So, this happened:
https://mobile.twitter.com/Ken_Rosen...68403611172864

Kind of saves the Royals. Davis, Cain, Hosmer, Moustakas, and Duffy would all be in line to get that type of deal. And with their no 28 market size, probably maxes out the compensation.


Hard to say. What he does this year and next will say a lot about what he is going to become. Just need more data to know for sure, since his profile/background is so up and down.

He could be worse. He could be better. He could be the same.


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I really like his approach and natural power. He was more natural at third than I expected. His pitch recognition will be his key and imo he has the instincts to improve in that area.

This is interesting too.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Also: The <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Athletics?src=hash">#Athletics</a> will be phased out as a revenue-sharing recipient over the next four years.</p>&mdash; Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/804169004311056385">December 1, 2016</a></blockquote>
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why?

They were included in the small revenue group last time to help the franchise survive while figuring out its stadium situation. It didn't.

Oaklands majority owner is the fourth richest dude in baseball and that's a big market. They're not small market by any means.


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Yeah but no one outside the Oakland area gives a crap about the As.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">APNewsBreak: Baseball&#39;s All-Star Game no longer to determine World Series home-field advantage. <a href="https://t.co/WHNiErncmu">https://t.co/WHNiErncmu</a></p>&mdash; AP Sports (@AP_Sports) <a href="https://twitter.com/AP_Sports/status/804225218457858048">December 1, 2016</a></blockquote>
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So it basically will be like the pro bowl now

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Consider the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Royals?src=hash">#Royals</a>. Might be more inclined to trade some of their 2017 free agents, knowing they cannot get first rounder for making QO.</p>&mdash; Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/804301906231394304">December 1, 2016</a></blockquote>
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They had to end the ASG deal, the NL wasn't competitive at all

I take it he means those they don't think will get $50 million deals. I would expect Hos and Moose to easily get that, based on length of contract alone.

Cain might be iffier given his age. He'll be 32 in April 2018. Will he get a 4-year deal for 2018-2021 with an AAV of around $13M? Or a 3-year deal with an AAV of more than $16M?

Davis I'm almost sure won't get $50M. So trade Cain and Davis now.

This was interesting too: The disabled list will be shortened from 15 days to 10 days.

Well so much for Davis to the nationals, just read that mucutcheon going to be traded to them.

.

Terrible CBA. We get screwed on our draft picks when guys we can't sign become free agents. The ASG no longer decides anything. I loved the fact that the ASG meant something. Now it's just a sham, once again. How is that good?

For Cain, it's really all about his health. If he stays relatively healthy and puts up another good year, I think he'll get much more than $50 million. He's only two years removed from being an MVP candidate. I think he'd be able to get an Alex Gordon contract, if nothing else. The Royals clearly played better with him in the lineup too.

sorry for spelling dick, not sure why people have to point stuff like this out. Does it make you feel better about yourself?

So couldn't teams just cock block the previous team (the 50M contract for draft pick) by just making a contract with stupid bonuses. 4 year, 49million deal but said player gets 20million bonus for chewing gum etc.

Pretty much. I think that the old format was okay because the ASG was generally worth the watch for the casual baseball fan. There was definitely a degree of competitiveness. Was it worth randomizing home field advantage for the WS? Probably not.. at all, but the MLB ASG is definitely one of the most enjoyable and traditional of the major sports. The new format just makes sense and should've been the rule the entire time.

Ned kicked ass in the ASG managing.

Never made sense for the ASG to decide home field advantage for the WS. It's an exhibition game. Might as well have the home run derby decide home field.

Watch Fowler.

Roughly the same age. Cain's a better player (probably) though Fowler has a better health history.

I suspect that both Cain and Davis will beat $50 million if they stay healthy. Davis, when healthy, is on par with guys like Chapman and Jansen - those two guys are going to approach $80+ million, IMO. Hell, I think Melancon will approach $50 million and he's both older and nowhere near as good as Davis.

