Haha, I recently the discovered the Royals Suck thread in the general forum, which basically turned into a "Flame Koop" thread. Too bad I missed it, but I noticed that Koop said that the Royals were going to be close to a .500 team last season, and contenders this season. Hmm, I think he missed the mark. But that .383 winning percentage was oh so close to .500.

Anyone who thought the Royals would play .500 ball last year, and be contenders this year needs to have their brain examined, because they are a retard.

Not so much retarded as having no ability to objectively assess their team. What happened to koop, anyway? One day he was posting, regular as can be, and the next day, poof. As big of a psycho as this guy was, I hope he wasn't hurt.

ahahha i just read through the "the royals suck" and the "die whitesox die " threads..holy crap.. funny stuff. I forgot how much I used to hate koop, before I started ignoring him entirely. For someone with the in depth knowledge of baseball that he obviously possesses he's extremely delusional about his team, and their short and long term prospects. I'm glad I didn't bet him, however, since it seems like he's skipped the planet

Oh man, I just read that thread. Wow. I don't even know what to say.

I particularly enjoyed the "Sisco is a stud pitcher and who cares about his walk rates he'll still be good" discussion.

:checks Sisco's 2006 ERA:

7.10


This was pretty good though (talking about the Tigers):

When your team is racing to avoid 100 losses, there is a term to describe your franchise. "The Royals Suck."

Whatever happened to Koop anyways? I just looked at his profile and he hasn't been on since October.

no one knows, according to KDawg he wasn't banned so I guess he just up and left

I'll bet he still comes around. Just with a different screename.




KOOP! Show yourself.

Koop is an ACDC groupie now.

link?

Well, with Koop gone, I guess I might be the only Royals fan left in the forum. So it's up to me to write up the season preview.

I'm certainly not as delusional as Koop was about KC's chances this year, but I am excited about them as a team. Unfortunately, they're stuck in the toughest division in baseball and really don't have any shot of even being 4th in the division. They are on the upswing (hard not to be after 3 straight 100-loss seasons) and this is pretty much a momentum-building year for '08 and '09.

Starting Line-up:

CF David DeJesus
2B Mark Grudzielanek
RF Mark Teahen
DH Mike Sweeney
3B Alex Gordon
1B Ryan Shealy
LF Emil Brown
C John Buck / Jason La Rue
SS Tony Pena, Jr.

Pitching Staff:

Gil Meche
Odalis Perez
Zack Greinke
Jorge De La Rosa
Brandon Duckworth

Closer:

Octavio Dotel

Here's my take on the Gil Meche signing. Did they overpay for Meche? Of course they did. They're the Royals - they have to overpay to get anyone. On the plus side, the team showed their fans and MLB that they are willing to open their checkbook for the first time in many years. Hopefully, it's a sign that they'll go after even bigger free agents in the future. They'll never be able to afford $20 mil-a-year players like Manny or A-Rod or Barry Zito (a worse signing than Meche IMO), but they can pick up lesser guys. The Tigers went from laughingstock to the World Series, why can't the Royals in a few years?

You're not the only KC fan here, there's at least 2 of us. Anyway, since you live in NC I thought I'd let you know that KC is pretty excited about this team. Most predictions I've heard are in the mid 70's for wins. That would be a major improvement but pretty sad that we are excited about finishing 10 games under .500. Dotel may be good for a 8-12 game improvement alone seeing as how we had 31 blown saves last year. Anyway sorry for the rambling but KC is pumped up and I think we have pretty good reason.

The optimism is inspiring, but Albert Pujols was only worth about 13 wins over replacement and he was probably the best player in baseball last year. Dotel isn't quite the player Pujols is.

I do hope the Royals have a good year though. Especially Alex Gordon. If he could have a good year I'd appreciate it and so would my fantasy team.

Optimism is all we have

well... I guess we have Gordon aka George Brett Jr.

who will ultimately end up like Beltran and Damon

Yeah, but that's over an average replacement, right? The KC bullpen was so bad that an average guy would be worth 6-8 wins over the crap we had, and Dotel could be 4 more on top of that.

Yeah, over replacement, which isn't an average player, but basically a readily available scrub. I think baseball prospectus used the (20-132) 1899 Cleveland Spiders as the the team to define replacement level (something which is somewhat of a problem - no team in the near future will ever be that bad).

