Originally Posted by Prison Bitch:
No way can you put Pittsley over Bust’a Starling.
I was thinking Pittsley was top 5 also, but he wasn’t. You could throw in someone like Ashe Russel (not tp 5 but never even made it to full season ball) or Chris Lubanski instead.
Starling never delivered, but even making the show as a 5th OF type is better than those 5-6 dudes. [Reply]
Originally Posted by duncan_idaho:
I was thinking Pittsley was top 5 also, but he wasn’t. You could throw in someone like Ashe Russel (not tp 5 but never even made it to full season ball) or Chris Lubanski instead.
Starling never delivered, but even making the show as a 5th OF type is better than those 5-6 dudes.
Starling isn’t necessarily “the worst”, but it comes down to the hype machine. Reggie Bush was a mega bust not because he was merely a serviceable change of pace back, but because he was pegged to be the next HOF running back. Same with Starling. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Bufkin:
Starling isn’t necessarily “the worst”, but it comes down to the hype machine. Reggie Bush was a mega bust not because he was merely a serviceable change of pace back, but because he was pegged to be the next HOF running back. Same with Starling.
Starling and Bush are not equivalent. The only hype I recalled was that he was local and had a ton of raw potential...but I can't recall anyone saying/believing that he was a sure thing, superstar in the waiting. [Reply]
Originally Posted by dallaschiefsfan:
Starling and Bush are not equivalent. The only hype I recalled was that he was local and had a ton of raw potential...but I can't recall anyone saying/believing that he was a sure thing, superstar in the waiting.
I guess I'm having historical revisionism then. I remember Starling being pushed as a savior level pick for us. More so than Hosmer and Moose but not on the level of Gordo. Not just the local aspect of it, but the gigantic signing bonus as well as passing up the Nebraska QB gig to sign.
Looking back at his Wiki, you may be right as he was merely a 5th overall selection. It just seems like that selection was touted on the level of Witt Jr. at the time. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Bufkin:
I guess I'm having historical revisionism then. I remember Starling being pushed as a savior level pick for us. More so than Hosmer and Moose but not on the level of Gordo. Not just the local aspect of it, but the gigantic signing bonus as well as passing up the Nebraska QB gig to sign.
Looking back at his Wiki, you may be right as he was merely a 5th overall selection. It just seems like that selection was touted on the level of Witt Jr. at the time.
All that extra attention was because he was a local kid and local superstar who was so good at so many things. [Reply]
Originally Posted by duncan_idaho:
All that extra attention was because he was a local kid and local superstar who was so good at so many things.
Id quibble with that. He was BB America’s top HS prospect. So the experts (at least I’d call them the top experts on this topic) also fell for his tools.
Also, some say we drafted him since he was local. I’ve always felt (but cannot prove) DM would’ve drafted him if he was from Florida. DM is a total sucker for toolsy guys esp in the OF. It worked fabulously for a few years but not for the bulk of his term. [Reply]
‘I owed Dayton’: Behind Mike Minor’s easy decision to sign with the Royals
by Alec Lewis
Originally Posted by :
Mike Minor was surprised. The 2020 season had ended. The Los Angeles Dodgers had hoisted the World Series trophy. And on the phone was his agent, B.B. Abbott, relaying that the Kansas City Royals were interested in his services for the 2021 season.
Minor was surprised because, similar to everyone else who works in baseball, he had no sense of what the free-agent market would look like. The COVID-19 pandemic had forced clubs to lay off staffers, discontinue minor-league pay and so on. How the financials would play out for potential players was a big question.
With Abbott on the phone, an answer to that question was coming quickly. Abbott, Minor would say later, named other teams that were interested. The agent then returned to the Royals, who were acting aggressively for a player with whom they had familiarity. Though the offseason was just getting going, they were ready to make an offer.
Abbott asked Minor what he wanted to do. Acquiring salary offers could lead to leverage with other teams. Not to mention, waiting to see what other players would receive had the chance to up his value. Minor, though, didn’t want to wait around. The Royals were not only offering a two-year deal worth $18 million guaranteed, a source said, but they were also offering Minor a spot in their starting rotation. Minor was convinced: He wanted to wear Royals blue again.
“I felt like I owed (general manager) Dayton Moore and the organization from the last time I was there,” Minor said Wednesday.
This second marriage moved swiftly because of past actions, conversations and the way the Royals had treated Minor. Life tends to work like that. You make an impression on someone, or someone makes an impression on you, and years down the road the impression pays off. With Minor and the Royals, that’s what happened.
Among the many 2020 moments that stood out for Minor, one was hearing that the Royals would be paying their minor leaguers. His thought when he heard the news: “Well, that’s not surprising. Dayton Moore is over there.”
The impact Moore and the Royals had made on him remained, and it, as well as the support during his rehab and their belief in their players, became prescient when Abbott called and relayed their interest.
Deals between two parties are rarely pure. Each side sees benefits, maybe through the finances or the opportunity or both. In this instance, multiple teams might have been able to offer the right package for Minor’s services, but the Royals landed him quickly because of the culture they have established.
Originally Posted by Bufkin:
Starling isn’t necessarily “the worst”, but it comes down to the hype machine. Reggie Bush was a mega bust not because he was merely a serviceable change of pace back, but because he was pegged to be the next HOF running back. Same with Starling.
Reggie Bush certainly doesn't have HOF credentials, but has nearly 9,100 yards from scrimmage, 58 TD's and a Super Bowl ring, which is slightly less than Jamaal Charles' 10,156 yards from scrimmage and 64 TD's.
That's in no way, shape or form, equivalent to Bubba Starling's 17 RBI's, 5 home runs and a .209 BA since being drafted in 2011.
Minority owner Patrick Mahomes II is liking tweets from released Rockies OF David Dahl. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm....
As much as I'd like to see KC land Schwarber and insert him at 1B, Dahl is much more of a Royals type of addition. He's an athletic, multi-talented OF. His injury history is significant and concerning, but a team that managed to keep Lorenzo Cain generally healthy for a five-year period can probably sell itself - and probably Dahl - on its ability to do the same for him. [Reply]