This diminishes KC's leverage and their draft compensation a little bit, but not by a ton. My biggest issue is that it's making it a tad easier for the big money teams to crush FA signings again.

But on the flipside it's making it harder for them to corner international FAs so there may be some benefit there. How much remains to be seen as when there's a cap across the board and everyone's offering max, it's situations/market that can sell a player and big market teams have an advantage there as they have their high-dollar academies set up and an international presence due to TV.

Personally I think this CBA is a small step backwards in terms of parity and big/small market distinction. I don't think it's an enormous one, but a step back nonetheless.

I honestly had no idea what player you were talking about when your spelling is that bad.

Kit Kat brah

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We have acquired RHP Jared Ruxer from the Angels in exchange for RHP Brooks Pounders. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Royals?src=hash">#Royals</a></p>&mdash; Kansas City Royals (@Royals) <a href="https://twitter.com/Royals/status/804499347501182976">December 2, 2016</a></blockquote>
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Well, that frees up a spot on the 40 man roster now.

Royals get Jack Schitt!

All I know is Staumont is going to be the mo***f****** man next year. #5 starter who comes in and tears it up.

He has the ability to do it. Question is if he can throw enough strikes. He threw around 150 innings in the minors/Arizona Fall League in 2016, so he's positioned to handle 190-200 this season.

Interesting and sneaky little move. Quick review shows me the Angels drafted Ruxer out of Louisville right after he had TJ surgery in 2014.

Opens up a spot on the 40 man while also adding an intriguing arm entering only his second full season since getting 18 months clear of Tommy John.

But you traded a guy with one of the best names in baseball.

Not sure it's worth it.

Pounders was JAG in the minors. Taking up a valuable spot on the 40, so more than likely they were looking at probably losing anyway by removing from the 40. So they floated his name for a wildcard that wouldn't have to be protected for another year.

You're right. They kept Blewett and got rid of Pounders. :cuss:

@jcrasnick: The #Royals have gotten multiple inquiries on Jarrod Dyson. "He fits a lot of teams,'' said one exec. Fast, affordable, can play RF or CF

@jcrasnick: Problem is, Dyson is slotted in to share RF with Paulo Orlando. So the #Royals would have to go out and find replacement if they moved him.

Dyson is also the glue in the clubhouse, messing with chemistry in the locker room might be tough.

I've heard several times that Dyson is a locker room leader, similar to Hosmer just not as active in the media. I don't think the Royals like dealing those guys away.

damn, beat me to it.

Who cares about chemistry, he's cheap and incredibly productive

I used to want to deal Dyson, because he's getting old. But until he shows me that he's declining I don't want to do it. He's legitimately the best deal in baseball the last 5 years. I'm pretty sure he has the most WAR per at bat of any Royal.

It means a lot. They aren't robots like you think they are with your shitty view of Sabermetrics.

I can't see them trading Dyson unless they go into a full-scale fire sale mode. He's just too valuable and cheap to move unless they're done with 2017.

Especially since they want to move Cain off of CF full-time, an input that is escaping the national guys at the moment.


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Sure they are. A bad player is a bad player no matter how nice you think he is, and vice versa. Are you 7 years old or something?

PB thinks everyone is an asshole and no one actually likes anyone else.

Beltran to the Astros

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/1...houston-astros

1 year - $16 mil.

Good for him.

So Astros sign two guys Royals would have liked to supplement an already solid offense in Reddick and Beltran. Lot of time left, but with Mellingers article, I don't have a good feeling about this offseason.

Everyone's going to get better /DM

So Glass is really going cheap now?

Our payroll right now is relatively high, so it's hard to get too upset I suppose. Just wish we'd go hard at winning to close out this window.

Winter meetings haven't started yet. Patience.

The good thing about the Beltran deal is that it was only one year. I don't think we'd go for $17 or 18 million though. The most depressing part of Mellinger's article was that projected opening day payroll is $148 million. I didn't realize it was quite that high.

