Rest assured, he'll be certain to post someone else's thoughts in a tweet later.

100 ****ing percent.

Or maybe post a tweet of a rumor that'll never happen.

Dude is batting a low percentage.

Keeping Hochevar is just....inconceivable. Tells me all I need to know about this franchises commitment to winning.

Your grammar is horrible but I agree with your comments.

Pretty much. Hoch or the lack of him is pretty much the litmus test for GMDM at the moment

How could you be unhappy with this signing so early into the offseason? If this is their legitimate big signing then sure, but we don't know that yet.

Didn't know the grammar police were out tonight. Im an idiot. Are you an english teacher??

3 days in a great start. Haren will likely get traded friday and probably will require more in a trade. I hope they are entertaining him as well if he does not have the Royals on his no trade list

big if.

Well.. we finally agree on something.

Santana after the All-Star break:

74.2 IP, 65 H, 19 BB, 60 K, 4.34 ERA.

Not great, but not nearly as terrible as his awful first half. Hopefully he figured it out. He still gave up a lot of HRs though. But he did have two 10+ K outings in September. There's at least a glimmer of hope there.

I love baseball and I love my Royals. It's rough right now, but I know we can turn it around.

Hey, did you guys know I used to play baseball? I can't imagine where I'd be now if I had continued. Not starting in the NFL! What a different life that would have been.

I love baseball and I love my Royals. It's rough right now, but I know we can turn it around.

Hey, did you guys know I used to play baseball? I can't imagine where I'd be now if I had continued. Not starting in the NFL! What a different life that would have been.

At least we didn't overpay for Sanatana. Wish we had worked out something for Haren though.
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Add Haren & Sanchez...I think that's the best we can hope for.

Royals’ pickup of Santana is an OK start, but just OK

By SAM MELLINGER
The Kansas City Star

Nice, but not enough. Better, but not good. An improvement, but that’s a backhanded compliment.

Days after shaking Royals fans with awkwardly worded statements that sounded a whole like a time machine back to 2005, general manager Dayton Moore gave them reason for qualified optimism by acquiring starting pitcher Ervin Santana for the modern-day baseball equivalent of peanuts.

The Royals owe Santana $12 million for 2013 but give up only a 27-year-old minor-league reliever whom they were about to part with anyway for the best starting pitcher they’ve had since Zack Greinke. Santana, in oversimplified terms, is better than the kind of free agent the Royals might’ve given a three-year deal to.

In other words, it is an upgrade for the immediate future without sacrificing the long-term.

This is the rare move signed off with unanimous approval within the Royals front office, in large part because it doesn’t put a brake on the team’s ability to chase more (and much needed) upgrades.

A good cheat sheet: It’s a decent move now, and becomes a very good one if the Royals improve enough that Santana isn’t the opening-day starter.
Santana, who turns 30 in December, was rotten in 2012: 5.16 ERA and a league-high 39 home runs in 178 innings. But he was very good the two years before that: 3.65 ERA with a high strikeout rate and an average of 225 innings.

If you look at advanced metrics, four of Santana’s eight big-league seasons are better than anything the Royals have had since Greinke.

That’s a bit of faint praise, of course, but the real promise here is that the Royals can still do more — if anything, acquiring Santana helps them make the next move.

Baseball executives like to say there is no such thing as a bad one-year deal, and even if $12 million is a bit more than Santana’s worth, it’s better than paying $27 million or so over three years — what one personnel man estimated to be Santana’s value on the free-agent market.

A Royals source said the team hopes to add two more starting pitchers. The ideal scenario would be one free agent and one trade. The Royals operate at a disadvantage in the money-first free-agent market but have an advantage in the prospects-driven trade market.

Realistic free-agent targets might be Jeremy Guthrie or Brandon McCarthy. Realistic trade targets might be James Shields or even Jeremy Hellickson. With Santana serving as something like a high-upside placeholder for the Royals’ own slower-moving-than-expected prospects, the team can backload a free-agent offer so the big money comes in once Santana is off the books. If the Royals particularly like a trade acquisition, they’re in good position to negotiate an extension.

The Royals are not as far from competing as last season’s disappointment suggests, and in a backward way, that may end up as an obstacle. Rick Porcello, for instance, would be a much better fit in front of the Royals’ athletic defense than he is in Detroit, but the Tigers are more hesitant to deal with the Royals than they would’ve been a few years ago.

