I just wanted to bring this thread back up for the start of the new season. I hope that Koop can continue with his running commentary. I'm thinking about buying the baseball package this year so I can watch some more games (and keep up with my NL rotisserie league).

Here's a link to a new Royals blog by Rany Jazayerli, one of the founders of the Baseball Prospectus. He's a big Royals fan, and his blog is pretty upbeat for the start of this season. I really haven't been following the team too closely yet, but I like the direction they're heading.

Quick prediction for the royals this year: they will continue to suck.

Cleveland Indians: 93-69
Detroit Tigers: 89-73
Minnesota Twins: 76-86
Kansas City Royals: 75-87
Chicago White Sox: 73-89

These predictions are based on Liriano being 100% healthy all year...or at least a majority of it. If he gets hurt early or isn't the same guy as he was in 2006 (which I think is about 40% likely...), I think the Twins could drop to 4th. The Royals had the 7th best ERA in the AL last year...Meche has looked awesome so far this spring, Bannister might regress a little to the 4.20 ERA range...Greinke carries a lot of momentum into this season with the way he finished last year, and our #4 and 5 guys should be a lot stronger than last year. Also, the phenom Billy Butler continues to rake....Gordon, Butler, and Guillen in the heart of the order should improve the offense...and hopefully Alberto Callaspo can take the starting 2B job..he's got a pretty decent bat out of the #2 hole. Should continue to impove.......6 game improvement two years ago...7 game improvement last year......this year if the young bats improve (the pitching is what it is, not elite, but certainly not terrible)..we could take an even bigger leap forward, but I'll just project modest improvement from guys like Gordon, Butler, and Teahen.....so I'll go with 75-87..but really I expect that could be the low end of what we should finish.....our pythagorean record actually was 75-87....so I could see up approaching the .500 mark....but we'll see.

Nice start to the season with an Opening Day win over the Tigers 5-4 in 11 innings. They came back from a 3-0 deficit and while Meche didn't pitch all that great, the bullpen picked him up by giving up only 2 hits and 1 run in 5 innings. Alex Gordon hit a 2-run bomb and saved the game with a diving stop in the 11th to record the final out.

It was funny watching right after the game on ESPN, the guys in the studio were shocked that we had won...couldn't find the words to explain what just happened....too bad the "greatest offense in the history of baseball" couldn't get it done.....Suck it Detroit. Suck it. If only for one day, suck it.

If Leo Nunez can pitch like that every time, I don't think the loss of Riske is going to mean much. I like the overall aggressiveness the Royals showed today, but I think perhaps Grudzielanik stealing in the first inning is a little overboard, but it worked so what the hell do I know.

BTW, Ivan Rodriquez sure looked like crap today.

Yeah, I wouldn't want Grudz running too much, especially with the bat in Gordon's hands. What I like most was our offensive approach, we faced a really tough pitcher who was on, and despite a very inconsistent strike zone (on both sides), our guys were patient and worked some counts...it's only one game though. Hopefully we can carry that throughout the season, b/c guys like Butler and Guillen are gonna get theirs, we just need the guys to be on base when they do mash.

Wow. Brian Bannister is the man. And I won't even go into The Greatest Offense in the Universe, I'll let Koop do it.

KC going for the sweep tomorrow!!

Man, just think, outside of Edgar Renteria, we no-hit the greatest offense of all time......lol.


Can't wait to read the game recaps on this one, I'm sure all the talk will be about Detroit, with no credit given to us......good to see Butler mash that double to CF, that's a home run in every other park.........

Only negative was Gordon striking out three times......gotta be more aggressive up there.

I freaking benched Butler today and played Gordon. Dammit!

It was a pretty boring game but still a good effort by the Royals. They deserve the credit.

If I had to pick the better fantasy option, I'd say it's Butler hands down. Gordon still seems a bit too up and down.....he does add some SB value though. As for Butler, he simply hits the ball hard EVERY GAME...he always hits it hard, he's gonna hit for a good average and should push the 90+ RBI mark....18-20 HRs probably.....

World's Greatest Offense with 5 runs in 3 games. Awesome.

We're starting to see the results of us developing those young arms.......there's a lot more on the way. Good to see Gordon with another bomb...hopefully the young bats can continue to progress...we aren't going to have a good enough offense this year to be a contender, but if they can keep getting better and our young arms keeping progressing in AA and AAA, '09 could be the year we finally become a contender for the division. Hopefully we can just keep making progress and make a run at .500 this year...I still say 74-76 wins is about right....but we're off to an awfully good start.

GL Royals.


The Afflac trivia question on the Mets vs Marlins broadcast the other night was 'Who is the manager of the Kansas City Royals?'

