Royals 2013 Kansas City Royals Repository Thread - Page 295

duncan_idaho · 10:01 AM

Proposed 2013 Slogan: Tigers: They're what's for dinner
Actual 2013 Slogan: Come to Play
A better, more accurate, or alternative slogan: All in, no panic, we promise.

Dayton Moore has pushed all his chips in and is riding on King/Jack suited, hoping it comes together, he gets some good luck, and he hits the nuts by the river card. There's potential, oh yes, there's potential. There's also risk.

At the midway point, Dayton is left counting on the river card. The flop and turn didn't help him, and he's looking at the Tigers holding a pair of Queens and the Indians holding a pair of 9s. His 2013 plan hasn't failed - yet - but the odds are not in his favor.

Burning questions updates below.

Burning Questions for 2013:

1) Will the improve rotation be improved enough? Does James Shields pitch like a fringe No. 1 away from Tampa Bay? Does Ervin Santana pitch to his highest upside in his walk year? Can Jeremy Guthrie build on his strong performance as a Royal in 2012? Can Wade Davis bring his new mentality- and velocity - back to the rotation?

Midseason check-in: Yes, the rotation is certainly improved enough. Shields has pitched like a fringe No. 1 and Santana is having his best season. Guthrie has horrible peripherals but has continued to perform well at his home park and eat innings on the road. Davis brought neither his kick-ass mentality or improved velocity back to the rotation and is in Luke Hochevar/Hiram Davies territory.

2) When will Luke Hochevar be shown the door?
Midseason check-in: It appears, never, at this point. Hochevar has been solid in non-leverage situations, though pretty much every time he has been used with men on base in an inning, it has been a disaster.

3) Does Hosmer bounce back?
Midseason check-in: It took some time, but Hosmer's performance from June 1 on is probably the most encouraging thing about the 2013 season so far.
4) Can Moustakas hit for a whole season like he did in the first half of 2012?
Midseason check-in: Nope. Moustakas was god-awful, then great for about 3 weeks, then god-awful again. He has been better since he started working with Brett and Grafol but still has a long way to go.
5) Who regresses?
Midseason check-in: Welp, Alicides Escobar is not a surprising name here (though Yost's stubborn insistence on hitting him second is ridiculous). Billy Butler is a surprise. He isn't having a terrible year - still contributing a lot to the offense - but he's not hitting for the average or power he has displayed over the past several years.
6) Who plays 2B?
Midseason check-in: A whole bunch of people, and not that great. Gio is at least getting a shot, though he once again is not doing much with it.
7) Can Jeff Francoeur be at least replacement level, rather than epic horrible level?
Midseason check-in: Hahahahahahahahahahaha
8) Will Dayton Moore survive to see 2014?
Midseason check-in: Outlook uncertain. Probably still around, unless the team completely tanks in the second half and he does something foolish. My guess - he sacrifices Ned Yost this offseason and gets one more shot with a new manager in 2014.
9) Will Danny Duffy come back healthy? And if he does, is he the same, better or worse?
Midseason check-in: Yes. Velocity looks the same, and it looks likely he is the same guy as before.
10) And the big one: Has KC added enough to run down the big-money Detroit Tigers?
Midseason check-in: Doesn't look like it, does it?

Prison Bitch · 05-20-2013, 07:06 AM

Tampa didn't want to play a young guy who didn't belong. Hmm. Wonder why we don't do the same? Oh that's right we suck.

Kidd Lex · 05-20-2013, 07:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Prison Bitch

Tampa didn't want to play a young guy who didn't belong. Hmm. Wonder why we don't do the same? Oh that's right we suck.

Can you kindly **** off, and leave the baseball threads?

mr. tegu · 05-20-2013, 07:30 AM

The Royals are 3-10 in their last thirteen games. These last three are the only ones that got me really mad. We had a lead in all three and couldn't even win one of them.

Prison Bitch · 05-20-2013, 07:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr. tegu

The Royals are 3-10 in their last thirteen games. These last three are the only ones that got me really mad. We had a lead in all three and couldn't even win one of them.

No biggie, boys are still learning.

duncan_idaho · 05-20-2013, 07:43 AM

Missed the game threads this weekend (spent it stripping and powerwashing and painting my porch... have a builder coming in to put on a screen porch, which is going to be pretty awesome).

