*** Official 2017 Royals Offseason Repository

[duncan_idaho]

The reign is over. Time to begin the quest for the next one.

Interesting offseason opens for the Royals. Will they go all in for one last shot with this crew? Will they re-tool for 2018 and beyond? Will Dayton Moore actually decrease payroll this time?

Trades, free agent signings, rumors, plans, proposals... dump 'em all here, for this is... the offseason repository!

Royals Top Prospects, 2017

This is a list that’s going to seem a little bleak initially, as Raul Mondesi got enough ABs to age out of the prospect rankings (just barely – at 135 ABs, he is not rookie eligible). But that said, I like the talent and feel like this is a system that will actually be underrated by the prospect services.

Spoiler!

Format: POS/Name/2017 Projected Final Level

1) 3B/OF Hunter Dozier, MLB. Dozier bounced back from a disastrous 2015 campaign that had many wondering, myself included, if he was wrecked. His strong offensive performance in 2016 saw Dozier recapture the mature approach that many liked coming up, while also starting to tap into his above-average raw power for the first time.

In addition to his success at the plate, Dozier also proved he could at least HANDLE an OF spot, which could put him in the conversation for 2017 playing time at the major leagues. If the Royals DO end up trading Cheslor Cuthbert, Dozier could find a decent amount of MLB playing time sliding between RF and 3B. With Moustakas recovering from knee surgery, he likely will need more regular breaks from the field. And the streaky Paulo Orlando is just not an intriguing short-side platoon partner for Jarrod Dyson.

2) LHP Matt Strahm, MLB. Strahm just barely skates under the rookie eligibility rules for a pitcher, so he can be included here. Royals fans already got a taste of the lefty’s abilities, as he used his above-average fastball and slurve to dominate out of the pen in 2016. For him to translate that dominance to the rotation, Strahm will need to maintain his velocity (92-94) and continue to improve a changeup that flashed average at times.

If the changeup becomes a weapon he can lean on against righties, Strahm could be a very solid mid-rotation starter and fringe ToR/No. 2 type (think Danny Duffy-lite).

3) RHP Josh Staumont, AAA. This one could blow up on me and look really silly by this time next year, but I’m encouraged by what we saw from Staumont late last year. He showed significantly improved control down the stretch for Northwest Arkansas, including some impressive playoff starts, while maintaining the big-time K ability. That trend continued in the Arizona Fall League.

If Staumont’s control holds, the Royals have a guy with a plus fastball, plus-plus curve, and average change (with a slider that could develop into a real weapon as he matures). He’ll start next season at AAA and could be an addition to the MLB bullpen or even the rotation before the season ends.

4) RF Jorge Bonifacio, AAA. Boni, like Dozier, had a bounceback season in 2016 with the bat, and also played 15-20 pounds lighter than the year before, which added some nice defensive utility according to reports I’ve gotten. He now looks like a guy could provide solid/average RF production in the major leagues… Average defense paired with potential to put up a .275/.335/.450 line. While that’s not all-star level, it IS playable. Especially at pre-arbitration dollars. He’ll get another year in Omaha to refine his approach, and likely be in the mix of a 2018 mini-youth movement… unless moved for MLB reinforcements.

5) C Meibrys Viloria, Low-A (Lexington). I haven’t seen him in person, but I like the pedigree. You’ve got a lefthanded hitting catcher with the defensive ability to stick behind the plate. He was a big-bonus guy out of Colombia (nearly $500k). And his offensive performance has been highly impressive early, with a good combination of power, plate discipline, and contact skills.

He’s forever away from the majors, just now clearing rookie ball, but Viloria is the most exciting prospect KC has had at Idaho Falls since someone on this board was gushing about a 16-year-old SS tearing it up.

6) 1B Ryan O’Hearn, AAA. O’Hearn is a guy who has never gotten a lot of hype from scouts, but he continues to be a strong producer. He’s someone who likely will strikeout about 25 percent of the time at the big-league level, but has the ability to be a .500+ SLG guy. That plays. He also has shown good patience at the plate, posting above-average OBPs at every level.

