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/tjfsports">@TJFSports</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/pcbearcat">@PCBearcat</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/michaelengel">@michaelengel</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/northmoroyal">@NorthMoRoyal</a></div><div><br /></div><div>@<a href="http://twitter.com/greg_schaum">Greg_Schaum</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/thejeffreport">@TheJeffReport</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/scobes15">@scobes15</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/tigerdan4">@tigerdan4</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/clintt13">@ClintT13</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/grogg">@grogg</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/kc22ndbrooklyn">@KC22ndBrooklyn</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/oldmanduggan">@oldmanduggan</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/sportsdrenched">@sportsdrenched</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/jwgeist">@jwgeist</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/gjalexander">@GJAlexander</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/mhays83">@mhays83</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/minda33">@Minda33</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/bhindepmo">@BHIndepMo</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/brokenbatsingle">@brokenbatsingle</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/royalsauthority">@royalsauthority</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/danielswesley">@DanielSWesley</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/royallyspeaking">@RoyallySpeaking</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://twitter.com/minnesotaroyal">@MinnesotaRoyal</a></div>Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-53808875707090296872012-01-03T13:46:00.004-06:002012-01-03T14:20:03.702-06:00Comparing the Royals to the 2012 Presidential candidatesI am probably going to ruffle a few feathers on this one and it's very possible that I'm going to receive death threats or something crazy like that. But screw that, I'm here to exercise my first amendment rights as a tax-paying citizen of the US of A. So go grab your double Whopper, chicken fries and large Dr. Pepper, America, let's get weird!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick Perry is Jeff Francouer</span> - I'll be honest, Rick Perry seems like a dude. A guy you would want to have a beer with and a guy who seemingly does some things very well. But he fumbles on occasion, missing some details in a debate or buying a ranch in Texas that was once named "N--gerhead". You know, little stuff.<br /><br />Much like Rick Perry, Frenchy brings a big stick to the table and can hit a few out of the park. He's a likeable guy, but much like Perry, he has his shortcomings. Like when Perry forgot the third department he would eliminate from the Federal Government, Frenchy sometimes forgets where the strikezone is on the third strike.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Michele Bachmann is Brayan Pena</span> - Loved by a niche group, but for all the wrong reasons. Brayan and Michele are energetic and both have the propensity for crazy eyes. But what most people can see past the bubbly personalities and general likeability on the surface, they see deep down that both of them are vastly underqualified and more than likely absolutely crazy.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick Santorum is Yuniesky Betancourt</span> - Overvalued by the media, while most people with half of a brain can tell you that both are god awful. Santorum was viewed as a viable candidate for awhile until he opened his mouth at the debates. And most people saw Yuni as a viable five-tool player in the majors, until they saw him play.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">John Huntsman is Nathan Adcock </span>- Huntsman has made sense during most of the debates, he's well versed in foreign policy with China and has been probably the least heralded of the candidates. He's also a Mormon, which can rub people the wrong way, if you're into that religion/politics kind of conversation. Huntsman is likely positioning himself for a cabinet position if a Republican is indeed elected.<br /><br />Meanwhile, Adcock may turn out to be an undervalued member of the Royals either as a #4 or #5 starter, a solid long reliever or depth in Omaha. He's a Rule V pick, a rarity in Major League Baseball. Much like Huntsman's Mormonism, Adcock's Rule V status makes him a rare, but possibly valuable commodity for the Royals.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ron Paul is Billy Butler</span> - Love them or hate them, both are polarizing figures. Both have passionate followers. While Paul has rallied the most support in the Iowa Caucus, the media seems to be ignoring him for his popularity amongst the youth of the country. Paul has been ideologically consistent throughout his political career and never changes who he is, no matter the stage.<br /><br />Butler on the other hand, seems to be undervalued by some Royals fans as a guy who hits into double plays and "warning track outs". All the while, Butler has been the most consistent offensive performer on the Royals for the past three seasons. Butler's passionate following has turned him into a cult hero, with his "#CountryBreakfast" nickname. There's also a contingent of fans saying Butler's value will never be higher and he should be traded to maximize the return. But if Butler isn't traded, he's under a club-friendly contract and won't cost the Royals much for what he'll give back in return. Much like if Paul doesn't get the Republican nod, he'll return to his congressional seat and run as an independent, making some noise in the general election.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mitt Romney is Alex Gordon </span>- He's been the poster boy for the Republican Party and the favorite for the GOP nomination in the Summer. Romney is the superstar for the Republican establishment and enamored himself with most of the country. He's been the favorite all along and it's tough to see that changing.<br /><br />Much like Romney, Gordon has enamored himself with his good looks and finally reaching his potential last season. But some question his ability to sustain his success in the long-term. Gordon and Romney both sprang to the forefront in the past year and both seem to be the most popular amongst the Republican Party and Royals fan base.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Newt Gingrich is Blake Wood</span> - Both have the amazing ability to throw gasoline on easily manageable situations.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Barack Obama is Luke Hochevar</span> - The darlings of 2008, both showed signs of promise early on. But somewhere along the way, they crumbled. Much like Barack Obama fights congress to reduce the budget or pass Obamacare, Luke Hochevar fights control and consistency in the middle innings. But every once in awhile, they'll throw an 80-pitch, three-hitter or kill Osama bin laden.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-5978261812778856272011-11-26T18:03:00.003-06:002011-11-26T18:17:48.834-06:00My farewell to KU FootballIt's finally over. According to your record books, we "win" the overall series 56-55-6. According to our record books, we still win 57-54-6.<br /><br />And that is why I'll miss this rivalry. We simply don't understand or agree with one another.<br /><br />You don't understand why we hate you so much. Hating Kansas is a tradition at Mizzou. It's a tradition at Mizzou as much as Homecoming, the columns, journalism, "MIZ-ZOU", Harpo's and the Missouri Waltz. It's something you couldn't and probably never will understand. We've always wanted you to reciprocate the hate as much as we did, but usually just turned your nose up at our hatred and referenced your illustrious basketball past.<br /><br />I'm going to miss you, Kansas football. No doubt about it. Losing to you was awful. I don't think I ever hurt as bad as I did after Kerry Meier was left wide open with 28 seconds left in 2008. I don't think I'll ever be happier than when we beat you in 2007 in the biggest KC sporting event since the 1985 World Series.<br /><br />The thing that sucks is that this football rivalry was just recently ignited and actually meant something for the first time in a long time...but Turner Gill ruined that.<br /><br />It's not you, Kansas. It's the Big 12. Despite what the experts and ESPN say, Tobacco Road and Michigan-Ohio State can't hold a candle to this kind of hatred. I wish like hell you could come with us. I really do. There really is no Mizzou without Kansas. Our sole existence some years is whether or not we beat you.<br /><br />So whether or not you see this as 56-55-6 or 57-54-6, no one wins. Faceless curators are deciding that this rivalry isn't going to go on and we suffer.<br /><br />We'll never see another Armageddon at Arrowhead or perhaps a KU/Mizzou Big 12 championship game at Sprint Center.<br /><br />We might see you in a bowl game or NCAA tournament down the road...and if we do, fuck you, you pretentious bastards.<br /><br />Cheers to 120 years of a great rivalry. I'll always hate you and miss you.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-77369028310779748982011-10-28T21:52:00.004-05:002011-10-28T22:31:16.901-05:00Why Kansas City hates the Cardinals and their fansI'm sitting here writing this in total darkness on Friday night of Halloween weekend. I could be out partying with friends, but I'm tired. So stop judging me.<br /><br />I'm sitting here watching the Cardinals en route to their 11th World Series title and 250 miles away, a city is celebrating a championship. And here we sit, in the cold, another October without baseball in Kansas City.<br /><br />I have never exactly been able to put my finger on the exact reason why I hate the St. Louis Cardinals. Maybe it's their smarmy fans who proclaim every other fanbase as second rate citizens. Maybe it's the 70 year old Italian woman that manages the team. Maybe it's their inexplicable knack for pulling Septembers and Octobers out of their ass like some kind of Chinese magician. Maybe it's because they spit on 1985 as a World Series that doesn't matter. Oh it matters. It matters when it's the only damn one that you've won.<br /><br />I hope they know what they have. They've never suffered. And that isn't their fault. It's not their fault at all. They have had a run of fantastic front office people and great players like Albert Pujols, Chris Carpenter and Jim Edmonds.<br /><br />But what also pisses me off that for every Albert Pujols and Jim Edmonds, you have a David Eckstein or Scott Spiezio playing just as well in October. How the hell does that happen? If you ask a Cardinals' fan, it's because they get so amped playing in front of the best fans in baseball. If you ask me, it's because some dickhead made a blood sacrifice to Satan himself in exchange for some T-Ravs, a case of Michelob Golden and an eternity of unlikely, no, impossible, postseason success.<br /><br />In all honesty, the Cardinals are probably the 10th or 12th best organization in Major League Baseball in the past six years, yet they've now won two of the last six World Series. I'd realistically put the Phillies, Yankees, Braves, Rays, Rangers and Red Sox ahead of them and the Cardinals have won just one less championship than those six teams COMBINED.