Really rough series. I don't know why, but it sure seems like the A's have this team's number, no matter what is going on.

We're now 40 games into the season, and the Royals sit exactly at .500. Like I said at the beginning of the month, I"ll be happy with getting through this month AT .500. And if they're 2-3 games below, I won't freak out.

General Thoughts:

1) At this point, the sample size (1/4 of the season) is large enough to make some moves. Moustakas DOWN is acceptable at this point. He had an excellent two-week burst after making some adjustments but has not been able to adjust back as the league has changed its approach. I probably call up Giavotella and give him everyday reps for at least 2 weeks. He's never succeeded at the MLB level, but maybe a 2 week stint where he plays everyday gets him going. (OF course, he's been cold at Omaha again... another case of him not taking advantage of a situation).

Sending him down a month ago was still too soon (especially considering the tear he went on starting with the Cleveland series, when even the most optimistic of us said he needed to show something or be sent down).

2) Kelvin Herrera is struggling a bit in his last two outings. Whatever mechanic adjustments they made to stop him from tipping pitches seem to have messed with his confidence. Time to go to Crow in the 8th and let Herrera/Collins find some confidence/success in lower leverage roles.

3) I'm not a huge Ned Yost fan, but I think some of the blame he's catching right now is unwarranted. I think a lot of people overrate the impact a manager has on the game. He drives me nuts with his lack of understanding of statistical analysis sometimes, but he has not shown the extreme role loyalty this year that has been so frustrating in the past (Getz, Francoeur losing starting jobs, saying he'll look at moving Herrera out of the 8th inning role after yesterday).

It comes down to the bats, and you can move the lineup around a little, but ultimately, they need more than Gordon, Butler and Cain hitting to have a good season.

4) In his last three starts, Luis Mendoza has a 4.00 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, and 4:1 K:BB ratio, while K'ing 6 per 9. It's not spectacular, but since being put back on regular turns, he has been just fine as the No. 5 starter. Those numbers even play OK as a No. 4 starter.

5) At this point, I don't think you can even point to trading Wil Myers as a major blow to the offensive potential of this lineup. He seems to have lost his power AND become even worse at avoiding strikeouts in Durham.

6) With Hosmer, I still don't see an option that would let you send him down. He hasn't been what we were hoping and the lack of power is still a major, major concern. But he also isn't KILLING the team and is a major positive defensively.

7) It's time to look at a trade for a bat. Even a small move woudn't be a bad thing.

A small move would be something like shipping a bullpen arm and a lotto ticket for someone like David DeJesus. It probably wouldn't be a gamebreaker, but it would help the O.

The big moves ... you're still looking at someone like Utley, Rios, Chase Headley (though I think the Pads want to hang on to him and try to sign him long-term in the offseason. They have one more year of control and can afford to do this), etc. And they just don't have many close-to-MLB bullets to make that happen.

I'm not going to give up on this season, and home series vs. the Astros and Angels give them a chance to pick up some ground after a rough road trip. 5-1 in the next six would be a nice way to spend this week. And is definitely do-able.

duncan_idaho · 05-20-2013, 07:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

This Wil Myers Quote Suggests It Is Going To Be A While Before We See Him In The Majors

http://www.raysindex.com/2013/05/thi...he-majors.html

What a weird, weird approach Myers is taking.

Also, further proof that the Royals hitting system has some serious flaws. Guys really struggle to make adjustments (which is the hardest part of hitting).

Also, not sure if anyone saw it or it was mentioned in the threads this weekend, but Starling had LASIK over the weekend.

This will be interesting to follow. It sounds like he had astigmatism, hitting at night would have been a real problem for him, especially picking up the spin of breaking pitches (at least that was my experience with it and trying to hit during night baseball).

Could use some good news on him. Hopefully this is a catalyst for him to take off.

**Old Dog** · 05-20-2013, 07:54 AM

Agree with most of what you said, but they're IN Houston for three. The Astros don't come here until early June.

stonedstooge · 05-20-2013, 07:56 AM

Let me condense duncan's take on the Royals. Were they eliminated yesterday you bunch of pussies?

