They need the pitching equivalent of Salvador Perez, basically. Perez came out of nowhere as a hitter.

Not sure who would really qualify... I guess Ventura, to an extent, since he was a low-profile international signing. Maybe Miguel Almonte also fits that bill.

Every once in a while, those C-level and D-level prospects explode, its why everyone has 5+ minor league teams and grab all the warm bodies they can to fill all those rosters.

Mellinger tweeted earlier that Moustakas is in Arizona already and from all accounts looks in good shape. Lost weight, toned up.

Hopefully that helps translate into better numbers at the plate.

Pffftttt/Belly Butler

I was going to bring up Sal. I'd also include Herrera who has been quite the find. He struggled with the long ball last eyar but I think that was an aberration since he didn't the year prior. He was #30 in the Royals list in 2011 and he's been a legit MLB player. David Lough provided value too from the 20s and brought back Valencia.


I simply cannot fathom how Cleveland passed us yet again. Their prospect list from that year was garbage. And 2 of them were traded in the Jimenez deal. He had a good year last season so I guess he counts like Shields would for us but damn, their system should not be helping them to a better record than us. No way.

Find location of said Moose and I'll report back on factual nature of said shape!

Pitchers and catchers report Feb. 14. You going to be there?

Jeff Montgomery was on 810 earlier saying he would consider platooning Moose after a month if he doesn't produce

I agree

Not on that day but I'll probably go Saturday the 15th and 22nd to meet some of them and watch the morning workouts. Maybe snag a few autographs.

I saw Dayton Moore speak today. Lot of questions asked of him were bad, but there were a lot of good ones. Some cliffs:

- The bidding for Beltran was very close. Talking about a small amount of money, but he thought Carlos wanted to be a Yank all along. If Cano resigns with New York, Beltran probably is a Royal.

- Taking steps to ensure Zimmer is still available to pitch in September and October and hasn't run up against his innings limit.

- Manaea talked about as potentially being in line to help in 2015

- Stressed patience/Torii Hunter taking 6 years when talking about Bubba Starling and his development. He's very sure of his natural ability and physical tools. Talked about needing to give him a chance to let his natural ability at the plate catch up to his competition level. He's got the skill but high school experience hurt him.

- Brad Penny signing was based on connections to staff. Sounds like he was already living in KC. Also sounds like he will be looked at as a SP.

- Interesting comments about John Lamb. They're looking for the velocity to bump up a half-grade on all his pitches. Very pleased with his command and other pitching skills.

- Talked about working with Duffy on picking his spots for max velo and using that to help him work late into games.

- Expects .240-.260 with 25 HR and very good D from Moose (My take: If you get this, you're in really good shape)

Rany's blog post about the Valencia trade was interesting to me. Basically to sum up his books, he said that talent-wise the trade favors the Orioles. He also said that Valencia's really only going to help against LHP (which we already knew), but that would be a loss because then Moose isn't producing.

However, he said that if the Valencia acquisition has sent a message to Moose and that he's been working and in shape and ready to crush this year, that even if Valencia doesn't play much the trade was beneficial for KC because it lit a fire "in his ass" (Rany's words).

Stealing some work from El Chup on the Scout board. Baseball Pro today released its future tool grades for its top 101 prospects. Some pretty interesting stuff here. Note: They didn't list tools that are below average. Royals guys:

2-8/20-80 grading scale:

80: Generational skill (truly elite... only a handful of players realize this level.)
70: Plus-plus (consistent All-Star level tool)
60: Plus (above average)
55: You'll sometimes see this midway point grade, usually on younger guys
50: MLB average
40: Below average
30: Well below-average
20: Not worthy of playing pro ball

12. Ventura:
FB 8 (one of the very few 8/80's tools with that grade in the entire list)
CH 6
CB 6

29. Mondesi:
Run 6
Glove 6
Arm 6
Hit 5.5

34. Zimmer:

FB 7
CB 7
SL 6
CH 5

46. Almonte:
CH 7
FB 6
CB 5

78. Manaea:
FB 7
CH 6
SL 6

96. Dozier
Power 6
Arm 6
Run 5
Glove 5

99. Bonifacio:
Arm 7
Power 6
Hit 5

What does it mean? Looking at it, I know that the "best system ever" in 2011 had 6 pitchers in the top 100. But some key distinctions between that group and this one:

1) These pitchers have higher ceilings. You're talking about 3 guys (Zimmer, Manaea, Ventura) who all have true ToR potential. Vs. really just Mike Montgomery in that 2011 group.

2) This group is a ittle more of a known factor at the top. The 2011 pitchers didn't have anyone beyond AA. Ventura has dominated both AA and AAA and even MLB in his limited action there. Zimmer also has had a dominant period at AA.

3) When matching them up, the Royals have 3 top 50 pitchers in this year's ranking. The 2011 ranking had 4 guys (Dwyer, Duffy, Odorizzi, Jeffress) in the bottom 1/4 of the list. Those players tend to bust at higher rates (like a 4-star football recruit vs. a 5-star, or 1st round pick vs. 3rd round pick).

Ventura vs. Montgomery: Edge Ventura. More proven, more elite stuff. Elite fastball with plus curve and change (that could become plus-plus with more refinement?)? Sick. Monty also was shut down in 2011, the start of his slide into irrelevance.

Lamb vs. Zimmer: Edge Zimmer. Similar ceilings. Zimmer's stuff advantage balanced out by Lamb's handedness and pitchability/command. But Zimmer's dominant stretch at AA (small sample, but ... 4 starts, 18 2/3 IP, 27 K, 1.93 ERA, 0.857 WHIP, 5 BB) is better than Lamb's mixed success at that level in 2011.

Dwyer vs. Almonte: Edge Dwyer. Both two pitch guys, Dwyer had been good at AA at this point, trumping Almonte's sllightly higher ceiling.

Manaea vs. Duffy: Edge Manaea. I know Manaea hasn't thrown a pitch as a pro player, but his upside is so high, and Duffy was a question mark at this point, too.

I'm going to stay on board the Manaea bandwagon. Really think we're talking about a kid who is a consensus top 15 prospect at this time next year, potentially helping the rotation in 2015. Think Lucas Giolito type jump. His hip injury was something that they knew about and were never concerned with. Shouldn't be a long-term issue at all.

I agree.

If you're just looking at talent and value in a vacuum, the Orioles come out ahead.

However, if you start examining and considering what makes the 2014 Royals better, I see why Valencia is a better fit.

Lough had no spot in KC following the acquisition of Aoki. Heck, either Dyson or Maxwell - both of whom offer more rare talents to KC than Lough - is going to have a tough time finding a spot on the roster if they carry Valencia.

With Valencia, the Royals have an insurance policy at 3B they can use at least part of the time in case of injury/continued suckage from Moose. Without having to commit Bonifacio there full-time. Improved versatility is important.

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