Bold prediction: I won’t be shocked if O’Hearn takes over at 1B for KC in 2018/2019 and provides similar offensive production to Hosmer out of the gate. He’s probably never going to be a consistent plus average (.290+) hitter, but .270 with 25 HR is something within reach for him. He’ll get his first shot at AAA in 2017.

7) RHP AJ Puckett, A+. Puckett is a high floor, low-ceiling guy who performed about as you’d expect in 2016 after being the Royals’ first pick in the 2016 Rule IV Draft. He’s not flashy, but Puckett does profile as a solid potential back-end starter. Good fastball command and an above-average changeup are his calling cards. If Puckett finds a reliable breaking ball to put batters away, this could tick up. Great athlete, very similar to Jake Odorizzi in that regard.

8) RF Khalil Lee, Low-A (Lexington). Lee was a two-way player in HS and many viewed him as a pitcher first as a pro, but the Royals drafted him as an OF and were reward with a strong debut campaign. Lee is not a big guy, but he produced solid power numbers despite that. He’s a dynamic athlete who could contribute with power and speed.

9) C Chase Vallot, High-A (Wilmington). Vallot has an intriguing bat, with plus raw power. Got off to a great start in 16 before being sidelined and then sidetracked by injury. RH bat may be good enough to push him out from behind the plate, where he has good tools but a long way to go.

10) RHP Jake Junis and RHP Alec Mills (AAA). I'm copping out here and including both at No. 10 because they're so similar. Like Puckett, they each project as a serviceable back of rotation starter. Similar stuff and profiles, though Junis has shown a little better strikeout ability and may have a smidge more upside as a result.

Others of note:

SS/CF Marten Gasparini. Production has been bad for this toolsy player, but Gasparini has speed and pop that jump out at you. At only 19, need to be patient with him... this European signee was even less polished when signing at 16 than the typical Latin America prospect.

OF Seuly Matias. Loud, loud tools. Matias profiles as a classic RF... big-time power potential. He's a long ways from the majors but is one of the Royals' biggest bonus babies from LA.

RHP Ashe Russell. 2014 1st rounder saw his velocity disappear last year and was quickly shut down. He's intriguing one way or the other, even if he ends up as another notch in the belt of the TINSTAAPP saying.

2B Corey Toups. O'Hearn's HS teammate has been an above-average producer for an up-the-middle player. His small stature hides a surprising amount of pop. Could turn into a Mark Grudzielanek type of offensive second baseman at his peak - solid average, lots of 2Bs.

RHP Scott Blewett, LHP Foster Griffin, RHP Nolan Watson - all three have underwhelmed as pros but were drafted in the supplemental round. Stuff and projectability for each is a positive. Wouldn't be surprised to see one of them take a Cody Reed-like step forward this season and crack the 50-75 range on prospect lists. They all have the natural ability.

SS/2B Ricky Aracena - Jose Altuve-sized Aracena is a switch hitting middle infielder who can flat out run. Switch hitter with a good approach.

RHP Pedro Fernandez - I'm still a believer in his stuff, even if he is destined for the pen. Was having a nice 2016 start until injuries derailed him right after his promotion to AA.

Sirs not Appearing in this Prospect List:

RHP Kyle Zimmer. Same story, different year. The Royals are hopeful they FINALLY found the cause of Zimmer's achy shoulder. If they really did, and he can stay healthy, the talent/potential is exciting.

OF Bubba Starling. Never trust a guy named Derek.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Great Expectations

A few times Strahm threw a devastating change up. Then the next one would be fairly flat. I'd imagine he will be working on that pitch the most. Hopefully he figures it out.

Gotta get him out of the pen if you want him working on his third pitch.