<br /><br />I think I speak for everyone when I say, HOW THE HELL IS THIS HAPPENING?<br /><br />And no, this isn't some backhanded compliment to the fans of the St. Louis Cardinals. NO! It is an explanation as to why everyone hates you here. Since you were popped out of your mother's birth canal, the Cardinals have never sucked. EVER.<br /><br />"Well, there was the '96 team that only won 84 games..." NO! You've never sucked. EVER.<br /><br />You spit on us and call us second-rate citizens for sticking by a team that Mother Teresa would have a tough time rooting for. A team so awful, they have had ONE winning season in the last 17 years. ONE. So excuse my while I go all Ivan Drago's wife when I say:<br /><br />"You act like you are so very good and we are so very bad."<br /><br />SO WITH THAT SAID, please...please, please, please...STOP referring to yourselves as the best fans in baseball and start celebrating the proud, lucky, stupid history of your franchise.<br /><br />Now, I'm getting drunk.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-60432176166042246042011-10-03T13:34:00.011-05:002011-10-03T20:14:53.946-05:00Royals Kingdom Mail Bag: 10/2<span style="font-style: italic;">So I forgot about an email account I created in Spring Training for the Royals Kingdom mailbag about two months ago, but apparently you guys didn't. I opened up the "mail bag" to find ten emails sent during the last week of the season. So I've decided to forgo my season wrap-up post and instead answer the questions from you, the people. Also, if you want to email me during the offseason, just send your questions to royalskingdom.mailbag@gmail.com with "Mailbag" in the title and be sure to give your name and location.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">What do you think we do with Wil Myers? Really seemed to struggle at the plate. Is he still considered a legitimate prospect and does he have any trade value? -Tim J., Grandview</span><br /><br />Wil was considered to be one of the many crown jewels of the farm system in 2010. Unfortunately, his 2011 campaign was marred with injury and prolonged slumps. But the talent is still undoubtedly there. As far as trade value, it has never been lower. Trading Myers now would be pretty negligent by the Royals as other teams would likely be able to drive down the price with the not-so-special numbers Myers put up last year. I think Wil's future is somewhat unclear with the organization. But I may be wrong. Myers is not a center fielder. If Melky Cabrera leaves to make room for Myers, then that leaves the Royals without a center fielder. If anyone is going to be moved to make room for Myers next season, it will have to be either Jeff Francouer or Alex Gordon. It's a tough spot, but it is definitely one of those good problems to have.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Do the Royals have any chance to sign CJ Wilson? -Mary C., Overland Park</span><br /><br />Not really. His performance in Game One of the ALDS certainly didn't drive up his price. But the reality is that CJ Wilson is going to get a contract very similar to that of Jayson Werth. In other words, it is borderline insane to give a 31-year-old pitcher anything more than a five year, $50 million deal (See Meche, Gil). I've always liked CJ Wilson, but with this crop of awful free agent pitchers this offseason, Wilson is going to get a monster deal upwards of $100 million. The Royals are best served sitting on their giant stockpile of cash and waiting on the loaded 2013 free agent class or making a play on a pitcher via trade.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />What's the plan for Melky Cabrera? Do we sign him long term? -Ryan T., Kanduhar, Afghanistan</span><br /><br />First, thank you for your service! Melky is still arbitration eligible, so I doubt the Royals make any kind of long term commitment. Melky will be 28 next season and if he produces like he did in 2011 next season, then I think we may be wise to lock him up for a few years. Melky has the tools that's for sure. Hitting 18 home runs in Kauffman Stadium isn't exactly easy either. Melky has legitimate power, especially for a center fielder. The smart move would be to keep him around next year OR possibly float him as trade bait this winter. But once again, you would be running the risk of banking on Lorenzo Cain to replace Melky's production in the lineup. I hope the Royals keep Melky around. With his bat in the #2 spot protecting Gordon and Billy Butler, this offense could be very potent next year.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />What kind of potential does this offense have? Is 800 runs next year out of the question?</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> -Daniel T., Columbia, MO</span><br /><br />800 runs is not out of the question. This is all stringent upon Jeff Francouer, Melky Cabrera and Alex Gordon all repeating, if not improving upon last year's numbers. As far as potential goes, the sky is the limit. The lineup is in place and the young guys got valuable MLB experience. If the mythical "sophomore slump" strikes Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, Johnny Giavotella and Sal Perez, we may have an issue. But the likelihood of that happening is very, very slim. The offense is sure to be stacked and may be one of the best in the AL Central. But one thing is for sure, this team isn't going anywhere unless we improve the pitching staff. Another thing to consider is the amount of blowout wins that the Royals had in the last two months of the season. Good teams win blowouts and the Royals had an above .500 record in games where the final score was decided by five or more runs. This offense could have the makings of one of the best in club history if things keep progressing the way they did in August and September.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Do you have any cool ideas for what the Royals should do for the All Star Game next year? -Shannon K., Independence</span><br /><br />I have full confidence that the Royals and Kansas City are going to put on a great show for the All Star Game next July. That being said, here's what the Royals should do for the Midsummer Classic:<br /><br />- No Garth Brooks<br />- No Garth Brooks<br />- No Garth Brooks<br /><br />Kidding aside, I think a concentrated effort to involve the Negro Leagues and Negro Leagues Baseball Museum needs to be the theme of the entire week.<br /><br />Thanks for the questions, guys. Keep 'em coming through the offseason! I plan on doing this once a month.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-27102981517387552182011-09-16T13:53:00.002-05:002011-09-16T14:50:29.350-05:00Focus in KC has shifted from Royals, but Royals focus on 2012 has notRemember when the Chiefs lost to the Bills, 41-7? Yeah that sucked the life out of pretty much any and all football buzz around the sprawling metro KC area. I'll admit, I was in a sour mood from my football teams' performances in the last week. Pretty much ruined my entire Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. But then something turned it all around...I watched a Royals game.<br /><br />This is going to be an extremely positive post. Quite a departure for me, I know. Usually in September I'm calling for Dayton Moore to resign, swearing off the Royals forever and only paying attention to NHL hockey or the Chiefs. But I've found myself unable to detach myself from this team and its young and exciting core.<br /><br />The names we see run out there every night aren't the Jai Millers and Lucas Mays of Septembers past. These are legitimate big leaguers in the making. Mike Moustakas is finally finding his power stroke. Eric Hosmer continues perhaps the best overall rookie season in club history. Johnny Giavotella showing that at times he can be perfectly adequate. But there is one rookie who stands alone as the most impressive stallion in the Royals stable of young, sexy talent.<br /><br />Salvador Perez.<br /><br />It's not everyday that you see a 21-year-old catcher come up and play as impressively as Perez has in his first month with the Royals. Catcher is easily the most difficult position to play on the baseball diamond and Perez has come up and done nothing but play defense at a level expected from a perennial gold glover behind the plate. But the defense is something we have heard about ever since Perez was signed out of Venezuela by the Royals five years ago. The way he has handled the bat makes his first 29 games even more promising.<br /><br />In 117 plate appearances (in my mind, this is not exactly a small sample size), Perez is hitting .318/.350/.455/.805. And those numbers are coming from hits to all fields. He's showing an incredible knack to hit the ball to all fields with incredible power. I'm one of those guys who values both scouting and stats, but not in the way that Kieth Law claims he does.<br /><br />Perez is going to be something special, that's for sure. I don't know if we can even call this "development". It's more akin to "immediate adjustment" than development. I don't think there is a better catcher in the big leagues at the current moment than Salvadore Perez and I'm being 100% serious.<br /><br />Perez is just the tip of the iceberg concerning reasons to be encouraged by what the Royals are doing in September right now. The team is loose and refuses to go through the motions as do most teams that are 22 games under .500 at this point of the season. The Royals are currently riding their longest winning streak in two years and have outscored their opponents 24-8 in those contests.<br /><br />Not to go unmentioned is the scrapwork starting rotation that has really come together in the last month of the season. Luke Hochevar has been pretty damn good since the All Star Break. (I encourage everyone to go read <a href="http://t.co/snl9L8mP">this</a> piece on Royals Authority). Felipe Paulino has faltered down the stretch, but I still expect him to be a contributor to the rotation next season. And finally, Bruce Chen just absolutely refuses to turn into a pumpkin. Also, a fond farewell to our neighbor from the north, Jeff Francis, who turned in a pretty respectable season and protected us from the likes of Sean O'Sullivan and Vin Mazarro for most of the season.<br /><span style="display: block;" id="formatbar_Buttons"><span class=" down" style="display: block;" id="formatbar_CreateLink" title="Link" onmouseover="ButtonHoverOn(this);" onmouseout="ButtonHoverOff(this);" onmouseup="" onmousedown="CheckFormatting(event);FormatbarButton('richeditorframe', this, 8);ButtonMouseDown(this);"><img src="img/blank.gif" alt="Link" class="gl_link" border="0" /><br /><br />But as the sun sets on 2011, the promise of 2012 is on the horizon for your Kansas City Royals. An offense that has the potential to score 800+ runs and a rotation that could possibly hold the fort well enough for the Royals to take a shot at the division crown in the ever-declining AL Central may just be enough to return Kansas City to one of the best baseball cities in these United States.<br /><br />Let's just hope winter doesn't last too long.<br /></span></span>Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-87458354355538252892011-08-21T21:53:00.003-05:002011-08-22T20:20:22.736-05:00Looking ahead to the absurdly good 2013 free agent classWhile most Royals fans have their focus on Mission 2012, it has become obvious to this blogger that the real key to a contending team may not happen until the final out of the 2012 season has been recorded.