Royals go down 4-3 at Minnesota tonight. Tough game...Twins simply hit a ton of ground balls that just found holes....only three real solid hits all game..four infield singles.......we had a few hard hit balls right at people, that's baseball though. Our #4 guy John Bale looked pretty decent despite some rough luck..and the bullpen was lights out again. Tough call to end the game as Mark Teahen was rung up on a 3-2 pitch well outside with a runner on 1st and two outs.....but it still would've taken another hit to tie or win it.......part of the game. Meche going tomorrow, hopefully we can keep playing pretty decent.

That pitch was too close to take in that situation. It didnt look more than 3 inches off the plate. But I was flipping around and just happened to catch it. So I dont know how the game had been called all night.

I agree, gotta hack at the close ones, it isn't the first questionable strike call of the season and won't be the last, but it looked like a pretty clear ball...and again, it only would've been a walk, we still would've needed another hit to just tie it, so it didn't really cost us the game. Just a bad break.

Yup. I'll say this for the Royals. They actually have some talent worth watching. I'll always be a Cards fan first, but its nice that the Royals dont appear to be a complete joke anymore.

Royals win today 3-1. Finish road trip 4-2....Royals home opener on Tuesday against the Yankees.....good start to the season for us for once.

Also, Billy Butler 3-for-4 with two doubles, batting average up to .400......this young kid is a flat out machine.....pretty much smashes the ball every time he's up.....has a legit shot to bat .320 or so this year.....big time bat. He'll turn 22 later this year.

Royals win their home opener 5-2 against the New York Yankees. Bannister survives a shaky inning to get the win..the bullpen is lights out so far......offense bunched some hits together...Billy Butler continues to mash the ball, Teahen and Gordon off to nice starts......Jose Guillen is struggling so far, hopefully he can pick it up......5-2 start to the year, not bad.

Watched it on YES, good game for KC. Please keep beating the Yankees.

The bullpen has been absolutely dominant. Nunez and Soria are ridiculous so far. 5 games up on the Tigers so far! Ha!

Hey, Koop, hear anything about Guillen and his suspension getting lifted? It's supposed to start Thursday IIRC if there's no new agreement on a new drug policy.

Nobody knows. Hopefully they put another stay on it...........it's BS that they won't tell us what's going on with our "best" power hitter.......then again, he's struggling right now, so maybe we won't miss him if he has to serve the suspension....hopefully he won't miss any games....he'll snap out of his funk soon enough.

6-2

Guillen's suspension put on "hold" again...most likely he won't serve any of it once they come to a new drug agreement. He is still struggling...but did have one hit today.......hopefully he can get going and pump up the offense a bit.....we have some nice hitters, Teahen and Gordon and especially Butler......couple other decent hitters..but we need that big bat in the middle to really take us to the next level if we even want to think about being contenders.

Not just any old hit for Guillen, but a big 2-out RBI single that he took the other way. A nice piece of hitting that he didn't do earlier in the game. He doesn't have to hit a HR every time. Just get that RBI single and let Gordon and Bulter drive him in.

When do we hit the panic button on the offense? The Royals haven't scored over 5 runs yet, which has been OK since the pitching has been pretty much outstanding, but I don't think they can sustain a winning record scoring 3-5 runs a game in the AL.

I suppose once Gullien gets his stroke, maybe the whole offense will (hopefully) turn around, but through 12 games they stink. Butler is a machine though.

What do you guys think as far as Gathright vs. DeJesus when DeJesus comes back? I think Gathright is the more dynamic player, with the speed totally affecting the defense when he gets on base, but it drives me nuts when he's up with 2 outs and a runner on 1st, or a guy on 2nd with no outs to a lesser degree because he has very limited ability to pull the ball, and especially with any authority. There have been some signs of improvement there, and hopefully he can get a little more "pop" in his bat. Anyway, I think the differences between the two will totally change the way the team as a whole plays (as far as the lineup goes) unless DeJesus has turned into a decent base-stealer and we just haven't seen it yet. /end ramble

The offense is gonna struggle, but the reason for a lack of production is A. The OBP from the leadoff spot has been terrible, B. Guillen's struggles, and C. the weather. Hopefully when DDJ gets back, the OBP will improve from the leadoff spot and Guillen will heat up...it's just a slump...and hitting in near freezing weather is just tough......we won't have a "good" offense, but it'll get better.

As for DDJ and Gathright..Gathright simply hasn't hit well enough to keep his spot once DDJ gets back, but he'll get a fair number of ABs anyways. I don't care about his SLG % whatsoever..it's all about getting on base with him....DDJ is the more proven quantity and he'll be our leadoff man and should be. Gathright will probably still start a decent amount of games in CF, with DDJ in LF and Teahen at 1B (Hillman has talked abou this) and Gath will probably bat 9th until he can prove he can get on base more. He did have a .371 OBP last year I think....so the potential is there...he just needs to do it for a full season. He'll never have "pop" in his bat, but if Gathright can get on base at a .370 clip or better, he's a big weapon. We'll see what happens.