A 7th/8th inning reliever can't be tinkering with feel pitches. If you want him to develop that consistency, he'll only do it from the rotation. If he is in your 5 spot and throws 170 innings, I figure you'll be seeing that change in the 15-18% range to go with a fastball around 60% of the time and the curve around 20-25% of the time.

If he's in the rotation, that's probably 400-500 'live' changeups plus the green light to actually work on it during the season. That's the only way he'll iron it out.

[DJ's left nut]

Just don't Rosenthal the kid. Don't take a kid that kicked ass starting in the minors and has all-world stuff and then stick him in the 'pen because it's the path of least resistance. Because if he does well enough, inertia is a powerful thing in baseball and it may just be where he stays.

[Great Expectations]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Gotta get him out of the pen if you want him working on his third pitch.

A 7th/8th inning reliever can't be tinkering with feel pitches. If you want him to develop that consistency, he'll only do it from the rotation. If he is in your 5 spot and throws 170 innings, I figure you'll be seeing that change in the 15-18% range to go with a fastball around 60% of the time and the curve around 20-25% of the time.

If he's in the rotation, that's probably 400-500 'live' changeups plus the green light to actually work on it during the season. That's the only way he'll iron it out.

With a young guy I hope they don't abandon future development as a starter yet. Especially one with his upside.

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

Upside needs to come from Karns and Duffy. Vargas, Kennedy, and Hammel should be solid, known quantities.

Rotation is still very much a question this year. I think you need to lump Karns, Duffy and Vargas into the questionable category. There could very well be a low floor for all of them as they all need some bounce back, consistency and injury free. Although I haven't heard much on how Vargas's rehab went and how he's doing?

[Chiefspants]

Originally Posted by lewdog

Rotation is still very much a question this year. I think you need to lump Karns, Duffy and Vargas into the questionable category. There could very well be a low floor for all of them as they all need some bounce back, consistency and injury free. Although I haven't heard much on how Vargas's rehab went and how he's doing?

He started two games to end last year iirc. Looked like the same ol' Vargy.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Just don't Rosenthal the kid. Don't take a kid that kicked ass starting in the minors and has all-world stuff and then stick him in the 'pen because it's the path of least resistance. Because if he does well enough, inertia is a powerful thing in baseball and it may just be where he stays.

I don't think that's the plan and wouldn't advocate for it. It makes sense to back him up to the pen in 17 for a last shot at contention with this group, then get him into the rotation in 18.

Pitching his first full season at the major league level in the pen won't leave Strahm there full time, necessarily. And it could be a path forward for him.

Heck, you can start him in the pen with plan to go to the Greinke plan from 07 with him as the season goes on, either to get him experience if the team falls out of contention, or as reinforcement if the pen sorts out and doesn't really need him.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[C3HIEF3S]

Originally Posted by lewdog

Rotation is still very much a question this year. I think you need to lump Karns, Duffy and Vargas into the questionable category. There could very well be a low floor for all of them as they all need some bounce back, consistency and injury free. Although I haven't heard much on how Vargas's rehab went and how he's doing?

Originally Posted by Chiefspants

He started two games to end last year iirc. Looked like the same ol' Vargy.

He threw 12 innings in 3 starts, looked like he was back to normal, albeit in short stints. Pretty good for him to get those starts at the end of last season, now he is 20 months out from TJ so he should be at 100% and ready to go full-throttle.


Or as full-throttle as 87 mph heaters can get .

[tk13]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I don't think that's the plan and wouldn't advocate for it. It makes sense to back him up to the pen in 17 for a last shot at contention with this group, then get him into the rotation in 18.

Pitching his first full season at the major league level in the pen won't leave Strahm there full time, necessarily. And it could be a path forward for him.

Heck, you can start him in the pen with plan to go to the Greinke plan from 07 with him as the season goes on, either to get him experience if the team falls out of contention, or as reinforcement if the pen sorts out and doesn't really need him.


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Or like they did with Duffy last year. That worked out pretty well.