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<br />With starting pitching at the top of the Royals' offseason needs, I've started to wonder whether or not the Royals can actually field a contending team in 2012. Don't get me wrong, I think the Royals are going to be a much improved team in 2012. We'll likely see a complete overhaul of the starting rotation, with Mike Montgomery, Aaron Crow (fingers crossed), Greg Holland and possibly Chris Dwyer all competing for spots in spring training. That's encouraging, but it's far from a sure thing.
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<br />Mike Montgomery's command has been an issue this year. He's walking a lot more guys than he has in the past and giving up more HR/9 than at lower levels. It doesn't bother me that much. Monty has fantastic stuff. The word out of Omaha is that he hasn't been mixing in his devastating curveball as much as he has in the past. Based on his stuff alone, I think Monty can pass at the big league level and work things out in KC. Pitchers like Montgomery may take time to develop. With his arsenal of "ace" pitches, he'll still take time to develop into a good MLB starter. Don't expect much though for the first few years.
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<br />Aaron Crow seems to have melted under the sweltering KC summer heat. After a dominant first half of the 2011 season that granted him a spot on the AL All-Star roster, Crow has turned into a clone of Sean Lowe. The walks are up, opponents are hitting him all over the yard and it has become increasingly difficult to trust him in late game situations. This all could be attributed to Crow being overworked...except he's only thrown 55 innings this year. Word from some scouts and experts is that Crow isn't throwing his fastball as much as he was in the first half, trying to finesse hitters into outs. If Crow is indeed getting away from his fastball, this isn't a good sign for him or the Royals if the plan is to move him into the rotation in spring training next year.
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<br />Greg Holland just might have the best stuff of any pitcher on the Royals roster. He throws the fastball as well as I've seen since Joakim Soria first broke out in 2007. Holland has four pitches and throws them all extremely well. The fastball is an absolute work of art. Late life, dialed up to 97-98 MPH and it sets up his slider extremely well. The only issue might be the archaic baseball idea that bullpen guys simply can't move from the bullpen to the rotation. I'm not saying Holland would be a Cy Young candidate if moved into the rotation, but he would be a damn good #2 or #3 starter.
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<br />On to Chris Dwyer. He freaked a lot of folks out after a horrific first half. Now, he's strung together five consecutive outstanding starts. Dwyer is certainly a long shot to make the rotation next year out of spring training, but a strong finish to 2011 certainly puts him on the fast track to the big leagues and probable call up in mid-2012.
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<br />Even if that is the best case scenario, we still have an entire pitching rotation made up of question marks and Luke Hochevar. There are no guarantees on Danny Duffy's success. Bruce Chen is likely to turn into a pumpkin any day now. Jeff Francis, while walking less batters than Cliff Lee, still can't miss a bat to save his life. The Royals are going to have to break the bank and spend some money on a pitcher.
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<br />When they spend that money will be key. Diving into this year's free agency class would be a disaster. Heading up the class of 2012 will be CJ Wilson, a guy who is going to get an above market contract due to the fact that the rest of the class is a giant pile of steaming garbage. So before you go all "MARK BUEHRLE!!!!!!!111" on me, let's take a look at the 2013 free agency class:
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Zack Greinke</span>- I know we all pretend to be lovers scorned when this name is mentioned in KC, but if Zack would have us, I would buy the cake for the welcome home party.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Shaun Marcum</span>- If the "hometown discount" is a real thing, then KC should be at the top of Marcum's list. If we can get something going in 2012, KC will be attractive to pitchers not from Excelsior Springs.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Anibal Sanchez</span>- This is the guy I want the Royals to go all in on. His walk rate and ERA have been going down the past two years and he's going to be affordable since he plays in baseball purgatory on the easternmost stretches of the Florida Everglades. Going to be the sleeper in an otherwise loaded free agent class.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Jonathan Sanchez</span>- Going to be a sexy name due to association with one of the best rotations in baseball, but his walk rate is astronomical. Might be available at a bargain price and possibly worth the risk. Very comparable to A.J. Burnett. Lots of walks, lots of strikeouts.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Matt Cain</span>- Perhaps the sexiest name on the list, in my opinion. I'm going to bet he re-signs with the Giants. He's been buried in Tim Lincecum's shadow for several years, but I would love to see the Royals be aggressive in their pursuit of him.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cole Hamels</span>- He's a "winner" that baseball people love to talk about so much. In Philly, he's the #4 starter. In KC, he's the ace.
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<br />Of course, all of these names could be off the market by the time 2013 rolls around and we might be stuck with a young, promising rotation with question marks galore. Or we might make a huge free agent splash that puts us over the top.
<br />
<br />I still expect us to compete and quite possibly contend in 2012. The foundation is being set before us and next year is sure to be met with expectations, hopes and dreams. David Glass signing checks may never be more important than it will be a year from now.
<br />Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-8624318366960519892011-08-06T22:51:00.003-05:002011-08-06T23:09:07.170-05:00With absurd division title hopes fizzling, focus needs to shift to 2012Entering this weekend, I had a twinkle of hope running through my head. With a three-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers, the Royals could find themselves just eight (yes, EIGHT) games out of the division race.<br /><br />Two 4-3 losses to the Tigers on Friday and Saturday night quickly pissed all over that twinkle of hope in my head.<br /><br />If there's anything to be gained from these losses, it's the fact that the Royals have played two outstanding games against the old, overpaid cream of the AL Central's crop, the Detroit Tigers. Friday night's game was outstanding. Seeing Billy Butler, Eric Hosmer, Johnny Giavotella and Mike Moustakas lead a three-run comeback in the late innings had every Royals fan drooling all over the place at the thought of the same scenario playing out over the next decade. The energy shown by that group of young players on Friday night had me tricked into thinking it was a playoff game. Gio pumping his fist as he drove in Butler to open up the scoring was perhaps the greatest foreshadowing we've seen here since Tony Pena belted out "we believe" after Ken Harvey hit his famous homer in extras in 2003.<br /><br />The series can be salvaged with a win on Sunday, but a loss puts the final nail in the coffin on a not quite lost 2011 season.<br /><br />When people look back on the 2011 season in 25 years, they may see yet another 90+ loss season. When I look back on it, I'll view it as a metamorphosis, when the Royals finally cleansed a roster full of castoffs and mistake free players, turning over the leaf to a new era in Royals baseball.<br /><br />Let's just look at how the roster, especially the lineup, has changed since opening day:<br /><br />RF- Jeff Francouer (still here, supposed part of the future)<br />CF- Melky Cabrera (still here, hopefully a stop gap)<br />LF- Alex Gordon (still here, part of the future)<br />3B- Wilson Betemit (gone)<br />SS- Alcides Escobar (still here, part of the future)<br />2B- Chris Getz (still here, not part of the future)<br />1B- Kila Ka'aihue (still in the system, not part of KC's future)<br />DH- Country Breakfast (still here, part of the future)<br />C- Matt Treanor (still here, not part of the future)<br /><br />The roster has been cleansed of 1/3 of those guys and now the Royals offensive lineup doesn't have a single player over the age of 27. Giavotella has mercifully replaced Chris Getz, Mike Moustakas is up, Hosmer is up, Duffy is up.<br /><br />The roster turnover has only just begun in my mind. Soon we'll see the likes of Mike Montgomery, Sal Perez, Lorenzo Cain, David Lough and others grace the green grass of Kauffman Stadium and you'll start to see the team of the future forming in front of your eyes.<br /><br />So stick out 2011. Stick out the one-run heartbreakers, the blown saves, the swings and misses on low and away sliders and the occasional bobbled ball. I've been telling people to get on the bandwagon for about a year now. All that's left is to take the first step and let your guard down. These guys can play and you can tell they are hungry to restore pride and glory to this downtrodden franchise and its masochistic fan base.<br /><br />The future is here and it isn't just one player. It's several players. The new generation of Royals baseball to quench the thirst of the lost generation of Royals fans. We are thirsty and soon, we shall drink.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-63184238874970430322011-07-15T22:33:00.009-05:002011-07-16T01:25:32.709-05:00Top 20 Royals TweetersSince it's that time of year when most people aren't even paying attention to the Royals, I figured I would compile a list of my favorite Royals' tweeters. No matter how bad the Royals are, people are always going to use the social media platform of Twitter and use it to complain, inform and make one another laugh. This list does not include KC media (one exception). That being said, here is the first ever fluff piece on Royals Kingdom. Be sure to give these guys (and gals) a follow:<br /><br />20. @Kevin_Agee- Complains about the Royals and does it extremely well. Biggest MO State tweeter out there as well.