But if Moore agrees to the right relief pitcher (Aaron Crow, for instance), it might be too good a fit for either team to say no.

Whatever happens in the coming weeks and months, the Royals have positioned themselves well. Guthrie might get away through free agency, but the offseason is not even a week old and the Royals have added two starting pitchers.

Santana should slot toward the front end of the Royals rotation, and waiver claim Chris Volstad is a no-risk flier (the Royals will either non-tender him or sign him to a small contract).

So this is a good start. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s an upgrade no matter what happens the rest of the offseason, but woefully inadequate if this turns out to be the centerpiece acquisition.

Indications are strong that the Royals can and will make bigger improvements, and that’s the best part of the trade.

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/10/31...#storylink=cpy

Ervin Santana!

A low risk move without giving up anyone projected to contribute. (Sisk) Still need two more starters. Also, I hope Hochevar was swept out to sea by Sandy.

If those reports are correct, that they are looking at acquiring 2 more Starters, then Hoch will be out the door. This is the best news of all. At this point he's nothing more than a backup plan if they aren't able to acquire anything.

I like.

Hochevar just needs more time!


honestly though he needs to be put in as a set up guy....let him gas it out for an inning. I also wouldn't be opposed to just letting him walk though LOL

I'm not going to come and piss on the campfire, BUT I would think if the Angels had confidence in Santana, they would fight harder to keep him. I mean, the Angels have bats...they need arms! You would think good pitching would be very valuable to them.

Just thinking out loud.

Grienke and Weaver is a pretty good place to start with a staff assuming they get Zack resigned.

All right... let's talk about moves that are still out there, potentially. Trading for Santana, combined with Moore's very public statements, makes me think there MIGHT be hope something else of note is coming down the pipe.

In order of preference:

1) Sign Anibal Sanchez. He's the second-best guy on this market, so it won't come cheap in years or total dollars. But this is the type of guy you can afford to give 4-5 years to if you're the Royals. He's young, still in his prime, and he's got top-tier No. 2 stuff. The type of No. 2 who can do a nice impersonation of an ace in key spots. Plus, signing him would weaken the Tigers, who are pretty hot on re-signing him now.

2) Kick the tires on James Shields, David Price, and Josh Johnson. If you can get one of these guys without giving up a core hitter (Myers, Hosmer, Moustakas, Gordon, Butler), I would take a long, hard look.

Shields and Price would be the primary targets because they're controlled for multiple years (Shields for two at a total of $21 million, Price at three for arbitration dollars), but would also be the most costly. Price's cost probably starts with Eric Hosmer. Shields' price would likely be lower.

Johnson honestly would probably be the easiest to acquire. Something like Yordano Ventura/Jorge Bonifacio/Jason Adam might be enough. That's two top 100 guys and a borderline top 100 guy, but Johnson is a stud when healthy AND is from the midwest/wants to play in the midwest long-term. Who knows. If you bring him in and he's successful, you might have a shot at re-signing him (and he's only 28).

3) Explore Danny Haren. Yes, he has a bad back. Yes, his velocity was down this year as a result. But he's likely to be available for $12 million bucks and some minor prospects. It won't be someone as inconsequential in the Royals' grand scheme of things as Brandon Sisk, but it also won't require a core guy.

4) Re-sign Jeremy Guthrie to a two-year deal. It's not flashy, but it would be a nice piece in combination with acquiring one more guy who's better than he is.

5) Be open to other trades. There's probably a pitcher out there who's available for the right price who's name hasn't emerged yet. See Gio Gonzalez and Mat Latos a year ago.

6) Look for a guy who's looking to build value for a big deal on a one-year contract, or a solid veteran who can provide league average pitching. This could be someone coming off of an injury like Brandon McCarthy or Shaun Marcum, or someone like Kevin Millwood who isn't going to set the world on fire but will give you 30 starts, a bunch of innings, and a league-average ERA.
...

And stay the hell away from Kyle Lohse. He's going to get big money and a lot of years, and he isn't going to be worth the risk he carries (Cardinals' post-hype success story leaving the Cardinals, moving to the tougher league, etc). Lohse is going to get the type of contract that can cripple a small-market team.