Prison Bitch · 05-20-2013, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

1) At this point, the sample size (1/4 of the season) is large enough to make some moves. Moustakas DOWN is acceptable at this point. He had an excellent two-week burst after making some adjustments but has not been able to adjust back as the league has changed its approach. Sending him down a month ago was still too soon (especially considering the tear he went on starting with the Cleveland series, when even the most optimistic of us said he needed to show something or be sent down)..

Glad to see you joined the bandwagon my friend. There's always room for more.

Three7s · 05-20-2013, 08:43 AM

I would send Moustakas down until he learns how to hit the ball to the opposite field and start taking shorter swings. His problem is the opposite of Hosmer's.

As for Hosmer, Brett explained it pretty well this morning on .610. He's hitting EVERYTHING up the middle and opposite field. Teams started keying on this last year and positioned themselves defensively up the middle. That's why it seemed like Hosmer was really unlucky. He needs to learn how to trust his eyes and start turning on those inside pitches.

I'm not sending Hosmer down. He's still squaring it up for the most part, he just has a lot of trouble with inside pitches and will continue to until he starts recognizing what to do with them.

**gblowfish** · 05-20-2013, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

Also, not sure if anyone saw it or it was mentioned in the threads this weekend, but Starling had LASIK over the weekend. Hopefully this is a catalyst for him to take off.

Apparently, he's been whacking off WAY too much over the past year....

**gblowfish** · 05-20-2013, 08:55 AM

I never want to see David DeJesus in a Royals uni ever again. Dude is the WORST baserunner in baseball. Just freaking terrible.

**gblowfish** · 05-20-2013, 09:05 AM

The "Frenchy Quarter" Royals promotion runs to September 5th.

Yes, I said SEPTEMBER 5TH.

I believe Frenchy will be threatening to have almost 100 hits by September 5th. Almost.

http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/kc/...hy_quarter.jsp

siberian khatru · 05-20-2013, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

The "Frenchy Quarter" Royals promotion runs to September 5th.

Yes, I said SEPTEMBER 5TH.

I believe Frenchy will be threatening to have almost 100 hits by September 5th. Almost.

http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/kc/...hy_quarter.jsp

With any luck, Frenchy will be buying a ticket and sitting out there with them.

**gblowfish** · 05-20-2013, 09:10 AM

I think we should have a fan protest on Saturday, July 6th. That night is "Salute the A's" night. The Royals are giving away a T-Shirt with an ASS on the front. I believe everyone should wipe their ass with this T-Shirt, then throw it on the field.

SCREW THE A's. SALUTE THIS!!!!!

I mean it, man. I hate this shit and it must stop. End the losing culture, quit being a slave to the past, make some current history!!!