<br /><br />19. @RoyallySpeaking (Jeff Parker, Royally Speaking)- One of my first followers on Twitter and a member of the old guard of the Royals' blogosphere...not to say that he's old or anything.<br /><br />18. @mhays83 (Matt Hays, SB Nation Kansas City)- One of the most reasonable Royals fans on Twitter. Unabashed lover of the Iowa Hawkeyes.<br /><br />17. @rustindodd (KC Star)- Sam Mellinger's replacement for Ball Star. No pressure.<br /><br />16. @KCYETI (Kirk Harris)- KC YETI IS TEH AWESOME.<br /><br />15. @grogg (Greg Layton)- Die hard Royals and Cubs fan. What the hell is wrong with him?<br /><br />14. @pcbearcat (Ross Martin)- Smart ass Royals fan, he fits in with the rest of us.<br /><br />13. @TJFsports (Tom Fehr)- Combine Royals tweets with tweets about Game of Thrones, Entourage, Todd Haley and Chipotle, you might have my best friend that I've never met. Add to the equation that he's a die hard KU fan and he's my sworn enemy. I will destroy him someday.<br /><br />12. @royalsauthority (Craig Brown)- Head blogger over at Royals Authority. Hater of stolen bases and sac bunts.<br /><br />11. @doublestix (Keith Blackburn)- For a guy who is younger than most Royals' prospects, Keith knows his stuff about the Royals farm system. And he hates the Twins. I mean, he REALLY hates the Twins. What's not to love?<br /><br />10. @kcscoliny (Clint Scoles, Pine Tar Press)- A fine man from Nebraska on top of everything that is the Royals' farm system. Need some info about a Venezuelan pitcher in rookie ball at 2 am? He's your man.<br /><br />9.@scobes15 (Kevin Scobee, Kings of Kauffman)- Most underrated (if there is such a thing on Twitter) Royals tweeter out there. Congratulations on recently moving out of your mother's basement and finding a woman willing to microwave your hot pockets. When he's not tweeting about the Royals, he's tweeting about The West Wing or The Wire.<br /><br />8. @brokenbatsingle (Nick Scott, Royals Authority)- The armchair GM of Twitter. Unpopular thoughts, in-depth discussion, ground breaking tweets about fine ales.<br /><br />7. @michaelengel- Head writer for Kings of Kauffman. Solid analysis of the Royals and pretty girls in Lawrence.<br /><br />6. @KCRoyalman- Friend of Royals Kingdom and wearer of capes. Want a look into the mind of the most diehard of the diehards? Follow this man.<br /><br />5. @Greg_Schaum- By far the most informed person on Twitter when it comes to Royals prospects. Good for the occasional NHL 94 tweet.<br /><br />4. @royalsreview (Will McDonald)- Snark, snark and more snark. Any night when the Jeff Francouer's and Kyle Farnsworth's of the world are signed by the Royals is a must follow for Will.<br /><br />3. @BHIndepMO (Brandon H.)- He's funny. He's brash. He's even keeled. This guy is the voice of the down-trodden Royals fan on Twitter. Knows the history of the team and isn't too pessimistic or optimistic. Coined the term #BoomYosted<br /><br />2. @jazayerli- Rany is the smartest Royals fan out there. Doesn't tweet that much, but when he does, he makes it count.<br /><br />1. @fakenedyost- This guy has a direct line to my funny bone. You probably already follow him and if you don't, then you should re-evaluate your life.<br /><br />Honorable mention: @minda33 (And then she moved to Palm Springs and out of our lives)<br /><br />Fans' choice: @oldmanduggan (After tallying the votes, Josh Duggan is your choice for one of the best Royals fans on Twitter.)Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-19058727425571855722011-07-08T14:51:00.003-05:002011-07-08T16:06:25.005-05:00Royals with trade value, the unseen tapesJuly 31 is rapidly approaching and it's obvious that the Royals are going to be in sell mode. The MLB trade deadline is when all armchair GM'ing spikes and everyone likes to pretend that they're Billy Beane (the Brad Pitt version of Billy Beane), making the big trade that can put your franchise over the top. But here's the truth for teams like the Royals, when you're in sell mode, these trades are usually just salary dump. So don't expect the Royals to make a blockbuster trade this July. I'll break it down for you right meow...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The guys everyone is talking about</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Joakim Soria</span>- Biggest name likely to be made available by the Royals, but with the trade market about to be saturated by relief pitchers, the Royals are going to be asking a lot for Soria, which they should. What the front office can't do, is accept any deal for Soria that is below their perceived value of Soria. Jack hasn't had the best season of his career, but has locked down the ninth inning with authority in the past few weeks and seems to be on the right track. But once again, the market will be watered down, which could work to the Royals advantage, considering Soria will be in the top tier of those relievers. I think Soria's trade value has started to go down, but a strong second half could put his trade value back at it's 2010 offseason value, where the Yankees allegedly offered uber-hitting prospect Jesus Montero for Soria. Any package that doesn't include high end starting pitching for Soria should be avoided. The Royals have the bats in the minors, it's time to stock the arms. Keep your eye on the Phillies, Tigers and Braves (of course) as possible destinations for Soria. Those three all have stockades of readily available young arms that would catch the Royals' eye.<br /><br />My bet: 10% chance Soria is traded.<br />Demands: B+ RHP starter prospect, C+ RHP, athletic 2B in high minors<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Melky Cabrera</span>- Start the argument for best free agent acquisition by Dayton Moore because Melky has done nothing more than exceed all expectation this season. But he has to go, Lorenzo Cain and David Lough have proven that they are ready to make the jump to the big leagues and Melky is a guy with postseason experience that seems to be moved every single July no matter what kind of year he's having. Shouldn't bring back much, but the Royals can get decent value for him. He is under contract for next season and is still just 26-years-old.<br /><br />My bet: 60% chance Melky is traded.<br />Demands: C+ starting pitching prospect/fireballer with command issues in low minors, straight up.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Jeff Francouer</span>- Here's the guy I guarantee that the Royals will be overvaluing at the deadline. Anything more than cash or players to be named later for Francouer will be a steal. Yes, Frenchy has had a good year, but teams know all about Jeff Francouer. The selling points are pretty hollow, but the intangibles that some GMs overvalue might be enough to increase Frenchy's value.<br /><br />My bet: 75% chance Frenchy is traded.<br />Demands: Cash or PTBNL.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Wilson Betemit</span>- Stop fooling yourself, he isn't going to bring back diddly. Betemit had an amazing comeback year last year. If you follow the Royals closely, you know the story about Betemit. Former Braves super prospect who somehow got labeled as a bench player. Betemit's value isn't high because he's not an everyday player. There might be a team out there who thinks they can steal Betemit, and if they want to, go ahead and let them. Moustakas is up and Betemit plays once every six days.<br /><br />My bet: 90% chance Betemit is traded.<br />Demands: AA pitcher<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Jeff Francis</span>- He'll be in pretty high demand by National League teams. The market for starting pitchers is pretty awful and Francis will be one of the better pitchers available in that market. He's the ideal 4-5 starter that teams are looking for this time of year. Might be able to get something better than expected for him, especially if a desperate team comes calling.<br /><br />My bet: 95% chance Francis is traded.<br />Demands: AA pitcher<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Billy Butler</span>- Let me address this once and for all. Billy Butler should not be traded. Billy Butler is a good, maybe great player. Billy Butler is 25 years old. Billy Butler is a Hall of Fame talent.<br /><br />My bet: 2% Butler is traded.<br />Demands: No less than four of the organization's top 10 prospects.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The guys who people aren't really talking about</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Alex Gordon</span>- His breakout season has started the trade rumor mill for Gordo. In my mind, the Royals can't afford to trade Alex Gordon. The potential has finally come through AND he's one of the best defensive left fielders in all of baseball. In fact, next to Ryan Braun, Alex Gordon is the best left fielder in all of baseball. I don't want him traded and the Royals would be taking several steps back in the development process. Gordon is a prime example of why you can't be impatient with a rebuild. The project is far from over, but the horizon looks very promising for #4.<br /><br />My bet: 2% chance Gordon is traded.<br />Demands: Package Gordon with Giavotella or Dwyer for a PREMIUM starting pitching package that includes 2-3 B level starting prospects and the organization's best OF prospect.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bruce Chen</span>- For a guy who is quietly having one of the best seasons by a Royals lefty in a long time, Chen's name isn't being thrown around as much as I would expect. I'll be honest, I think Chen was a dynamite pickup by Dayton Moore. He's been our most consistent pitcher and has revived his career here. It isn't uncommon to see lefty pitchers put things together later on in their careers and go on to extend their playing days by a few years. I don't think the Royals will part ways with Chen unless they are offered a very good package for Chen.<br /><br />My bet: 25% chance Chen is traded.<br />Demands: A pitcher from the organization's top 20.<br /><br />Stay tuned, I'll be writing more about the trade deadline as we get closer to July 31.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-76524463702967437352011-07-07T14:15:00.004-05:002011-07-07T15:02:04.100-05:00Rebuttal to Chris Sullentrop's Grantland articleFirst, <a href="http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/6743732/hard-times-paris-plains">read</a>.<br /><br />Mr. Suellentrop,<br /><br />First off, what an incredibly well written article. It is obvious that you attended the greatest journalism school on the planet, the University of Missouri.