Angels play in a different league in terms of salaries. They're dumping Santana and Harden so they can then go pay the best FA pitcher in the market in Greinke.

They want the payroll flex to go big on Zack Greinke.

Weaver and C.J. Wilson are signed long-term. Garrett Richards is seen as a bright young arm, and he's cheap.

Greinke, Weaver and Wilson would be a very formidable top 3.

Not necessarily. The Angels want to re-sign Greinke. They would have owed Santana $13 million so by letting him go they are giving themselves a much better chance to get Greinki. The likely can't have both guys (also why Haren is likely gone) so I sure they would rather gamble for Greinki than be guaranteed Santana.

Dayton was just on 610 with Bob Fescoe. He mentioned a team offered two pitching prospects both about a year away for Salvy and he told them no. He also said no one is untouchable including Hosmer, but he went on to say he wanted to basically keep this young group of guys that are signed long term all together.

I really, really hope Salvy is a Royal for a long time.

He's quickly become the anchor of this team. And my favorite player.

A friend that was listening told me DM didn't deny that we were going to at least kick the tires on Greinke

I wasn't excited about the Santana signing for the same reasons as a few others... but reading some of the more positive opinions and logic it doesn't seem so bad now.

STOP GETTING ME SOMEWHAT EXCITED FOR NEXT SEASON! I'M TRYING TO HAVE LOW EXPECTATIONS!

I would still keep those low expectations.

It's fine to be happy/excited about the trade. On paper, it looks like a great one for us. But even if Santana has a career year in 2013, that alone won't carry us anywhere.

Feel free to raise expectations when we sign one or two more starters that are Santana-esque or better.

Don't worry it shouldn't be hard heh.

Yeah he did say we were going to look at all the free agents basically and that none were not off their radar.

But "we'll never be an $85 million a year team." So which is it DM?

Dayton on 810 now. Says Hochevar is part of the rotation until we can find an alternative. At least he acknowledges we need an alternative.

Well that's interesting and somewhat encouraging.

I don't see much similarity between this and the Sanchez trade. We gave up an extremely productive player there. This is a glorified FA signing. Actually, it is less than a FA signing, as the Angels are eating a bit of salary.

You can keep those until we see what else is done.

If this is backed up by... Chris Volstad, well, low expectations remain.

If Dayton uses his head and backs it up by acquiring two more pitchers of value, then the expectations can raise a bit.

I mean, say they bring in Anibal Sanchez, Santana and bring back Guthrie. That's a winning collection.

Or Josh Johnson, Santana, Guthrie.

Or even Shields, Santana, and an average guy on a one-year deal.

It's all about where they go form here at this point.

We aren't getting Anibal Sanchez. Who would go from being in the World Series to signing in KC...

Might as well of just kick all the Royals fans right in the nads.

Like we aren't used to that... LMAO

Put yourself in his shoes for a sec.

Hey Anibal, KC called. (Anibal gives confused look). Yeah don't worry I just hung up on them.

Not saying they would. Just saying that would be an expectation-raising move.

I want them to sign Sanchez. But I have no real strong belief that it will happen.

I'll bow down to you forever that day forward if it happens.

:)

More pessimism you all might have heard: Some guy on the radio this morning was speculating that prices for pitchers are going to skyrocket this offseason due to the new MLB TV contract. Guys who would have normally signed for “decent” deals are gonna get paid like aces.

Its probably a reason that some pitchers who were free agents last year signed one-year deals – they knew there could be a goldmine this year.

I like this alternative just fine. Maybe Marcum as the average guy? This puts 2 horses at the top that at least give you 200+ innings right off the bat. Wouldn't have to give up the farm for Shields, although it would take giving up some value.

I wonder if there's anything to Mellinger's Crow-for-Porcello idea.

http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/new...=pr_kc&c_id=kc

For what its worth, Mike Groopman has been promoted to chief math nerd (he used to write for Baseball Prospectus), and they promoted a recent Yale/MIT grad to assistant math nerd.

So, what [realistic] move by GMDM would get you psyched for the Royals in 2013?

I think re-signing Guthrie and ditching Hoch might be enough to do it as this point. Maybe upgrading 2nd base would be realistic as well. I would love to see a 3rd arm added, but having 2 legit top to middle of the rotation guys to start the season would at least get me somewhat excited.