Without looking up anything, I'd expect Dotel to be in the 4-5 win range, which will probably something like 4-7 better than who he is replacing.

Simply a dominating performance from Gil Meche today. He went 7 1/3 innings and completely shut down the Red Sox giving up only 6 hits and 1 run. He also had 6 K's and only 1 walk. Joel Peralta came in and gave up a hit, then struck out Youkilis, Ortiz, Ramirez and Wily Mo Pena in order. Nice. Could the bullpen actually be good this year?

The middle of the infield provided the punch at the plate with Mark Grudzielanek going 3-4 with 2 runs and 3 RBI. Tony Pena, Jr. was a late addition to the team replacing the horrible Angel Berroa and he went 2-3 with 2 triples and a walk. Super-Rookie Alex Gordon was 0-3 with 2 K's, so everybody can stop calling him the next George Brett (I like him, but I'm tired of the hype).

It was an excellent start to the season considering that the Royals arguably have the toughest April schedule in the American league. Only 12 of their first 27 games are at home, and they have series against Boston, Detroit, Minnesota and Chicago. I'm not going to say they'll make the playoffs, but they'll be better than most expect. 75 wins isn't out of the question. It's still not great, but it's 13 games better than last year. Can't argue with that progress.

The Royals looked pretty good today. Pena killed us today which is funny because I had just finished reading some articles suggesting he'd replace Angel Berroa as the worst player in baseball. I wouldn't expect him to keep hitting like that, but he'll certainly be able to field like that. At the very least he has that over Berroa.

Alex Gordon did have a couple of k's, but they were decent at-bats. And how about that for a first major league at-bat...bases loaded against Curt Schilling. Jesus.

Also nice to see Kaufmann filled and loud. Usually when the Sox go on the road, the place is 60-75% Sox fans. Not today....it was a sea of blue. Hopefully it'll keep up and not just be an opening day thing.

I actually like Royals fans, so I hope for them, they have an interesting team if not a competitive one.

Bounceback day for the Sox as they pound the Royals 7-1. Odalis Perez had a shaky 1st inning, but looked OK for the rest going 5 1/3 and giving up 4 runs. The bullpen wasn't a lot better, giving up 3 more in the other 3 2/3 innings. The offense was pretty bad, only mustering up 3 hits total against Beckett and the rest of the Sox bullpen. How Kyle Snyder retired 4 straight hitters is a mystery to me. That might be the first time in his career that he's done that. Maybe being a reliever agrees with him. He certainly sucked as a KC starter for 2 1/2 years.

In other news, Octavio Dotel was put on the 15-day DL. I'm sure this won't be the last time he sees the DL this year. David Riske will be the closer in the meantime, but don't rush out to sign him to your fantasy teams.

Daisuke pretty much shut down the Royals offense yesterday, as the Red Sox take the game (4-1), and the series (2-1). I thought there were a lot of bright spots for the Royals, however. Greinke almost matched Daisuke's line with 7 IP 1 ER and 7 Ks (Matsuzaka had 7 IP 1 ER 10 Ks), A. Gordon got his first career hit, D. DeJesus' bat finally showed up (2-4, HR), and D. Riske pitched a perfect 9th with 2 Ks.
I'm not sure what Bell's deal with having a different lineup every game is, it's got to be frustrating to the players.

Coming up this weekend: 3 games vs. DET

J. Verlander 0-0 v. J. De La Rosa 0-0
M. Maroth 0-0 v. B. Duckworth 0-0
J. Bonderman 0-0 v. G. Meche 1-0

Another fantastic night for a Royals starter as Jorge De La Rosa went 7 strong, giving up only 4 hits and 1 run. Justin Verlander was equally unhittable for Detroit, but a touch of wildness meant he could only go 6, and KC pounced on a weak Detroit bullpen for 2 runs in the 7th and a 3-1 victory. Once again Tony Pena, Jr. was the hitting star with his 3rd triple of the season. KC is hitting only .224 as a team but in an odd reversal it's been their pitching that has kept them in ballgames. David Riske pitched another perfect 9th for the save and the team has a fantastic ERA of 2.75 through 4 games.