[duncan_idaho]

Yeah. I'm not overly concerned about Vargas. He showed enough for me to think he's recovered well from the TJ, and he's very far removed from it. I think he'll be 100 percent for this season.

Whether that's still good enough to warrant pitching 180 innings is certainly a question, but I like the odds we look up at the end of the year and see he has logged another 180 IP, kept KC in a lot of ballgames, and posted an ERA in the 3.75-4.00 range, which is a nice piece of the puzzle as long as that isn't your best or second-best starter.

[BigCatDaddy]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

Yeah. I'm not overly concerned about Vargas. He showed enough for me to think he's recovered well from the TJ, and he's very far removed from it. I think he'll be 100 percent for this season.

Whether that's still good enough to warrant pitching 180 innings is certainly a question, but I like the odds we look up at the end of the year and see he has logged another 180 IP, kept KC in a lot of ballgames, and posted an ERA in the 3.75-4.00 range, which is a nice piece of the puzzle as long as that isn't your best or second-best starter.

Actually a 4.0 ERA last year puts you right between Archer and Price. Id say given the juiced ball he might be in that 4.25-4.5 range.

[cosmo20002]

Originally Posted by Chiefspants

I would rather we try him for an under-scouted, heat throwing starter that could make a difference in October.

If we can add Luke (which may be a longshot) and have either Hoch or Soria bounce back down the stretch with Strahm and Herrera playing the roles of the borgs, we start looking like a dangerous team in October.

Why is that a longshot?

Anyone know what is going on with him? I can't find anything other than meaningless stuff on minor websites saying he "could" return.

He had his surgery in early August, and it was supposed to be up to 6 months until "healthy." That's about now. He was supposed to be ready for spring training, but haven't heard anyone has invited him.

[C3HIEF3S]

Originally Posted by cosmo20002

Why is that a longshot?

Anyone know what is going on with him? I can't find anything other than meaningless stuff on minor websites saying he "could" return.

He had his surgery in early August, and it was supposed to be up to 6 months until "healthy." That's about now. He was supposed to be ready for spring training, but haven't heard anyone has invited him.

Scott Boras is his agent. He's getting the best deal that he can.

[Archie F. Swin]

How close is Herrera to becoming the best setup pitcher in Royals history?

[Wilson8]

Royals Sign Brayan Pena To Minor League Deal

Former Royals catcher Brayan Pena is returning to the organization on a minor league contract, reports FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (Twitter link). The deal comes with an invitation to spring training for Pena, who previously played in Kansas City from 2009-12.

Pena, 35, had been sitting on the free agent market since the Cardinals released him Nov. 28. In doing so, the Redbirds had to eat the remaining $2.5MM left on the two-year, $5MM deal they awarded Pena in free agency last offseason. Lingering knee issues weighed down Pena during his stint in St. Louis, where he collected just 14 plate appearances.

As a member of the Royals, Tigers and Reds from 2009-15, the switch-hitter batted .262/.303/.355 in 1,805 plate appearances. Defensively, Baseball Prospectus has given Pena positive overall grades as a pitch framer, though he has fallen into the negatives in recent seasons. Pena has also thrown out 28 percent of attempted base stealers during his career – just above the 27 percent league-average mark.

Barring injuries, Pena is unlikely to see much major league action with Kansas City this season. The Royals’ starting catcher is eminently durable standout Salvador Perez, who has played at least 138 games in four straight seasons, and they gave backup Drew Butera a guaranteed $3.8MM in November.

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

[Chiefspants]

Originally Posted by C3HIEF3S

Scott Boras is his agent. He's getting the best deal that he can.

Bingo. Boras just got Greg Holland, a guy who can barely hit 90 mph after having over a year to recover from TJS, a 2 year deal that can reach 35 million in incentives.

It's clear the organization loves Luke and it seems he loves KC in return, but I expect he and Boras will want something more than what LA just gave Romo.