Year Two of the Matt Quatraro tenure. Time to take a step up this year. Active in free agency and trades this offseason. A new look pitching rotation and bullpen. Will the young players take the leap up offensively? Bobby Witt extension? New stadium? Will Vinny recover from injury? Salvy taking aim at the Royals record book? Will Cole Ragans turn into the best Royals starting pitcher since Greinke 1.0?
Free Agents/Trades Acquisitions
Seth Lugo, SP
Michael Wacha, SP
Kyle Wright, SP
Hunter Renfroe, OF/DH
Will Smith, RP
Chris Stratton, RP
Nick Anderson, RP
Adam Frazier, 2B
Garrett Hampson, INF/OF
Matt Sauer, RP [Reply]
Originally Posted by GabyKeepsMeWarm:
It’s been 35 years since KC had a 20 game winner. Appier would have done it 1993 if he ever had any run support. Cone was well on his way in 1994 before the strike. Seth Lugo is on pace for 23 wins. A lot has to happen to be a 20 game winner, and we’ve got a long way to go. The dude is a legit Cy Young contender right now and just goes about his business in such an understated way. He’s like the ****ing terminator out there. Can he do it?
If the season ended today, I think he’s the CY. Long way to go, as you said. I heard the other day that at this rate he should hit his career high in innings pitched for a season by the AS break. It will be interesting to see how he and the staff manage his stamina. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Why Not?:
If the season ended today, I think he’s the CY. Long way to go, as you said. I heard the other day that at this rate he should hit his career high in innings pitched for a season by the AS break. It will be interesting to see how he and the staff manage his stamina.
Yeah, he’s had a terrific career thus far, mostly as a middle innings reliever. And now he’s a full time starter at 34? I can’t come up with a comp. But he just looks so relaxed out there, and I hate to compare him to Maddux, but that’s truly what he looks like. This rotation has been sooo refreshing. We have a legit rotation for the first time in a decade, but more than that, this might be the best rotation we’ve had in about 30 years, to the point that every guy not only gives the team a chance to win, but actually excel and dominate.
Makes it sooooo much easier and enjoyable to watch when you’ve got a truly professional starting staff. I think after today’s “quality start” by Lugo, the team now has 18 or 19? And this is after 42 games. Did we have as many QS’s in all of 2023? What a remarkable turnaround. [Reply]
Originally Posted by GabyKeepsMeWarm:
Yeah, he’s had a terrific career thus far, mostly as a middle innings reliever. And now he’s a full time starter at 34? I can’t come up with a comp. But he just looks so relaxed out there, and I hate to compare him to Maddux, but that’s truly what he looks like. This rotation has been sooo refreshing. We have a legit rotation for the first time in a decade, but more than that, this might be the best rotation we’ve had in about 30 years, to the point that every guy not only gives the team a chance to win, but actually excel and dominate.
Makes it sooooo much easier and enjoyable to watch when you’ve got a truly professional starting staff. I think after today’s “quality start” by Lugo, the team now has 18 or 19? And this is after 42 games. Did we have as many QS’s in all of 2023? What a remarkable turnaround.
It’s scary to think that our weakest pitcher this year is probably Ragans [Reply]
Originally Posted by :
10. Royals (previously: 10)
Season high: 6 | Season low: 24
Seth Lugo has been incredible to start this season, but one thing he hadn’t been doing was striking people out. He had only 36 strikeouts in 51 2/3 innings heading into his start against the Angels on Sunday, the actual lowest strikeout rate of his career. (It’s why his FIP was 3.78 despite a 1.74 ERA.) Lugo apparently decided he’d had enough of that narrative: He struck out a career-high 12 in eight innings of one-run mastery. If the Royals win Monday and the Guardians lose to the Rangers, Kansas City would be in first place in the AL Central for the first time this late in the season since 2016.