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 New World Order:
We have a tough stretch coming up
That's an understatement. Yeah, next six weeks are nooo joke. Cleveland twice, Dodgers, Yankees, and a bunch of teams hovering around .500. Though we do get Miami and Oakland sprinkled in. Thankfully, July looks like it should be a breath of fresh air. I'd be totally okay with going .500 in June. [Reply]
Originally Posted by GabyKeepsMeWarm:
That's an understatement. Yeah, next six weeks are nooo joke. Cleveland twice, Dodgers, Yankees, and a bunch of teams hovering around .500. Though we do get Miami and Oakland sprinkled in. Thankfully, July looks like it should be a breath of fresh air. I'd be totally okay with going .500 in June.
That's the "men from the boys" point for me. If we come out of June over .500 then make room for me on the all in bandwagon. We are doing a great job right now building cushion. This is a very important next two weeks to continue to add to the cushion. If we enter June 12-13 games over .500, we can sustain a bad stretch in that gauntlet. [Reply]
Originally Posted by nychief:
I think the problem there...is what are the other options. Waters? Sure. Cross isn't ready yet.
We'll be in the market for an OF bat no matter what...but it's slim pickings right now.
I'd call up Waters and have him play everyday for awhile. Use Renfroe as what he has become....a defensive replacement. Melendez can go back to Omaha or be a part of a trade if some other team thinks they can fix him. [Reply]
Gavin Cross - yes, Gavin Cross! - is suddenly hitting .311/.394/.481 in Double-A, including .394/.461/.667 in May. His K rate is a reasonable 25%. Maybe his struggles last season were a result of the tick-borne illness after all.
Originally Posted by BigRedChief:
Royals are in St. Pete this weekend. I can get tickets for $10. Are they playing good? Should I go and if so which day?
Gavin Cross - yes, Gavin Cross! - is suddenly hitting .311/.394/.481 in Double-A, including .394/.461/.667 in May. His K rate is a reasonable 25%. Maybe his struggles last season were a result of the tick-borne illness after all.
Originally Posted by Fansy the Famous Bard:
Is it me, or does he look frumpy? Like out of shape, fat, bloated... whatever you want to call it.
Maybe it's the old adage of the camera adds 10 pounds. When i saw him play a couple weeks ago in San Antonio, he did not look frumpy by any means. If anything, he looked like a youngster who could still fill out a bit. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Chiefshrink:
How do you go from over 100 losses 106 to be exact from the previous season to competing for the division the next year? Crappy division I guess??:-)
Decent starting Arms and bullpen coupled with 2 superstars in Salvy and Witt. [Reply]
I admittedly don't pay much attention to our farm system so finding out we had a first round pick go down with a tick borne bacterial infection is the least surprising thing I'll hear all day [Reply]
Gavin Cross, OF, Kansas City Royals (Double-A Northwest Arkansas): 3-4, R, HR, 3 RBI, SB.
Selected 9th overall in 2022, Cross looked like the safest of safe picks—an advanced college bat that, despite not having the loudest of tools, still had enough contact and power to be an easy everyday outfielder. However, the offensive production cratered last year in the Midwest League, with Cross limping to a .203/.298/.378 slashline on the season. It’s beginning to look like the 2023 experience was just a bump in the road, the first taste of adversity for a polished hitter. Cross has rebounded nicely this year, looking again like the best position-player prospect in Kansas City’s organization. [Reply]