That might very well be a top 10 payroll. I agree I just don't see Glass signing a guy like Beltran and pushing that to near $170 million. I'm not sure DM would do that either. I could see DM pulling off a Rios-type signing though and maybe getting it to $150-160 million. Since they play this "poor us" card every offseason though, who really knows.

The payroll is why I'm fully expecting another James Shields type of trade. Dozier and another prospect piece for a #3 starter. In terms of a bat, Moore will likely need to look for the type of high risk, high reward type of player - so exactly what Morales was two years ago.

Morales was coming off a worse season than Butler. No one was enthusiastic about that signing. Moore will need to take a similar gamble here***

***Without resigning Billy plz.

I totally think the Royals make a trade here.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Some big news: Cabrillo graduate and <a href="https://twitter.com/Royals">@Royals</a> star Danny Duffy has accepted offer to play for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.</p>&mdash; Joe Bailey (@JBaileySMSports) <a href="https://twitter.com/JBaileySMSports/status/805253897883418625">December 4, 2016</a></blockquote>
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Good for Danny. Makes me a little nervous... WBC participation has not been great for pitchers in the recent past. Hopefullly, he gets light work similar to ST.

Winter Meetings open tonight. Should see some action soon. Way I see it, Royals have three options for 2017:

1) Blow out the payroll and add a free agent bat at DH like Matt Holliday, and a SP. I'd be interested to see where Tyson Ross ends up... fairly big risk with him, but he's a big strikeout guy who gets a ton of ground balls. Coming off thoracic outlet surgery, he could be a guy that signs a one-year "prove it" deal. And could make a ton of sense for KC if the bidding doesn't get crazy high.

2) make a trade (or two) that fill other holes from positions of strength. This would require moving someone like Wade Davis or Lorenzo Cain. I don't like the idea of moving both and don't believe you get enough value back from Cain to do it, but Davis, in this market for closers? Yeah.

3) sit pat. Hope that Cain/Hosmer/Moustakas bounce back and improve the offense enough that you're in it at the trade deadline and can add some reinforcements. Hope the fifth spot in the rotation can be answered well enough with Minor/Young/Stahm/Staumont/Zimmer/Junis/etc to follow the same plan.


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Angel Pagan is a name we haven't talked about but who holds some interest for me.

He's old and has had injury issues in the past, but when healthy, he's a quality leadoff option who also switch hits.

Would be an upgrade from Cuthbert as a rotating DH option, could play RF or LF, too. And offer a switch hitting option at the top of the lineup.

Vs RH
Pagan - DH
Moustakas - 3B
Cain - RF (or swap with Pagan once a week or twice a week)
Hosmer - 1B
Perez - C
Gordon - LF
2B - merrifield
CF - Dyson
SS - Escobar

Against lefties, Dyson sits for Orlando or Dozier.

I like that lineup better with a proven middle of he order guy like Holliday to protect Hosmer and improve the middle of the lineup, but this is a cheaper and more versatile option.

I'd KC does end up trading Cain, Pagan might be a good short-term filler for him.


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From Nick Cafardo

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/re...3MP/story.html

"15. The Royals could deal both closer*Wade Davis*and outfielder*Jarrod Dysonwithin a week. They are looking for controllable starting pitching. Davis will draw plenty of teams, including the Giants, Red Sox, and Blue Jays"

Red Sox also looking at Holliday

I wouldn't be surprised if they traded either of those guys but that article suggests a lot of trades that would end up moving some big contracts. Sure paints the Tigers as big sellers.

KC would have to get a pretty nice piece back to consider moving Dyson. He's cheap and high-value.

Crazy thought: Pair Dyson with a horrible contract you'd like to unload (cough, Soria, cough?).


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@Ken_Rosenthal: Teams looking for closers include NYY, SF, LAD, WAS, MIA. Five clubs, three top FAs. Trade market for #Royals’ Wade Davis should be strong.