"psyched"? 2 more pitchers as potentially good or better than Santana and Hoch out.

"hopeful"? Eh, 1 more to replace Hoch would be enough.

Has the Twitter dipshit posted viable FA pitching options the Royals could have had other than Santana yet?

To the surprise of absolutely no one, the Royals declined Soria's option. He is now a free agent.

Yes but both sides are willing to negotiate a new contract. I wouldn't have paid Soria the $7m-$8m he was due either.

I'm sure he'll be in here soon enough to tell us who we missed out on and how we could have done better

I don't know that I buy all of that.

I mean, Jake Peavy's deal (2 years, $29 million) doesn't seem crazy at all. And he was one of the 3-4 best guys on the market.

That's actually a considerable discount on what Peavy made a season ago.

I think we'll see some inflation, but not crazy, crazy numbers.

Something must have bit me on Halloween because DM didn't sound too stupid in his interview on 810, and I was left with optimism for the rest of the off-season.

It's the same schmoozing that he's given the Glass family for so long. Don't believe it.

Yeah, the amount of evidence of his incompetence is damn near insurmountable.

Well stop that shit right now mister!

Good. Re-sign him for less if you can or let him go. After 3 TJ's and his up and down season before you can't pay that much.

DM said that with Soria he wouldn't think that next year he could pitch anymore then 35-40 innings. Yeah you pay him the minimum to come in and not a penny more.

wow. The SP pitching market is very thin, the Angels are unloading all this payroll to probably sign Greinke. We weren't getting him, but if he re-signs we're competing with other teams who would have wanted Greinke.

I hope we're in on Dan Haren. The Angels have until 9pm (11pm our time I think) Friday night to work out a trade for him. If we're willing to pay $12MM for Santana, we'd have to be willing to pay that for Haren as well, especially since we can save a ton of money by cutting Hoch. I presume we're probably one of the 12 teams on his no-trade list, but maybe Ervin Santana coming here will convince him to waive that.

Reports are that Haren's no trade list was reduced to 8 as part of his contract in 2011.

The Tigers and Twins have been on his no-trade list in the past, as well as the Yankees and Red Sox. I'm not sure it's a given the Royals are one of the 8 teams remaining on it.

http://www.royalsreview.com/2012/11/...ly-butler-does

http://www.royalsreview.com/2012/11/...ly-butler-does

C'mon, those are nerd statistics. Scouts' eyes say he was "squaring up on the ball" much better.

Aren't DM and Pioli the same person? Never seen them in the same place at the same time.

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/11/02...ter-moves.html

The Royals were busy on Friday making several roster moves.

They claimed right-handed pitcher Guillermo Moscoso from the Rockies and catcher Brett Hayes from the Marlins. They also lost right-handed reliever Blake Wood on waivers to the Cleveland Indians.

Kansas City designated three players for assignment: left-handed pitcher Tommy Hottovy, right-hander Jeremy Jeffress and outfielder Jason Bourgeois.

Two pitchers who had been on the 60-day disabled list were reinstated: left-hander Danny Duffy and right-hander Felipe Paulino. The Royals also sent catcher Manny Pina to Class AAA Omaha on outright assignment. Their roster now stands at 40.

Maybe Moscoso is a guy that will have much more success once he get's out of CO. Looked like he had good splits away from CO as a reliever.

Home
26.2 IP 41H 27ER 13BB 25K 9.11ERA 2.03WHIP

AWAY
23.1 IP 26H 7ER 6BB 22K 2.70ERA 1.37 WHIP

woah..

That's a big difference.

That's what she said.

It reminds me of the difference we saw in Gutrie's numbers when looking at the trade. Let's hope this one works out as well as Guthrie did.

that's a hell of a difference in scenery.

Do the Rockies have enough pitchers for everyone in the league to get one or two?

The Angels have only about 6 hours left to trade Dan Haren

looks like hes going to the cubbies

Cubs trade Carlos Marmol for Haren.

We must have been on Haren's no-trade list. Marmol is not difficult at all for us to beat, and if money was an issue, we would have spent it on Haren instead of Santana.

Yep . Not surprising though. Lol
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