Gil Meche takes the mound again today so we can all see if the first game against Boston was a fluke.

My local radio station is now pre-empting Rome for royals games, due to popular outcry. This is only because that Gordan kid when to high school in town. I couldn't stand the royals before , but now they are stomping all over my favorite radio show.

Still not much to be happy about. The Royals are a major-league-worst 8-19 after losing again to the Angels 7-5. Vlad the Destroyer crushed a grand slam in the 1st that landed over the fountains in left-center and bounced onto the base of the scoreboard. I've never seen a ball go that far in that stadium. Very impressive.

I knew the Royals would have a slow start because of a tough April schedule, but not this slow. When their pitching is on, they don't hit. When they score some runs, they don't pitch. Frustrating.

In other news, super-prospect Billy Butler made his major league debut and went 2-4 with 2 singles. I'm kind of surprised they brought him up because there really isn't a lot of playing time in the outfield for him. I wouldn't rush out to pick him up in fantasy because I doubt he'll get that much time.

KC salvaged a split of the Angels series with wins in the last 2 games. Gil Meche pitched another great game, giving up only a Vlad 2-run HR in the first through 7 innings. Meche is currently 3rd in the AL in ERA at 2.23.

With Reggie Sanders going on the DL with a torn hamstring (damn that Yankee strength and conditioning coach!!), it looks like Billy Butler will get more playing time than I thought. He's currently 4 for 12 on the season, so he's not off to the slow start that Alex Gordon is. Maybe he'll be that spark that the offense needs to really get going.

We're better than Washington!! Woot!!!

Koop, if you're out there lurking.. this one's for you buddy...

http://www.kansascity.com/180/story/105060.html


The royals suck.

What's funny is that the Royals are 6-2 since that article came out.

We passed the Nationals! W00t!

The Royals started off miserable as usual but something seems to have clicked somewhere as they have won the last 3 series. Had a chance for the sweep last night with J. De La Rosa going, who has been excellent at home, but a 5 run first for the Indians did in the Royals. No sweep but still 8-3 in the last 11 games so things are looking up once again.

Sweeney, Teahen, Gordon, and E. Brown have started to hit better, almost like average MLBers woo hoo. It seems as though they are gaining some confidence in these guys as steals, hit and runs, squeeze plays, etc. are being attempted more frequently lately (I think).

With Dotel coming back from the DL and taking over the closing duties from Soria (presumably), that gives the bullpen a huge boost although they have been good since Greinke was moved into the setup/long reliever role.

The Mariners come to town this weekend for 3 games, and then 3 with the Orioles.

Mariners v. Royals
F. Hernandez (2-2 2.77) v. G. Meche (3-2 2.44)
C. Seung Baek (1-2 5.50) v. B. Bannister (0-2 4.39)
J. Washburn (4-4 3.15) v. O. Perez (2-4 5.20)

Orioles v. Royals
S. Trachsel (3-3 3.77) v. S. Elarton (1-0 6.00)
J. Guthrie (2-1 3.09) v. J. De La Rosa (4-4 4.65)
E. Bedard (3-2 4.28) v. G. Meche (3-2 2.44)

Man, being a fan of this team can be tough. Just when I thought they might be turning it around a little bit, the pitching staff completely falls apart, not that they have been putting up a ton of runs either. Two straight nights giving up 10 runs, losing 10-3, then 10-2. Oh well Gordon is actually starting to look like he could live up to the hype. He is smashing the ball just about every at-bat, his outs are a lot more of the line drive variety rather than the pop up or whiff variety of April. Dotel pitched a scoreless inning tonight, Greinke got crushed and Meche left with an injured back. The injury sounds minor but could nag him for a while.

-Edit being a fan of this team IS tough

I miss Koop, TRB05, you have to replace him. Make sure you have unrealistic expectations of the Royals, and then make insane predictions off of them. Then, we will mock your team, you will get upset and tell us that your team really isn't as bad as they appear to be. Make sure to act like no one knows more about baseball then yourself.

just rub your ears with a cheese grater...it accomplishes the same thing while not having to listen to three hours of "smack"

Koop is irreplaceable, I wish he would return.

That said, here goes...

