Gordon being injured might of been the best thing to happen honestly, thats some dead weight lifted from the lineup for a while

It's not exactly like Soler has been tearing it up.

Plus Gordon provides elite defense out there. He's at least contributing something positive.

Don't get me wrong, I hate Soler the most

I didn't think there was a worse hitter in our lineup this year than Raul Mondesi.

Jorge Soler: "Hold my beer."

Bahahhahah

Doing some research on draft options for KC at #14 in the June Rule IV draft and actually fairly excited about some of the current trends for options for KC (and some good stuff at KC Baseball Prospectus on the two guys I"m going to talk about below).

Coming into the new year, HS SS/SP Hunter Greene and Vanderbilt CF Jeren Kendall were viewed as consensus top 2 picks. Kendall's stock has slid a bit due to some increased K rates at Vanderbilt, to the point he might be available at 14 for Kansas City.

That could be really huge for Kansas City. Kendall is going to stick in CF defensively and has the potential to be a dynamic hitter as well. You could be talking about someone whose best case ranges somewhere between Jackie Bradley, Jr. and George Springer.

His swing and approach would need a little work, but he's an advanced college hitter with good strike zone judgment and is incredibly toolsy. If it all works, he's a .280-.300/20 HR/.375 OBP/.475 SLG/30 SB type in his prime, who plays plus D in CF. His floor would be lower - more of a 4th OF type who needs to be protected against lefties - but the upside and tools KC loves are there.

Another guy who's standing out is Virginia CF Adam Hasely. Hasely has less upside than Kendell - mostly because his power profile is less certain, and he's less likely to stick in CF - but he also has a higher floor. He's an all-around OF type who could play plus defense in a corner, kind of like Adam Eaton (with a little less speed).

Overall, should be an interesting draft. KC has been tied to a lot of HS arms so far, but drafting an advanced college hitter or pitcher probably makes the most sense considering the state of KC's farm system (lacking at advanced levels) and the Royals' track record with HS pitchers (it's not great - they've pulled a few guys through successfully but have thrown a lot of numbers and picks at that spot).

They do have a competitive balance pick this year and will have the No. 15 pool, so there's more flexibility than a year ago.

If the team's recent hot streak doesn't carry them back into contention and they do end up selling, the farm system could jump quite a bit in a short window.

Add a talent like Jeren Kendall to your system through the draft, and move Cain, Hosmer, Moustakas, Herrera, Soria, and Vargas.... paired with some nice talent at the A+ and A levels, and suddenly your 2020 outlook starts to turn back around.

I'd expect returns to be something like:

Cain - top 50 prospect + top 100 prospect or fringe top 100 prospect + lotto ticket
Moustakas - top 50-75 prospect + fringe top 100
Hosmer - top 100 + lotto ticket
Herrera - top 50 prospect + fringe top 100 prospect + lotto ticket
Vargas - fringe top 100 prospect (though maybe more if he continues to carve) + lotto ticket
Soria - fringe top 100 prospect + lotto ticket

If you move all of them, you're looking at a reload that involves adding 3-4 top 100 guys, 3-4 guys somewhere close to that range, and several lottery tickets. Would be like a shot of adrenaline to the heart of the Royals system.

@royalsreview: Says trade market could start early this year and one exec says the Royals are "dying to declare" they are sellers. http://nypost.com/2017/05/13/why-mlb...tching-market/

Based on record alone, I'd agree completely with that article RE: KC. But the crazy thing is that we're only, what, 5 games back? I think that's going to make it very tough on GMDM's decision if he should sell or not....

As a fan, I'm kind of dying to declare the sale too, since they're way under .500. But I'm rooting for them to win each game. It's quite the conundrum.

We're 5.5 back in the division. Technically, we're only 4 back of a wild card spot, despite having the worst record in the American League. Nobody in our division looks really like a world beater quite yet. We're still easily in a spot where a small hot stretch would put us in the mix, if not a division lead. The teams mentioned there... the Rangers have now won 5 in a row, the Jays 4 in a row and we've won 5 of 6... brought the bottom back to the pack.

That info confirms what that Boston Globe writer said last week... the Royals are scouting other teams' systems. That's not a surprise though. I'm sure there's a ton of pull to sell and load this team up for the future.

This would be great. I just looked, the Royals have no prospects in the top 100. If we don't trade, we are totally jacked lol.

Hoz keeps hitting like this he'll get more.

I will get excited about the rebuild if they go into that mode (a surprise to no one here, I'm sure, and especially not to those around before 2013), but if they continue to play well and hang around, I'm fine with them sitting pat or even buying at the deadline.

They might shorten their window by reloading and unloading guys like Minor, Soria, Vargas, Hosmer, Cain, Herrera and Moustakas. But there's no guarantee those returns work out well enough to get you back to the point.

I'd take a team that can contend in 2017 over the potential of contending in 2019...


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Seems like a bad decision to trade 5 good years in the future for 1 good one esepcially with a GM who doesnt draft for shit but makes the best trades.

Is there a rule that players can't take a moving start when tagging up? Seems like they'd get going a lot quicker if they start behind the bag and move, timing it so their foot comes off the bag right when the catch is made.

Instead they start from a standstill - which makes sense for a sprinter as they can't time the gun like a baseball player can time the catch.

Get to .500 by the end of May and we've got quite the conundrum on our hands.