That'd be a yuge slap in the face to Dyson.

NYY?

Ummmm.....didn't they kind of trade....like all of their....like....closers....and stuff?

Like Idaho said, it would have to be a big ass piece to move Dyson. I love me some Wade Davis, but I could understand the move.

John Schuerholz was elected to the HOF today, him and Bud Selig. He'll be mostly associated with the Braves obviously, but still, he won a title as Royals GM.

Bud Selig got in, but Buck Oneil couldn't?

@JeffPassan: Source confirms Matt Holliday has a one-year, $13M deal with the Yankees. Great fit. @YankeesWFAN had it first.

If you're watching the relief pitching market...

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Rival clubs believe <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Marlins?src=hash">#Marlins</a> willing to offer Jansen five years, $80M and lose No. 14 pick in draft. Marlins say they’re still discussing.</p>&mdash; Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/805631926207938560">December 5, 2016</a></blockquote>
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That's a lot of money for a closer but the Dodgers have no business at all not meeting/exceeding that.

Clayton Kershaw isn't going to be superhuman forever and with his back woes, we may be seeing the very beginning of his decline. The Dodgers have no excuse at all to not do everything they can to put a champion on the field while Kershaw is at his apex.

Unless the Dodgers can get Chapman, they'd damn well better hold onto Jansen. They simply don't have a guy behind him that can do what he can do, especially in October. They have to look no further than their own division and the Giants to see how badly an ineffective closer can hamstring you.

The Dodgers had the money to set tens of millions ablaze on Kamir, McCarthy and Brett Anderson. They'd damn well better find the money to keep the best closer in the game (yes, I think he's better than Chapman).

Won't this make Wade worthy of more pieces or quality in a return

Get out of here Nut ya Cardinals fan!

*** Official 2017 Royals Offseason Repository
 

http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/k...y-duffy-120516
Ken Rosenthal:



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Holliday for 1/$13 million
Now Pearce to the Jays for 2/$12.5 million

Two guys who would've fit nicely on the Royals at very reasonable prices.

Gentlemen, I don't think the Royals are interested in free agency. I think they are going to roll with what they got (have a rotating DH with Orlando/Colon/Cuthbert, no sure Ace, pray that Vargas can come back and have a decent year, and no serious upgrade to bullpen depth) and just hope they can make a decent run if the team stays healthy. After this year, they then will dump the high priced players and rebuild through the farm system, which unfortunately means there will be a solid 3-5 year stretch of less than stellar Royals teams.

Am I the only one here who wants to see the royals trade away a lot of our guys for young talent? I really don't see us making much noise this year except for maybe going .500. I'd rather get some young talent from the guys who won't be here after next season and let's load this back up.

If true, that's a real shitty way to approach the final year(s?) of controlling the "core" of this team before they scatter in the wind to overblown contracts.

@JeffPassan: With closer FA market about to roar, one name is buzzing among executives: Wade Davis. He is available and may be likeliest Royal to move.

@ChrisCotillo: Cardinals have ‘kept tabs on’ Lorenzo Cain as they look to add a center fielder:

http://www.mlbdailydish.com/2016/12/...source=twitter

I agree, and wish they would go out and sign a true Ace and/or a true DH, but I just don't see it happening with where we are currently sitting on our payroll numbers. I would love for them to go all-in this last year with our core guys, but that's not their way of doing things..

Melancon to the Giants


@Ken_Rosenthal: Source: Melancon deal with #SFGiants expected to be four years, $60M-$65M.

@ClintScoles: 4/62 for the 3rd best closer on the open market is a good sign for the Royals with Davis.

They really dont need to add much. Maybe a mid level starter and possibly DH. I can see some prospects moved for a rotation guy MAYBE a FA DH.

@ChrisCotillo: Dodgers announce re-signing of Rich Hill to a 3-year contract.