12-11-2012, 09:59 AM
duncan_idaho M-I-Z-Z-O-U Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Kansas City Casino cash: $1840308	2013 Kansas City Royals Repository Thread Proposed 2013 Slogan: Tigers: They're what's for dinner Actual 2013 Slogan: Come to Play A better, more accurate, or alternative slogan: All in, no panic, we promise. Dayton Moore has pushed all his chips in and is riding on King/Jack suited, hoping it comes together, he gets some good luck, and he hits the nuts by the river card. There's potential, oh yes, there's potential. There's also risk. At the midway point, Dayton is left counting on the river card. The flop and turn didn't help him, and he's looking at the Tigers holding a pair of Queens and the Indians holding a pair of 9s. His 2013 plan hasn't failed - yet - but the odds are not in his favor. Burning questions updates below. Burning Questions for 2013: 1) Will the improve rotation be improved enough? Does James Shields pitch like a fringe No. 1 away from Tampa Bay? Does Ervin Santana pitch to his highest upside in his walk year? Can Jeremy Guthrie build on his strong performance as a Royal in 2012? Can Wade Davis bring his new mentality- and velocity - back to the rotation? Midseason check-in: Yes, the rotation is certainly improved enough. Shields has pitched like a fringe No. 1 and Santana is having his best season. Guthrie has horrible peripherals but has continued to perform well at his home park and eat innings on the road. Davis brought neither his kick-ass mentality or improved velocity back to the rotation and is in Luke Hochevar/Hiram Davies territory. 2) When will Luke Hochevar be shown the door? Midseason check-in: It appears, never, at this point. Hochevar has been solid in non-leverage situations, though pretty much every time he has been used with men on base in an inning, it has been a disaster. 3) Does Hosmer bounce back? Midseason check-in: It took some time, but Hosmer's performance from June 1 on is probably the most encouraging thing about the 2013 season so far. 4) Can Moustakas hit for a whole season like he did in the first half of 2012? Midseason check-in: Nope. Moustakas was god-awful, then great for about 3 weeks, then god-awful again. He has been better since he started working with Brett and Grafol but still has a long way to go. 5) Who regresses? Midseason check-in: Welp, Alicides Escobar is not a surprising name here (though Yost's stubborn insistence on hitting him second is ridiculous). Billy Butler is a surprise. He isn't having a terrible year - still contributing a lot to the offense - but he's not hitting for the average or power he has displayed over the past several years. 6) Who plays 2B? Midseason check-in: A whole bunch of people, and not that great. Gio is at least getting a shot, though he once again is not doing much with it. 7) Can Jeff Francoeur be at least replacement level, rather than epic horrible level? Midseason check-in: Hahahahahahahahahahaha 8) Will Dayton Moore survive to see 2014? Midseason check-in: Outlook uncertain. Probably still around, unless the team completely tanks in the second half and he does something foolish. My guess - he sacrifices Ned Yost this offseason and gets one more shot with a new manager in 2014. 9) Will Danny Duffy come back healthy? And if he does, is he the same, better or worse? Midseason check-in: Yes. Velocity looks the same, and it looks likely he is the same guy as before. 10) And the big one: Has KC added enough to run down the big-money Detroit Tigers? Midseason check-in: Doesn't look like it, does it? Last edited by duncan_idaho; 07-15-2013 at 10:01 AM..
Posts: 21,056

05-20-2013, 07:06 AM	#4411
Prison Bitch Rabbi Goldmann Join Date: Nov 2012 Casino cash: $5450159	Tampa didn't want to play a young guy who didn't belong. Hmm. Wonder why we don't do the same? Oh that's right we suck.
Posts: 87,025

05-20-2013, 07:30 AM	#4413
mr. tegu Forever Royal Join Date: Mar 2012 Casino cash: $2061300	The Royals are 3-10 in their last thirteen games. These last three are the only ones that got me really mad. We had a lead in all three and couldn't even win one of them.
Posts: 24,015

05-20-2013, 07:43 AM	#4415
duncan_idaho M-I-Z-Z-O-U Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Kansas City Casino cash: $1840308	Missed the game threads this weekend (spent it stripping and powerwashing and painting my porch... have a builder coming in to put on a screen porch, which is going to be pretty awesome). Really rough series. I don't know why, but it sure seems like the A's have this team's number, no matter what is going on. We're now 40 games into the season, and the Royals sit exactly at .500. Like I said at the beginning of the month, I"ll be happy with getting through this month AT .500. And if they're 2-3 games below, I won't freak out. General Thoughts: 1) At this point, the sample size (1/4 of the season) is large enough to make some moves. Moustakas DOWN is acceptable at this point. He had an excellent two-week burst after making some adjustments but has not been able to adjust back as the league has changed its approach. I probably call up Giavotella and give him everyday reps for at least 2 weeks. He's never succeeded at the MLB level, but maybe a 2 week stint where he plays everyday gets him going. (OF course, he's been cold at Omaha again... another case of him not taking advantage of a situation). Sending him down a month ago was still too soon (especially considering the tear he went on starting with the Cleveland series, when even the most optimistic of us said he needed to show something or be sent down). 2) Kelvin Herrera is struggling a bit in his last two outings. Whatever mechanic adjustments they made to stop him from tipping pitches seem to have messed with his confidence. Time to go to Crow in the 8th and let Herrera/Collins find some confidence/success in lower leverage roles. 3) I'm not a huge Ned Yost fan, but I think some of the blame he's catching right now is unwarranted. I think a lot of people overrate the impact a manager has on the game. He drives me nuts with his lack of understanding of statistical analysis sometimes, but he has not shown the extreme role loyalty this year that has been so frustrating in the past (Getz, Francoeur losing starting jobs, saying he'll look at moving Herrera out of the 8th inning role after yesterday). It comes down to the bats, and you can move the lineup around a little, but ultimately, they need more than Gordon, Butler and Cain hitting to have a good season. 4) In his last three starts, Luis Mendoza has a 4.00 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, and 4:1 K:BB ratio, while K'ing 6 per 9. It's not spectacular, but since being put back on regular turns, he has been just fine as the No. 5 starter. Those numbers even play OK as a No. 4 starter. 5) At this point, I don't think you can even point to trading Wil Myers as a major blow to the offensive potential of this lineup. He seems to have lost his power AND become even worse at avoiding strikeouts in Durham. 6) With Hosmer, I still don't see an option that would let you send him down. He hasn't been what we were hoping and the lack of power is still a major, major concern. But he also isn't KILLING the team and is a major positive defensively. 7) It's time to look at a trade for a bat. Even a small move woudn't be a bad thing. A small move would be something like shipping a bullpen arm and a lotto ticket for someone like David DeJesus. It probably wouldn't be a gamebreaker, but it would help the O. The big moves ... you're still looking at someone like Utley, Rios, Chase Headley (though I think the Pads want to hang on to him and try to sign him long-term in the offseason. They have one more year of control and can afford to do this), etc. And they just don't have many close-to-MLB bullets to make that happen. I'm not going to give up on this season, and home series vs. the Astros and Angels give them a chance to pick up some ground after a rough road trip. 5-1 in the next six would be a nice way to spend this week. And is definitely do-able. __________________ "You gotta love livin', cause dying is a pain in the ass." ---- Sinatra
Posts: 21,056

