It's the end of the world as we know it... and we feel... fine?
2018 is a season of transition for the Royals, or at least it is at this point. Dayton Moore is back. Will he swing full into THE PROCESS 2.0? Or will he try to load up again and make some reload magic happen?
Pending Free Agents:
1B | Eric Hosmer | San Diego Padres, 8 years, $144 million ($5 million signing bonus; $20 million/year in Yrs 1-5; $13 million/year in Yrs 6-8 wth player opt out)
Spoiler!
(DI's Guess: Texas Rangers, 6, $118 million)
3B | Mike Moustaskas | Kansas City Royas, 1, $6.5 million
Spoiler!
(DI's Guess: Los Angeles Angels, 5, $98 million)
CF | Lorenzo Cain | Milwaukee Brewers, 5 years, $80 million
Spoiler!
(DI's Guess: San Francisco Giants, 4, $68 million)
RP | Mike Minor | Texas Rangers, 3, $28 million
Spoiler!
(DI's Guess: Los Angeles Angels, 3, $35 million+ $12 million team option
SP | Jason Vargas | New York Mets, 2, $16 million
Spoiler!
(DI's Guess: Baltimore Orioles, 2, $29 million)
SS | Alcides Escobar | Kansas City Royals, 1, $2.5 million
In case I, picks would be #32, 33, and 34, if Alex Cobb of Rays signs for $50 million guaranteed.
Kansas City will likely have 5 of the top 40-45 picks in the draft, and the bonus pool money should rival that of the teams drafting 1-3 in the 2017 draft. This should give KC tremendous flexibility in acquiring talent that otherwise might slip or not be "signable."
2018 Draft Names to Watch
RHP Kumar Rocker, N Oconnee HS, Georgia.
Spoiler!
Possibly goes top 10 but is a big, physical SP with ace potential. Moore and co. will be all over him if he slips a bit and could offer top 10 money at No. 16
OF Jarred Kelenic, Waukasha West HS, WI
Spoiler!
Kelenic is the top prep bat, toolsy OF. Royals would be ecstatic to have shot at him.
1B Triston Casas, American Heritage HS (FL).
Spoiler!
Tremendous raw power, best in HS bats. Royals typically like HS arms or HS bats with "special" tools. He qualifies.
RHP Carter Stewart, Eau de Gallie HS (Ga).
Spoiler!
Another big, physical specimen with huge upside. More likely to be available mid-first than Rocker.
ANY Any, Any (Any). Any current top projected pick who slides for injury concerns. Includes current top prospect prospect SP Brady Singer, U of Florida. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Demonpenz:
I saw White play a TON. It always seemed like Ozzie Smith was mentioned more just because he did back flips. White batted cleanup for the 1985 world series. You could talk everyday until the end of time how great Frank White was and he would still be under rated.
What I was getting at is if Ozzie got in mostly with the glove how does a dude with Whites Glove and bat not get in. Granted SS is a harder position. [Reply]
Originally Posted by nychief:
I know he is a dirty word.... but Alcides Escobar is a compiler and would be in this conversation, especially with our history at shortstop.
Originally Posted by gblowfish:
Sweeney STOLE money from the Royals on his last contract. We could have had either Beltran OR Damon, maybe both. How many 100 loss seasons was he paid for? Three? Four? How many 100 loss seasons did Cain have? Zero? The minute Sweeney got his big payday he was either hurt, or useless, or both.
He got huge, like very muscular, almost beyond natural. Then injuries, could there possibly be a connection?
I have a rookie picture of him and then one later in his career, freaky. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Demonpenz:
Granted, but White was such a better hitter.
You may not be remembering their entire careers. Offensively, White was a weak spot in the Royals lineup early in his career.
According to Fangraphs,
White's career wRC+ (runs per PA scaled where 100 is average; both league and park adjusted; based on weighted on-base average) is 84, while Ozzie's is 90. White did hit many more homers than Smith, but Smith was comparable if not better than White, offensively. http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx...72&position=2B [Reply]
Originally Posted by BWillie:
To be fair, Mayberry and Cain had the advantage of being on the Royals during their prime years. Whereas most of the other guys numbers included their aging less productive years. But, nonetheless. Impressive.
John Mayberry was a major reason the Royals had prime years so early in the history of the franchise. You have to remember that there were 4 expansion teams in 1969, the Royals, the Pilots (who became the Brewers), the Padres and the Expos. In his first five seasons with the Royals, from 1972 to 1976, Big John was in the top 30 for the AL MVP balloting 4 times. That 1976 season was the first playoff appearance for the Royals, the first of any of the 1969 expansion teams. In 1975, Big John was 2nd in the MVP voting, in between rookie Fred Lynn and the young Jim Rice, both of the American League Champion Boston Red Sox.
It should be noted that when the Royals made the playoffs in 1976, that was in just the 8th year of the franchise. Unless I'm mistaken, I believe that tied the Mets for the fastest journey to postseason. (Later, the Rockies made it to the playoffs in just their 3rd season.) Of the four 1969 expansion teams, the Royals are the only one to win a World Series, which we've done twice. [Reply]