Well, it would be nice if this "magic" that Kuntz has done with Gathright will rub off on DeJesus, and he would become at least a threat to steal occasionally.

I guess I wasn't really worried about Gathright's slugging, moreso just the ability to pull the ball rather than just a slap or bunt type hitter. I think Lefebvre (sp?) and Splitorff were talking about this on the game yesterday, that pitchers are going to start challenging him inside, forcing him to get around on pitches. IDK, like I said, it's just a little frustrating to know when he's up that he's not going to smoke the ball anywhere, he's going to make contact, and hope it finds a hole or he can beat it out. Of course, he's still young, maybe this will improve like everything else has the last couple years.

Here in KC, Soren Petro (the best KC sports talk show BTW) was talking about Guillen's struggles today and brought up an interesting angle about it. He was talking about his fear that ownership is looking at the big money players they have acquired the last couple of years (Guillen and Meche), and watching how they are struggling big time and thinking they made a mistake spending the money for such little production. Obviously, I don't think they are in panic mode yet, but what if they both struggle a little bit all year, and post average #'s this year. Will they still be willing to go out and get another bat, or pitcher when the two big risks they have taken did not meet expectations? I sure hope so.

Out of curiosity, I checked ESPN's fantasy baseball to see who on the Royals was owned. Last year, I don't think anyone was owned in more than like 30% of the leagues, that was Meche.

This year:
Gordon 100%
Butler 63%
Gathright 32%
Guillen 63%
Greinke 99%
Bannister 84% I suppose this will increase after weekly waiver claims go thru
Meche 23%
Soria 100%

Kinda nice to have some relevant players for a change.

Gathright definitely needs to learn to turn on some pitches more...until he can do that, he's a 4th OF who will bat 9th when he does start (assuming DDJ ever comes back.....)

Also, I don't understand what Soren is trying to say. I don't listen to him, but on other Royals message boards, everyone seems to think he is an idiot. I don't know, but if he REALLY think ownership is thinking they made a mistake in giving Meche a big contract because he has had two bad starts this year....then he is an idiot. Meche was fantastic last year. No, he isn't a true "ace," but he's a pretty good pitcher. As for Guillen, he starts slow every year. This year has been especially slow, but I can 100% guarantee that Dayton Moore isn't regretting the contract based on Guillen struggling for 12 games. If Petro really thinks this, then I would have to say he's an idiot. Even if they do struggle all year, that isn't going to make them stop spending money.....Moore has already stated he wants to increase payroll to the 75-85 million dollar range over the next couple years....and I believe him. That doensn't mean he's just gonna spend money on FAs just to do it, but I don't think he'll be shy to spend money just b/c one signing might not work out. Besides, most of the money will likely be used to lock guys like Gordon and Butler and Greinke and Soria up......that's the priority. We have a lot of prospects who can potentially help in the upcoming years, we don't need to spend a ton of money on FAs.

Zack Greinke...OMFG he is rediculous. Greinke won't be this good everytime, but when he is on and can throw the curve for a strike.....he's simply gonna dominate every time. Only two balls hit hard the entire game.......unreal how good Greinke has been so far......all KC pitchers for that matter.

Upon further review, it appears the royals may not suck. They are playing really well right now. It would be a refreshing change to have the royals be in playoff contention, and not having so many useless terrible games broadcast in NE. We'll see how long this lasts, but their young arms appear to finally be coming together.

We aren't playoff contenders b/c the offense still needs to develop more...but the arms are definitely here....with more on the way.

I agree with the Gathright situation.

As for Soren, he's not saying that is what he thinks will happen, he's just afraid to think that it might based on the track record of this ownership, and as a fan and season ticket holder, that scares him. I think it is a valid fear to have. It certainly appears that things have changed, but if things don't work out, why wouldn't they go back to the way things were before. Glass has been making plenty of money as a last place club for a while now.

By the way, Soren is by far the best Royals talk in KC. He is a stats geek, and understands big picture type of scenarios that the rest of them just don't get.

Well, again, I have never listened to Soren, so I don't really have an opinion about him, but from what I hear, you either love him or think he's an idiot. I don't think ownership has as much input as in the past b/c that was one of DM's demands before he took the job....he basically told the Glass family to leave him alone and let him do his job and just provide a reasonable amount of money...so unlike when Baird was here and he took the owner's advice into regard so heavily..I don't think that will happen with Moore. Given the track record of the Glass family, however, I suppose it isn't out of line to be concerned about it.