05-20-2013, 07:54 AM	#4417
Old Dog Supporter Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: North Central Kansas Casino cash: $4766131	Agree with most of what you said, but they're IN Houston for three. The Astros don't come here until early June.
Posts: 10,662

05-20-2013, 07:56 AM	#4418
stonedstooge Arf! Arf! Arf! Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: North Casino cash: $6134173	Let me condense duncan's take on the Royals. Were they eliminated yesterday you bunch of pussies? __________________ 2013 ADOPT A CHIEF Eric Kush "Often is a word I seldom use"--JP
Posts: 25,283

05-20-2013, 08:43 AM	#4420
Three7s MVP Join Date: Nov 2008 Casino cash: $10084719	I would send Moustakas down until he learns how to hit the ball to the opposite field and start taking shorter swings. His problem is the opposite of Hosmer's. As for Hosmer, Brett explained it pretty well this morning on .610. He's hitting EVERYTHING up the middle and opposite field. Teams started keying on this last year and positioned themselves defensively up the middle. That's why it seemed like Hosmer was really unlucky. He needs to learn how to trust his eyes and start turning on those inside pitches. I'm not sending Hosmer down. He's still squaring it up for the most part, he just has a lot of trouble with inside pitches and will continue to until he starts recognizing what to do with them. __________________ $E:\AlexGordon1-1.jpg$ Want some easy money, click here!
Posts: 6,739

05-20-2013, 08:55 AM	#4422
gblowfish Be Kind To Your Pets Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Glorious Independence, MO Casino cash: $17686178 VARSITY	I never want to see David DeJesus in a Royals uni ever again. Dude is the WORST baserunner in baseball. Just freaking terrible.
Posts: 40,830

05-20-2013, 09:05 AM	#4423
gblowfish Be Kind To Your Pets Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Glorious Independence, MO Casino cash: $17686178 VARSITY	The "Frenchy Quarter" Royals promotion runs to September 5th. Yes, I said SEPTEMBER 5TH. I believe Frenchy will be threatening to have almost 100 hits by September 5th. Almost. http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/kc/...hy_quarter.jsp
Posts: 40,830

05-20-2013, 09:10 AM	#4425
gblowfish Be Kind To Your Pets Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Glorious Independence, MO Casino cash: $17686178 VARSITY	I think we should have a fan protest on Saturday, July 6th. That night is "Salute the A's" night. The Royals are giving away a T-Shirt with an ASS on the front. I believe everyone should wipe their ass with this T-Shirt, then throw it on the field. SCREW THE A's. SALUTE THIS!!!!! I mean it, man. I hate this shit and it must stop. End the losing culture, quit being a slave to the past, make some current history!!! Attached Thumbnails
Posts: 40,830