<br /><br />But what also shines through in this article is the stereotypical douche resin that lingers around in this city after folks like you have left. Doesn't shock me that you're one of those lifelong Kansas fans who committed sports loyalty suicide when you opted to go to a good school like Mizzou, instead of accepting a second-rate, but still acceptable, journalism degree from your beloved Jayhawks. So it doesn't shock me in the least that you threw your hometown under the 20 million pound bus, with Bill Simmons at the wheel.<br /><br />I'm sure you worship the ground that Bill Simmons walks on. The East Coast bias has probably infiltrated your mind by now. Either that or you've always viewed Kansas City as a second rate, insecure city and have dreamed about the big city while "wasting away" in the Midwest, where great journalists have been born.<br /><br />Instead of following in the footsteps of Posnanski, Whitlock, Paige and Miklasz, you probably thought the easiest road to notoriety and written-word fame was to hit the bright lights of Broadway and wash away the shame of your "cow town" upbringing, while alienating your home city in the process. So I'm sure Bill Simmons and the good folks at Grantland contacted you because what self-righteous, East Coast trendster doesn't open up the New York Times every morning while drinking their half-caf, triple shot Starbuck's and smelling their own farts? I'm sure it was an easy decision for you.<br /><br />So you wrote an article pretty much saying that Kansas City was a lonely, desolate place where children play under power lines, multi-million dollar arenas sit empty, women don't shave their legs and the winters last for seven months. Your reasoning in the article is laughable. Sprint Center is one of the country's busiest venues, but since there isn't an NBA team in town, it's a failure of an arena. You could have stopped there, but you didn't. Shot after shot came and by the end of the article, my blood was boiling.<br /><br />You said you left KC for a bigger stage and a bigger paycheck. Well, you got that. But you have done it at a cost, sir. So have fun living in New York City, paying $1500 a month for 120 square feet and $7 for beer at a bar, living the good life and trying to rub elbows with smart people with smart jobs and smart clothes. I'll be here in Kansas City, loving where I was born and raised, drinking in giant parking lots and eating the best smoked meats in the world. You may have left KC, but I'm not entirely sure you ever truly lived here.<br /><br />Nice suit.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.bobandtom.com/cimages/var/bobandtom/storage/images/repository/photos/guest-photos/chris-suellentrop/182277-1-eng-US/Chris-Suellentrop_photo_large.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 280px; height: 193px;" src="http://www.bobandtom.com/cimages/var/bobandtom/storage/images/repository/photos/guest-photos/chris-suellentrop/182277-1-eng-US/Chris-Suellentrop_photo_large.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-26225790743628697482011-06-22T17:44:00.003-05:002011-06-22T18:05:17.047-05:00Melky leading off and the "Magic Eight Ball" bullpenAfter last night's atrocious offensive showing by the Royals, despite Alex Gordon nearly hitting for the first cycle by a Royals' player in over 20 years, Ned Yost hinted that lineup changes would come. Needless to say, I was relieved. I had grown awfully tired of seeing Jeff Francouer (who I have developed a man crush on after his fantastic first couple of months) struggle at the plate and turn into the Jeff Francouer of old.<br /><br />Alex Gordon continued his actual dominance in the leadoff spot, becoming the best left fielder in the Major Leagues (it's true, look it up). He's been the only enjoyable part of this team in the months of May and June. This is awesome. Gordon had been unfairly dumped on by most Royals fans and media for a majority of his career and to see him pull off a season like this has made me incredibly happy and relieved as a fan. Hats off to Alex Gordon. If he isn't our All Star, then they should just let him punch Nick Swisher in the face.<br /><br />So with a lineup switcheroo, you would think that Gordon would maintain his perch at the top of the Royals' lineup. He IS after all one of the hottest hitters in baseball this year.<br /><br />Instead, it's Melky Cabrera. Melky has stayed consistent...but he isn't a leadoff hitter. When Gordon was inserted in the leadoff role, I was shocked and actually proud of the Royals for doing something so progressive. Gordon, in my mind, is the next generation of leadoff hitters in baseball. Good on base skills, decent enough speed, power to the gaps, doesn't strikeout...wait, isn't that what managers always say, despite when they put Chris Getz in the leadoff spot?<br /><br />Frenchy was removed from the cleanup spot and busted all the way down to...fifth. I get it. I like Ned Yost. He's a guy who commands the respect of his team and gets it back in return. He put up with Frenchy in the cleanup spot about a month longer than I would have. I'm just hoping Frenchy didn't have a sit down with Yost and ask him to be removed from the cleanup role like Joakim Soria did when he asked to be removed from the closer's role.<br /><br />But Yost's bullpen management has been the most frustrating part of the whole equation. With the Royals down by three in the eighth inning and threatening to come back, Yost seemingly drew a name out of a hat and out came Everett Teaford, a LOOGY. Teaford gives up a two-run bomb and the Royals lose. Of course, who knows what may have come if Teaford had gotten out of the inning, but in a three run game, the manager has to treat it like a three-run lead.<br /><br />So Nick Wright of 610 Sports Radio came up with the "Magic Eight Ball Bullpen" meme the other day on his show and I'm not sure if I've ever heard a more outrageous, yet so dead-on metaphor for Ned's bullpen management.<br /><br />Ned: Should I put Greg Holland in to face three lefties?<br />Magic 8 Ball: As I see it, yes.<br /><br />Ned: Tim Collins can get lefties out, right?<br />Magic 8 Ball: Outlook good.<br />Ned: Screw you, I'll put him in anyways.<br /><br />Ned: Should I have a reliever put one in Yadier Molina's kidney?<br />Magic 8 Ball: Very doubtful.<br />Ned: WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?!<br /><br />I hope you still have the receipt to Spencer's Gifts...Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-14158722097924921932011-06-20T02:30:00.006-05:002011-06-20T03:10:55.704-05:00Annual Royals Kingdom 'Ode to the St. Louis Cardinals (and their fans)'Another heart stopping series between the Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals concluded Sunday afternoon in America's Most Dangerous city and the Royals dropped the season series against their pre-fabricated, "Son of Denkinger", pointless rival across I-70. After the final game of the series that saw a few sparks of frustration from the red-clad Best Fans in Baseball's team, Alex Gordon called the Cards a "bunch of babies" for plunking him late in the game as retaliation for what seemed to be two innocent, yet unfortunate plays earlier in the game.<br /><br />So this of course sparked my disdain for the St. Louis Cardinals. I don't know where it came from, but for the love of bearded Jesus, I really can't stand much of anything about this franchise.<br /><br />It could stem from the fact that the fans have pretty much branded themselves as the "Best Fans in Baseball". Best at what, exactly? I don't understand what the whole self-appreciation hubbub is about. Hey, guess what? EVERY FREAKING TEAM IN BASEBALL SAYS THAT THEY HAVE THE BEST FANS IN BASEBALL. Here's a quote from John Q. baseball player from an on-field interview after literally every game ever: "I'm just thankful that we get to go out in front of the best fans in the game and I'm glad we won."<br /><br />So throw a freaking parade for yourselves and dust off that Aaron Miles jersey, man! You've achieved something so very rare that it's only mentioned at every opportune time for any player ever to earn goodie points with the home town folks so your front office will throw a few extra bucks at him once he hits free agency. It's a pretty common practice. I'm sure you believe that Jesus Christ was a bearded white man who spoke English, too.<br /><br />I've heard people refer to St. Louis as the "Capital of Baseball". Of course, those were people from St. Louis. But THEN I heard from this guy at Charlie Gitto's who says that Abner Doubleday made a trip to the Casino Queen back in 1881, so this is all verified that St. Louis is indeed the Capitol of Baseball and all fans should make pilgrimage to St. Louis and pay homage to the home of baseball...and the Bowling Hall of Fame.<br /><br />Here's an idea. Instead of referring to yourselves as the "Best fans in baseball", refer to yourself as the "best franchise in baseball". You can certainly get away with that and it would be less absurd than making the notion that your fan base is superior to 29 others. You've won 10 World Series! You have had some of the greatest players to EVER strap on the cleats and play between the lines. Yet the most important thing about the Cardinals is the fans. Hey that's just great. Guess you've earned it after all. You've never gone longer than 25 years without a World Series victory. Hell, you go to the playoffs every year. You have the most prolific slugger of our generation wearing Cardinal red (for now).<br /><br />My point is that it is EASY to be a Cardinals fan. It's EASY to root for your team. It's EASY to spit on teams like the Royals and Cubs because we've been so terrible and you've been so great. I mean, your worst team in the last 15 years won a World Series for Christ's sake!<br /><br />Hey, guess what? I've won 20 Super Bowls on Madden. I'm the best player in Madden. Oh, what skill level was I playing on? EASY.<br /><br />You're on EASY mode, St. Louis. Where you kill the boss on one shot while running around just firing random bullets into the air, hoping one hits.<br /><br />Over here in KCMO, we're on extreme-devil mode. Where fucking zombies jump out of walls and eat your brains out after you save the princess. Where no matter what, you can't ever kill the boss, despite pumping round after round into his face. Where possibly your greatest pitcher ever demands a trade because he "doesn't like it here". SHIT AIN'T EXACTLY EASY OVER HERE.