Our offense is ultra pathetic right now. It'll get better, Guillen can't be this bad forever, DDJ is hurt....TPJ is crappy and will be replaced if he keeps hitting like this....but man it's frustrating watching us just suck on offense while we are getting such good pitching.

We are the worst team in baseball right now and it isn't even close. We'll snap out of it eventually, but holy christ we're playing the worst I've ever seen any professional team play in any sport whatsoever.

Not so fast, my friend!


Sorry for putting the jinx on the royals with my approval, KK. They've lost like 7 straight since I posted this.

Our offense is playing the worst I've ever seen an offense play. However, there is more talent on this team than last year's team. I'm not that worried about it. I still say 75 wins. Not great, not terrible.

Yeah, this is the kind of team that at some point in the season will win 7-8 in a row because our pitching is crazy hot, but will also have multiple 7+ game losing streaks too. Hopefully we can develop this young talent and actually *gasp* keep some of it and turn this franchise back into something again.

Thank you Blue Jays....no more losing streak. 8th inning rally, FTW.

Frank White is saying that the play Pena made in the top of the 8th tonight, is the greatest defensive play he's ever seen...Frank White....!

That was huge.

Now, if he can just SLIGHTLY raise that buck fitty six average. You too, Mr. Guillen. I have a real bad feeling that 90% of our wins this year are going to be with us scoring 5 runs or fewer and that's not a good thing.

Well, that's an overstatement. It was a hell of a play, but in and of itself.....not one of the best of all time. However, given the situation in the game...it was unreal how big that play was. Watching on TV, I thought he was just gonna knock it down and make an infield single out of it...I was already thinking about the next batter when he uncorked that throw. Just an out-fcking-standing play.

12-14 record. The offense finall had a big game...gotta be pretty happy with the record considering how bad our offense has been...staying within .500 when every offensive player has slumped...hopefully some guys are starting to come around.

Agreed. Hopefully last night dusted the cobwebs off of Guillen's bat and he can become our one decent power threat.

Good win in Cleveland against CC Sabathia. 13-16 record with a struggling offense....not too bad. The offense will heat up eventually...though it certainly won't be a good offense at any point this year. Nice to see another young pitcher doing well with KC, Hochevar's fastball has a ton of movement on it. Combined with Greinke and Meche and Bannister...that's a nice rotation right there if we can find a quality arm to round it out.

Also, Joakim Soria is the filthiest pitcher in the game. His curveball is unhittable when mixed in with his fastball and changeup. A closer with three outstanding pitches simply isn't gonna fail. The Mariano Rivera comparisons are growing more plentiful.

Crap I thought it was rained out again. Oh well, I wouldn't have seen it anyway since my GODDAMN CABLE IS STILL OUT!!! (Storms Thursday night knocked it out and I still don't have it back).

As Soria goes, I always thought he was a starter in training that did well in the closer role. I'm starting to think that his closer status might just become permanent since he has taken to it so well. But..... if they move him to the rotation sometime (presumably at the beginning of next year) what do you think of that? Obviously starters are more valuable, but what if starting screws him up somehow? At this point I am torn. I'd like to have another quatlity starter (and if hes is as dominant starting as closing it's a no-brainer), but I'd hate to lose the closer we have in trying to gain a starter.

My vote is starter next year. The gain is worth the risk IMO.

I say leave him as a closer for the forseeable future (the next 2-3 years) for two reasons. First, we already have a LOT of good young arms in the organization..Greinke and Bannister and Hochevar are looking awfully good for the next few years and Meche will be here too. That's four spots that are more than likely locked up for a couple years..and we have guys three or four pretty good prospects in AA/AAA that are on the way...and the second reason is his small frame and past arm injuries. He doesn't really have the frame of a real durable, 200 inning guy..and he did hurt him arm a little last year....I just don't think it is worth the risk when we aren't really desperate for another starter at this point....we've got four spots that are already fairly stable and a lot of good arms on the way......


My plan with Soria would be to lock him up to a 4 year deal or so for a reasonably cheap price.....b/c with how well he's going....he'd be worth a LOT of money once he hits free agency.....if he has a great year this year..I'd look into locking him up and leaving him as the closer. He's only 23....plenty of time to be a starter if that's what is in store for him.

Two game sweep in Cleveland. Gil Meche with seven shutout innings..the bullpen flawless as usual..........capped off by Joakim Soria....KC plays an 8 inning game. Soria ain't giving up anything.....routinely a 22-25 mph difference between fastball and curveball.....mix in a great changeup. Wow.

Offense still struggling.....but the pitching is keeping us in it. Only one game back I think.