I really think these guys can compete with anyone, I mean we're only as far back as the Yankees are trailing the Red Sox and no one seems to be counting the Yanks out just yet. Why can't the Royals make a sick run and slide into the playoffs, upsetting teams on their way to a World Series win. It will happen mark my words! You guys just can't see the upside of all the young players we have, because I know baseball and no one else does.



I'll try harder next time, this team is wearing me out.

Well.... beating the cross-state rivals sure is sweet (2/3). Offense has been very strange the last 6 games going from bombing to almost no-hit and back in two consecutive series is a little odd but I guess it's better than getting shut out every other game. Oh by the way, Alex Gordon has homered in two straight and on Wednesday night he hit an absolute BOMB, one of the farthest homers I remember in Kaufmann in a while. His homer tonight wasn't a squeker either and he has raised his average over .200 for the first time all year (wooo hoooo!)

Anyway look the f*ck out for the Royals (if you're in the NL anyway)

Dropped down to page 2? Bump!

Anyway, the Royals have been playing much better baseball lately. They just took 2 of 3 from Boston in Fenway and have won 12 of their last 19. Their second half schedule is ugly at the start with @Cleveland, @Boston, @Detroit and then the Yankees, but KC is a solid 3-3 so far.

Billy Bulter is the real deal and even Alex Gordon has picked it up after a horrible start. Of course the Royals still aren't going anywhere this year, but after a slow start dimmed the high expectations this year, I'm starting to get more excited about their potential in the future.

Hav


Haven't been here in a while...but I KNEW my thread was still going!! LONG LIVE KANSAS CITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LONG LIVE KOWBOYKOOP!!!

KK IS BACK BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How you do you feel about JDLR?

I was a pretty big fan of his in Milwaukee...he seemed like he had a lot of potential.

How has his year been?

He's been very inconsistent, but you can definitely see the potential. I think he should stay in the rotation and try and figure things out.....b/c when he is on he can actually be pretty solid. I think he can turn into a solid #3/4 starter if he can tweak his mechanics to give him some more consistency..he's still fairly young, so I think he should get a shot at doing that in our rotation. If by the AS break next year he still hasn't figured anything else out, then perhaps it'll be time to give up on him...

Koop, glad you're back on the job. What's the story with the trade deadline? Is KC going to move Dotel or Reggie Sanders? I know the Dodgers need a reliever, but we've been asking for the moon. I saw a rumor about Grienke to the Cubs, but hopefully that's BS.

Dotel is a lock to be traded. He'll likely go for a near-ready 2B or SS prospect...maybe even a ML ready one. Sanders will MOST LIKELY be traded...but probably not for a whole lot in return....Greinke to the Cubs is BS, the Cubs think he is only a reliever...they think they can get him for almost nothing in return...they don't realize that he is a legit top prospect....which he still is....and the other guys who may be traded are Grudzielanek and Brown...both of whom need to get off our team. Grudz is alright, but is getting old and Esteban German is a MUCH better offensive player..and Brown just sucks as$.

Welcome back. You can change the Justin Guarini avatar now.

So should I pick up Soria now?

I probably would just in case..there's a small chance he won't take over the closer role...but most likely he will....he's been the nuts so far this year......hopefully it will keep up.

How funny was the headline "Emil Brown shoots reporter"? Then I realized it was only a pellet gun. WTF? Koop, I bet you hope he goes to jail anyway.

Yes, I do hope he goes to jail. He'd play better defense in there than in our outfield.

Alex gordon is from my home town, so I'm paying a little attention to the royals this year. He's going to make a great Red Sox some day, I hope he learns a bunch from his time on the american league east's farm team.

Lol...okay. Gordon has already made it well known that he plans on staying in KC for a long time and will give KC a significant discount when that time comes....also, with our new GM and payroll escalating for each of the next 3-4 years....I think you're gonna be in trouble on that one. Good luck with former Royal Kyle Snyder though.....lol.

LMAO you believe in the tooth fairy too? the only way he stays with the royals is if he never becomes the player he has been hyped to become. Because if he lives up to his purported potential ( which I admit I have no idea how good he really is, everyone in nebraska think's he's the second coming of George Brett, but they have extreme husker and home town kid goggles).


Also, I'm not a Red Sox fan, just using them as an example of one of the many teams that has raided the Royal talent pool.