<br /><br />Well guess what happens after you play enough times on extreme-devil mode? You get better...and better...and better...and better. You get draft picks. You make changes to your philosophy. You appreciate what you earn and enjoy watching how far you've come.<br /><br />Guess what? We're getting better. Our owner actually seems to have figured out how to run some semblance of a professional sports franchise. We preserved one of the games iconic ballparks, while you grabbed the cookie cutter after Pittsburgh, Colorado, Texas and Philly were done using it. We've got the up and coming hottie that was just named hottest chick in the history of whatever and showing massive amounts of potential. You've got the 50-year-old divorcee with the bad boob job. Sure, it'll be fun for awhile, but man I can't wait to see that bitch go batshit crazy on your ass.<br /><br />The next 25 years should be fun.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-74362414671218437682011-05-31T01:47:00.003-05:002011-05-31T19:13:23.059-05:00Handling of Soria points to bigger problem<span style="font-style: italic;">Sorry about the delay between posts, folks. I've gotten a little lazy lately.</span><br /><br />Joakim Soria blew his fifth save of the season on Monday afternoon and dropped the Royals to 23-30 on the season. After this weekend and road trip, it's hard to see the Royals ever getting back to .500 this year. A sad thing to say after such a surprising start to the season.<br /><br />I've been saying that something is wrong with Joakim Soria since about the second week of the season. After watching most of the Royals' media contingent and some fellow bloggers live in denial about Soria's status, they all finally admitted something was off after Monday's latest catastrophe. Welcome to the conversation.<br /><br />Ned Yost shows incredible confidence in his players and I greatly admire that. But you have to wonder if that can be a weakness as much as it is a strength (or as Frank White would say, "strinth"). Soria struggled with control more than we've ever seen in his career and barely threw first-pitch strikes, something that makes him who he is and why he is so difficult to hit.<br /><br />When Yost was hired, the biggest knock on him was his handling of the bullpen in Milwaukee that allegedly led to the Brewers almost blowing a seven-game lead in the NL Central race in 2008. Now here it is, rearing its ugly head in KC.<br /><br />Soria has earned the right to be given every chance to hold his role as a closer on this team. But when is enough enough? Soria has been off all year, something pointed out by myself, famed Royals' tweeter Brandon Harris (@BHIndepMO) and more recently, 610 radio's Nick Wright. If I saw this as early as April 15, what were the Royals seeing since then and why did it take so long? Why did Joakim Soria ASK to be removed from the closer's role while the Royals idly stood by and did nothing about a guy that is about to enter a three-year option period where he is due over $20 million dollars?<br /><br />Soria currently holds the most valuable contract on the 25-man roster and arguably is the Royals' biggest trade chip. The Royals stood by and watched as Soria's trade stock plummet after he was being considered one of the hottest trade commodities in Major League Baseball this past offseason.<br /><br />The Royals' handling of high-priced pitchers has been frustrating. Gil Meche is the latest and most prevalent example of this negligence. Are we about to go down the same path with Soria?<br /><br />Soria has denied that anything is wrong with his health and I guess I can believe that. Soria has been the weakest link in a bullpen that has become one of the most exciting, young collection of arms in baseball. But Yost continually went to Soria and it has ultimately led to this torrid stretch of baseball that has dropped the Royals all the way to fourth in the division after being a staple in second place for a majority of the season.<br /><br />More alarmingly, Soria does not have a clean slate of health in his past. He's undergone Tommy John surgery and saw an extended DL stint in 2009 due to a shoulder issue. The Royals simply can't afford to take any chances with Soria, right now.<br /><br />27-year-old stud closers with impeccable control don't suddenly "lose it". He's been the second best reliever in baseball for the past three years. When he's ready to enter the prime of his career, he can't find the strike zone or miss bats. He's getting bombed and hit hard. That has NEVER HAPPENED IN HIS CAREER. He's not throwing his curveball as much, and when he does, it doesn't have any bite to it. When that happens to a pitcher, it usually means he's hurt.<br /><br />Something is wrong with Joakim Soria and the Royals would be wise to look deeper into this. The sad part is, they probably won't.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-41758409560875100232011-05-19T23:41:00.005-05:002011-05-20T00:36:57.381-05:00Thrashers moving to Winnipeg, AEG leaves KC out to dry...againIt has been public knowledge for the past two years or so that the Atlanta Thrashers have been on the brink. The owners, the Atlanta Spririt Group (who also owns the Atlanta Hawks and minority shares in the Braves and Falcons), started quietly shopping the team after the 2008-09 season to local owners. And since Atlanta has a fine, upstanding tradition of supporting its professional sports teams, no one came calling.<br /><br />So the door was open. The Thrashers waived their 99-year lease at Philips Arena and the team was ready to listen to offers from ownership groups outside of the city of Atlanta.<br /><br />Before I delve into the more current state of affairs in the ever shifting world of the NHL, let me take you back to the summer of 2004. Kansas City had been begging for a new arena. Downtown was widely considered a joke and the Big 12 Tournament had left for the greener pastures of Dallas, Texas. KC had been passed over by cities like Nashville, Phoenix, Columbus, Atlanta and Raleigh-Durham for NHL franchises from 1995-2001. So Kansas City, the progressive entity that it is, decided it was time for a shiny new arena, smack in the middle of downtown with a planned entertainment district adjacent to the proposed arena. The West Coast-based Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) came calling to our aid. You see, AEG owned a majority share of the Los Angeles Kings and had an "in" with the NHL. AEG offered to operate the arena for the first ten years after construction. Don't fool yourself, Sprint Center was indeed built to attract an NHL team. A slew of teams were looking for new buildings and KC was the apple of NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman's eye. Any time an NHL team was rumored to be relocating, Kansas City was the first city mentioned.<br /><br />The Pittsburgh Penguins came calling in 2006. The corporate suites at Sprint Center sold out within a week and people were even calling to see if they could buy season tickets after KC caught wind of the Penguins' interest. They flirted with us and we got played. Here's why:<br /><br />AEG employee and NHL Hall of Famer Luc Robitaille was named "head of hockey operations" for the mystery team and as of today, I think he still holds that title. Well you see, Luc's best friend is Pittsburgh Penguins majority owner Mario Lemieux. You don't have to look much further than that. Lemieux used his connections with Robitaille and AEG to get his new building. Easy peezy.<br /><br />So here we are. 2011. The Atlanta Thrashers are pretty much BEGGING someone, anyone to swoop this team up out of Atlanta. AEG promised us a team. So here's the team. We don't have to coax them out of a city where they are entrenched in history and passion. We don't have to negotiate out of a lease. We won't have to do much. Just get an owner.<br /><br />Instead, AEG sits in their ivory tower, watching down on KC getting passed over yet again by an NHL or NBA team while they collect fat stacks from concert revenue and the Power & Light District hemorrhages money.<br /><br />The district lost $14 million dollars last year and we foot the bill for that. The entire P&L district and Sprint Center were built for one purpose: to attract and secure an NHL or NBA franchise. Of course, I prefer the NHL, but I wouldn't be too pissed if we got an NBA team either. Just something to put down there!<br /><br />Some may argue the proposed economic impact of a sports team, but a sports team is what is needed to save P&L.<br /><br />So we sit here, looking like idiots, while AEG and Tim LIEwicke make money off of concert revenue from artists who are under contract with AEG. You don't have to do much looking. It's just below the surface. Anyone seen Tim Liewicke in KC since 2006? No. AEG owns dozens of arenas around the world. So they'll sit there and tell us that all is well because Sprint Center is the "3rd busiest arena" in North America, when in reality, its a sponge, sucking the life out of the neighboring district and giving nothing in return.<br /><br />I'm not saying that KC is the best suited city for an NHL franchise, but AEG has a lot of clout in the media. But there wasn't even a WHISPER of Kansas City in ANY of the Atlanta relocation talks. Seems a bit strange.<br /><br />We were promised an anchor tenant and all we've gotten are crappy concerts and meaningless exhibition games. It's time to start asking what the worth of AEG actually is.<br /><br />The answer for KC sports fans? Not that much.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ticketini.com/pub/photos/the_sprint_center_may_be_the_future_188051.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="http://www.ticketini.com/pub/photos/the_sprint_center_may_be_the_future_188051.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-87457943778188398302011-05-05T17:07:00.005-05:002011-05-05T17:55:19.235-05:00Eric HosmerToday, at 4:34 PM, Central Daylight Time, the Kansas City Royals announced that phenom Eric Hosmer had been activated from AAA Omaha...and I JIZZED IN MY PANTS.<br /><br />This callup means several things, but the most important thing is that the Royals think they can win NOW. This signals a shift in the Royals' organizational philosophy. Instead of watching the service time clock, the Royals see fit to promote Hosmer now and give a significant boost to our already pretty damn good offense. Soon to follow will be the much needed reinforcements to our starting rotation and goddamnit, this could be one helluva summer here in the City of Fountains.<br /><br />Kila wasn't getting the job done, let's be honest. He had a small window to keep the seat warm for Hosmer and he didn't take advantage of his opportunity. Hosmer straight up forced the Royals' hand. Kila will probably catch on somewhere else, in fact, there are probably teams calling Dayton Moore inquiring about what it might take to get Kila out of a Royals/Storm Chasers uniform.<br /><br />So Eric Hosmer will step out on to the beautiful, lush green grass of Kauffman Stadium in front of ~40,000 starving Royals fans and announce that the future has indeed arrived a year early. Unreal.<br /><br />The fairy tale of Hosmer's career will continue tomorrow night at Kauffman Stadium. Has there been a more remarkable turnaround in this franchise's history? Hosmer received the biggest signing bonus in Royals history and responded by hitting .241/.334/.361 in his first full professional season. Next year, he lights the world on fire, turns into the hottest hitting prospect in baseball and spearheads the greatest system in the history of the Kansas City Royals and perhaps Major League Baseball.<br /><br />He's here folks. He's freaking here. Buy your tickets, Friday night will be a playoff atmosphere at the K.<br /><br />PS: Jason Kendall probably will never play another game with the Kansas City Royals.<br /><br />GO ROYALS!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://nbchardballtalk.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/eric-hosmer-followthrough1.jpg?w=222"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 222px; height: 271px;" src="http://nbchardballtalk.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/eric-hosmer-followthrough1.jpg?w=222" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div>Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-87169039353890224222011-05-02T21:52:00.003-05:002011-05-02T23:00:09.110-05:00May, the month of May, the force be with usIt's May. A month that will make any Royals fan want to crawl under a rock for the next 30 days and wait until September call-ups. In the past 10 seasons, the Royals are a combined 103-178 in May games, good for a .366 winning percentage and over the course of a 162-game schedule would be 59-103 with that winning percentage. A-haw-ful.<br /><br />Here's the thing, this team is different! Hooray! Not really, but if this team is for real, they will make it through May with a .500 record. You gotta remember, division championships aren't won in May, they're won in the dog days of July, August and September (See Royals, c. 2003). But you see, May is also where division titles and runs to .500-for-the-first-time-in-nearly-a-decade are shot to hell. May is a fickle bitch. May exposes your team for who they really are.<br /><br />Dayton Moore has flexed knowledge on us like "plus hands" and "runs created", but my favorite (no joke, I actually believe this) is his belief that you know almost everything you need to know about a team after 40 games. Those 40 games are a big enough sample size to determine whether or not a team is for real or not. Hearken back to 2009, when GMDM dropped this knowledge-sodapop on us. Royals were 18-11, first place in the division and built like a house of cards that hit a lot of homerz. KC was electric, the K was packed for every Greinke start and you couldn't convince me the Royals weren't for real.<br /><br />Driving home with two of my good friends on our way back from another dazzling Zack Greinke gem, we gushed and bellowed about how this was going to be the Royals year. I started to get goosebumps and it took everything in my power to not jump into the front seat and hug both of my friends. Think about it like in "The Hangover" when Phil, Allan and Stu are heading into the desert to give Chow $80k in exchange for Doug, when instead they're about to get back "black Doug".<br /><br />Yeah, that was a mother f**king tangent. Anyways, it's May. Kila Ka'aihue seems to be coming around, despite what some Royals fans are saying. Kila is hitting .320/.393/.520 in his last 7 games with six strikeouts and a .389 BABIP, meaning Kila is finally starting to flex his big Hawaiian muscles. So please, stop pointing to his stats overall this season, it makes you look silly. Yes, I know they are flashed up on the scoreboard each time he comes to bat, but do yourself a favor and do a little bit of research before making a fool of yourself. Kila's arrow is pointing up. If Kila falls back into the abyss for SEVERAL months, then hey, you've got an argument. This is a guy with less than a half season of experience in the major leagues. All Kila has done while some radical fans are brandishing torches and pitchforks is make less outs than Royals' Facebook page fan favorite, Melky Cabrera this season...<br /><br />Jeff Francouer continues to affirm my man crush. Overall good guy and look, He's hitting righties! Frenchy is hitting .290/.328/.565 against right-handed starters this year. He's also slugging .867 against all lefties this year. That's absurd. He has slowed down in the last week though. Francouer has notoriously disappeared in May as well. Hopefully he keeps it going, he's protected Billy Butler in the lineup quite well this year.<br /><br />The starting pitching is starting to rear it's ugly head. I won't be shocked if we see Danny Duffy in the next couple of months, especially if the Royals hang around .500 through May despite our starters lack of resembling anything good. I fully expect Duffy to be the first impact prospect to be called up to the big leagues. I'm still not sold on Kyle Davies, not saying much, but there's no way the Royals can afford to keep him around.<br /><br />In closing, I like how the players are handling this quasi-hot start. The mantra surrounding this team during the spring was "we're going to surprise some people". Of course, that's the mantra surrounding every team coming off 25 consecutive seasons without a single postseason appearance...<br /><br />Big opportunity for the Royals to see how they match up with two other up-and-coming American League teams in the Oakland A's and Baltimore Orioles. I don't expect the crowds to start showing up during the week and probably throughout the rest of the season. That's the problems you will encounter when you have roughly 8,000 season ticket holders.<br /><br />If this team is different, May will be no different from April and we'll see the Royals hanging around .500 headed into the meat and potatoes of the 162.Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-85423225311528860922011-04-12T00:05:00.002-05:002011-04-12T00:07:32.557-05:00Royalman Report Podcast: Episode 4 with Troy Olsen, Michael Engel and Brian McGannonI was on the Royalman Report Podcast with Troy Olsen and Mike Engel this Sunday. We talked about Kevin Appier getting voted into the Royals Hall of Fame, the Royals 6-3 start, the Missouri Mavericks' current playoff run and everything in between. Enjoy.<br /><div> <object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,0,0" id="mp3playerdarksmallv3" align="middle" width="210" height="25"><br /> <param name="allowScriptAccess" value="sameDomain"><br /> <param name="movie" value="http://www.podbean.com/podcast-audio-video-blog-player/mp3playerdarksmallv3.swf?audioPath=http://royalmanreport.podbean.com/mf/play/7tvf3v/RRApril10.mp3&autoStart=no"><br /> <param name="quality" value="high"><param name="bgcolor" value="#ffffff"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><br /> <embed src="http://www.podbean.com/podcast-audio-video-blog-player/mp3playerdarksmallv3.swf?audioPath=http://royalmanreport.podbean.com/mf/play/7tvf3v/RRApril10.mp3&autoStart=no" quality="high" name="mp3playerdarksmallv3" allowscriptaccess="sameDomain" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" align="middle" width="210" height="25"></embed><br /> </object><br /> <br /><a style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; font-weight: normal; padding-left: 41px; color: rgb(45, 162, 116); text-decoration: none; border-bottom: medium none;" href="http://www.podbean.com/">Podcast Powered By Podbean</a><br /> </div>Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-81865009602605679262011-04-11T15:09:00.005-05:002011-04-11T15:45:06.007-05:00Why 6-3 (and beyond) is awesomeNine games in, and this team is three games over .500. I'm here to tell you why this is awesome. There is some cautious belief behind this team, some of it worth while and well deserved. Most fans are waiting for the fall to begin, but what happens if that fall doesn't come?<br /><br />This start doesn't need any statistical analysis because this start defies all statistical probabilities. Alex Gordon just had the best week and a half of his career. Billy Butler is hitting a legitimate .394 and is OPSing (yes, I just invented that) 1.179. Alcides Escobar is playing defense that has Dick Kaegel and Lee Judge saying "Yuni WHO?" Jeff Francis is reaching back to the days of yore when men were men and...and that's another story. The bullpen...giggity.<br /><br />There's optimism around this team and that's awesome. Of course, the 2003 and 2009 comparisons will start rolling in if this team continues to play at or around .500 into June. Of course the trade talks will start to heat up and the inevitable, "we should trade our prospects for Pujols" chatter will start to flood sports talk radio.<br /><br />And here's why this 6-3 start (and beyond) is awesome. We don't have to make trades. Need a bat? Mike Moustakas. Need a lefty in the rotation? Mike Montgomery. Need a utility man? Johnny Giavotella. Need a bullpen arm? Louis Coleman.<br /><br />I said at the beginning of Spring Training that anything we get from this 2011 Royals squad would be a bonus. You bet your ass this 6-3 start counts as a bonus. Enjoy this. Go buy tickets for the next homestand. The Royals are guaranteed to have a winning record by the time they return home on Friday. We're playing the Twins this week to wrap up this short road trip, before returning home to face the Indians and Mariners. To me, this will be another defining moment in this young season, where the Royals can start proving us wrong. Hell, we just won a freaking road series in Detroit in the second week of the season. How often do the Royals win intra-division series on the road this early in the season? We didn't win a freaking series until June in 2006.<br /><br />This is exciting. It's a new car smell here in Kansas City, a first date, first weekend at college excitement. This is not 2009. This is not 2003. This roster is not made with duct tape and bubble gum. The foundation is being built right before our eyes. Of course, I hope Jeff Francouer and Melky Cabrera aren't a part of that foundation, but I'll take their contributions while they're still here.<br /><br />Don't jump in with two feet quite yet, KC. But don't be afraid to stick a toe or two to test the water for now...Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-31910066424981127052011-04-04T17:26:00.004-05:002011-04-04T18:11:13.793-05:00Opening Weekend revisitedThe first cut is the deepest. What a way to open up the 2011 season. The Royals are 3-1 on the strength of some late heroics in all three victories. Hell, we were one windgust from being 4-0. There was a lot of magic squeezed into this weekend and the optimism from Spring Training has been extended into another week.<br /><br />So before you start pre-ordering those ALDS tickets against Baltimore, let's just sit back and enjoy this off day before the inevitable poo hits the fan.<br /><br />I know that one weekend series is coming sometime in early May when the Royals are sitting around .500 and we go on that West Coast swing, drop eight of nine and the downward spiral begins. Maybe it won't come this year and the Royals will stick around .500 throughout the entire season. Look, if you aren't the least bit encouraged by this weekend, then boo on you.<br /><br />The Royals did something this weekend that they haven't done in years, they made a bad bullpen pay dearly for their mistakes. They almost did it in all four games. The Angels bullpen couldn't find the strike zone and the Royals got to one of their perennial "thorns in our collective side", Fernando Rodney. I'm not ready to say "<a href="http://www.ranyontheroyals.com/2009/05/game-on.html">Game On.</a>" quite yet. In fact, that time will not come until this team is at least 10 games over .500 near the All Star break. I've learned my lesson in the past few seasons.<br /><br />There is a different feel to this team in seasons past, though. The players are likeable and seem to really believe in each other. Look at this <a href="http://mlblogsroyals.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/walk-offs.jpg?w=555&h=723">picture</a> and try to tell me that this isn't a group that is ready to prove the naysayers wrong. Once again, this is not me trying to swing optimism to a fanbase on life support, but do you see Tim Collins' face? Frenchy looks like he just found out OBP has been eliminated as an officially tracked stat. Melky Cabrera looks like he's ready to hug a guy he met two weeks ago, which coincidentally would be the first time he hugged someone since childhood.<br /><br />No statistical analysis needed in this post, because the Royals overcame two terrible starts by Kyle Davies and Bruce Chen and showcased a never-say-die attitude not seen around here since Tony Pena was taking showers with his clothes on.<br /><br />Matt Treanor was picked up off the scrap heap from Texas and is currently my vote for Royals Player of the Week after some great defense behind the plate and hitting a walkoff homer in extras last week. Matt Treanor wasn't signed to be an offensive contributor, but rather a game caller and defensive specialist. As if the Jason Kendall signing needed to look worse, Treanor's play in the opening weekend was everything and more than the Royals expected when they pissed away six million dollars on Kendall's contract.<br /><br />Our bullpen? Skeet, skeet, skeet. Timmay Collins and Aaron Crow were dynamite. I have never been more excited to see relievers come in to games. I had goose bumps when Crow came in and shut down the middle of the Angels' order late on Opening Day. Tim Collins seems to strike people out with his sheer awesomeness. Nate Adcock and Jeremy Jeffress didn't perform as well as KKKKKrow and Collins, but they should be nice pieces to this bullpen in the middle to late innings if/when our starters go to hell. Back to Crow and Collins, all I have to say is man crush. I think it's safe to say that if we can get leads into the sixth, seventh and eighth innings, this team can be dangerous. But that's a big "if", especially with our paper thin rotation.<br /><br />But as I sit and type this on the first of many off-day Mondays, I can't help but wonder what might happen if this team can simply outscore opponents. Alex Gordon had a great opening weekend (minus Opening Day). Jeff Francouer did his best Jeff Francouer impression, but still got some big hits. Kila was clutch all weekend and Billy was being Billy by the time Saturday and Sunday rolled around.<br /><br />Don't worry about when the regression to the mean will happen. Just realize that this team in in first place and two games over .500 for the first time since May of 2009. Let's have some fun while we can. Oh yeah, the White Sox are in town this week. Let's keep it going boys.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/images/sports/photos/2006/05/26/barrett-pierzynski060526-getty.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 194px; height: 194px;" src="http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/images/sports/photos/2006/05/26/barrett-pierzynski060526-getty.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a></div>Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8380308410292759132.post-65408316203091474212011-03-30T23:31:00.003-05:002011-03-31T00:17:48.710-05:00Royals 2011 Season PreviewIt's here. Baseball starts today and I'm more optimistic about this team since June of 2009. Predictions for the boys in blue have been all across the board, from 100+ losses to flirting with .500. I'm not entirely ready to drink a tall glass of optimism with rose colored glasses on, but I am entirely ready for another season of the greatest game on earth, baseball.<br /><br />For the Royals, obviously all eyes are focused on the future. But to get to Mission: 2012, we must endure 2011.<br /><br />In 2011, there will be hair pulled out of our heads, remotes thrown and season tickets threatened to be cancelled. But the sun is starting to rise, the night is darkest before the dawn, what have you. So what will we see when we look back on the 2011 season?<br /><br />I'm not entirely sure. What I see is a team in the truest form of transition, trying to make do with what they already have on the roster. Needs were addressed in the offseason, mainly in the outfield. But instead of going out and grabbing whatever old veteran was left on the scrap heap, the Royals signed guys with upside. Sure, Jeff Francouer, Jeff Francis and Melky Cabrera may not be the ideal candidates to improve a young team, but they are guys with some upside. Francouer was the next big thing when he came up with the Braves as a 21-year-old, but he sucks now. There's some upside still there. Not a whole lot of upside, but anything we get from these place holders should be viewed as a bonus.<br /><br />Now that I addressed the three biggest question marks on the roster, it's time to guzzle down a high ball of optimism. Kila Ka'aihue is finally going to get his shot. I am pretty enthusiastic about this. Kila came on strong late last year and mashed seven homers in Spring Training this year. Kila has showcased the ability to get on base not seen in these parts in the last five years. Couple that with the encouraging projections from Bill James and PECOTA, and we might see the emergence of a cult hero in Ka'aihue.<br /><br />Billy Butler has been relegated to DH duty and this seems to be the right idea. Butler is the textbook definition of a "professional hitter". Baseball history points to a big jump in Billy's overall power numbers, which seems absurd considering he hits close to 60 extra base hits every season. But if Billy turns into a Edgar Martinez carbon copy, are we really going to be that upset? I'd rather have a guy who is consistently putting the ball in play and getting on base than a guy who will mash 25 homers and strike out 150 times in the DH role.<br /><br />Alex Gordon was going to be my #1 "wild card" for the Royals this season, but I figured I'd consolidate an entire post into a paragraph or two about Gordo. This is it for him. Be great, or be league average. The Royals are all-in with Alex Gordon for this year, shown by Ned Yost penciling him into the #3 hole in the Opening Day lineup. Gordon showed great plate discipline early on in spring and a new hitting approach mixed in with a shiny new swing have Royals fans thinking about a breakout season. He will get every opportunity this season to prove that he belongs on this team beyond this year and be privileged to stay with this team when our farm system begins yielding results. I'm going to shy away from completely jumping on the Gordon bandwagon, but I do reserve the right to jump on when he has 15 bombs and an .850 OPS at the All Star break...<br /><br />But of course, I can go on and on about how I am much more optimistic about this team than in the past couple of seasons. The truth is that 2011 will be a waiting game. Us Royals fans are going to be like dogs waiting at the front door of our house, waiting for our family to come home after a long, 25-year vacation from winning. Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, Mike Montgomery and the whole motley crew are stampeding towards Kauffman Stadium. The question is how long will it be until they get here?<br /><br />Well, they might already be here. Not the crown jewels of the system, but some of the integral pieces to what will be a franchise resurgence the likes which have never been witnessed.<br /><br />In the bullpen.<br /><br />Yes, the bullpen is where this all begins and ends (puns are punny). Tim Collins, Jeremy Jeffress, Nathan Adcock and Aaron Crow are all slated to be members of the Royals' bullpen come 3pm today. The bullpen hasn't seen this much youth in a long, long time, if not ever. Three rookies alone in the bullpen, soon to be joined by the fourth, Louis Coleman whenever the Royals see fit to promote him. In my mind, Coleman will make the trip down I-29 with Moustakas and/or Hosmer in May or June. The question here is whether or not the Royals' starters can get late leads to this bullpen.<br /><br />So that's that. I know I missed a few things ("improved" speed and defense, but Dick Kaegel was not available for comment), but I covered what I feel are the biggest storylines headed into this season. Who's ready for some predictions? You're not? Too bad, here they are:<br /><br />Record: 71-91<br />Division finish: 4th<br />MVP: Billy Butler<br />Pitcher of the Year: Joakim Soria<br />Rookie of the Year: Tim Collins<br />Managerial changes: 0<br />Fan walkouts: 0Brian McGannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11957956646610877454noreply@blogger.com0