*** Official Royals Repository, Part 3 ***

[duncan_idaho]

In this thread: All things related to the AL Champions.

Duncan's Official Team Record prediction: 90 wins
One month in: Looking strong
All Star Break: Looking strong, probably should adjust up to 93-94 wins.
Duncan's Official Team MVP prediction: Eric Hosmer
One month in: Upstaged by his best friend MIKE MOOTACOS, MAN. Tell us bout your hittin, bro!
All Star Break: Lorenzo Cain starting to run away with this one.

Division Preview
Clearly, overlooking the Twins was a mistake at this point. I still don't believe in that team long-term, but they're starting to get that Magic Season twinkle about them.

Detroit is toast. Garbage rotation beyond Price and Sanchez, Miggy out.

And Cleveland... Cleveland still is dangerous if it ever clicks offensively, because the starting pitching is good enough for them to real off a 15-5 stretch and get right back into the playoff picture.

The Royals will be a division winner IF ...
1) Ventura and Duffy combine for 375+ innings of high-quality work
2) Eric Hosmer delivers on his potential with a FULL season of success rather than bursts
3) The deeper bullpen lessens the critical load on Herrera, Davis and Holland
4) Lorenzo Cain stays healthy
5) Either Alex Rios or Kendrys Morales bounces back to 2013 form

The first of these is clearly not going to happen. The second looked good through the end of May but is now eating Cain's dust (Hosmer has still been improved this year, though, lessening his valley. If he has a really hot second half, he can get right back in it). Item three is definitely the case. Item four should probably be first at this point. And Morales has more than bounced back.

Duncan’s Top 20 for mid-season 2015:

Spoiler!

1. Raul Adalberto Mondesi, SS, BOTH: Tools, tools, tools. RA has tools galore. At his best, he’s an All-Star SS who plays elite D, hits 15-20 HR, swipes 40 bags, and is an ideal 1, 2 or 3 hitter. At his worst, I think he looks a lot like Alcides Escobar. Plate discipline is his biggest challenge at this point, but evaluators are confident that will come with time. Clear No. 1
2. Sean Manaea, LHP: I still believe in the upside here, even with the abbreviated start. 6-5 lefties with his combination of stuff and deception have the ability to pitch at the front of a rotation for a long time.
3. Kyle Zimmer, RHP: He’s pitching again and staying healthy, which is nice. He’s pitcing out of the bullpen to build back his arm strength, which is less nice. But still has that high upside, just a lower floor now. Ideally, the team will use him as a bullpen weapon in September (because he has earned it) and then give him a chance to transition back to starting for 2016.
4. Miguel Almonte, RHP: Still love the body, FB/CH combo. Results aren’t eye popping, but he’s still low enough and early enough in the development to prize those things over performance. Still a solid No. 3 starter upside, and just a year and some change away from potentially being ready to contribute at the MLB level.
5. Cody Reed, LHP: Reed has popped up this year, forcing an early promotion to Northwest Arkansas. His stuff is legit, with mid-90s heat and a wipeout slider. Control still needs work, but a promising young arm (that makes Almonte much more tradeable)
6. John Lamb, LHP: Lamb has had a career resurgence in 2015, putting him back on the prospect map. He’s dominating at AAA and will be in the rotation mix in 2016, unless he suffers another setback. Fastball is back, changeup is improving, still working on the ability to throw the slider and curve for strikes when down in the count.
7. Jorge Bonifacio, RF, RH: Emilio’s little brother got off to a horrible start in 2015 but has heated up as the season went on. He also is translating BP power to game power for the first time, with 15 HR just past the mid-way point of his season. Despite his disappointing 2014, he has a chance to build his way back into legit prospect status – and still is only 22. Next challenge for him should be Omaha, but that may wait for the start of the 2014 season.
8. Scott Blewett, RHP: Blewett has a nice two –pitch mix already and is off to a strong start. With his size (6-6) and a good fastball/curveball combo, Blewett could eventually turn into a good No. 3 starter, with a MLB-average changeup.
9. Nolan Watson, RHP: The Royals’ 2015 sandwich pick is a polished prep arm who is adding velocity and explosiveness to a good, polished base. Likely to move quickly.
10. Ashe Russell, RHP: The 2015 top pick probably needs more work than Watson, but the upside is really nice. Again, advanced two-pitch mix that will depend on him adding a changeup. Could be a very good NO. 2 if it all adds up.

Spoiler!

11. Bubba Starling, CF, RH: Starling has been up and down this year but put himself back on the map by greatly improving his K rate while also improving across the slash line as a hitter. His defense and baserunning are MLB ready; if Starling can work himself into a league average hitter, he can be a solid MLB regular who plays great D in CF while hitting 15 HR and swiping 20 bags.
12. Balbino Fuenmayor, 1B/DH, RH: The Balbino came out of basically nowhere in 2015 to earn a Futures Game spot. Big power and an improved two-strike approach have turned the late bloomer into a legit prospect. He’s blocked at the MLB level currently by Eric Hosmer and Kendrys Morales, but Fuenmayor’s combination of power hitting and good average/strike zone control makes him intriguing.
13. Cheslor Cuthbert, 3B, RH: Cheslor probably is not going to be the star KC was hoping for when signing him out of Nicaragua, but he does look like he can be a solid reserve for an MLB club. Good defense at 3B paired with a solid plate approach and some gap power plays fine off the bench. He becomes a lot more interesting if they think he can stick as a 2B, which they have experimented with.
14. Chase Vallot, C/DH/1B: I really like Vallot’s power and plate discipline combo. His bat will probably force him from behind the plate, but he’s held his own despite being extremely young for every level he has faced.
15. Alfredo Escalera-Maldonado, OF, RH: Escalera-Maldonado earned a promotion to Wilmington at age 20, which is pretty advanced movement for that age. He’s an athletic outfielder who has shown some plate discipline at an early age, which is encouraging. Doesn’t sound like he can stick in CF long term for KC, but his bat has become one to watch.
16. Pedro Fernandez, RHP: I haven’t seen much of him, but like the reports I’ve heard on his fastball and general makeup. Could become the next Almonte/Mondesi, though he’s more likely to land in the pen than either of them.
17. Elier Hernandez, OF, RH: Elier Hernanez teamed with Escalera-Maldonado in breaking out at Low-A and earning a promotion to Wilmington. It’s still early for this guy – he is just 20 years old – but he doesn’t take walks and hasn’t developed the prodigious power many thought he had the potential for. Still worth watching.
18. Hunter Dozier, 3B, RH: Dozier is reworking his swing mid-season, which generally will cause production to do what his has done: Nose dive. The changes he made entering the season (seemingly geared towards increasing his power production) were a disaster, and now he’s trying to get back to what he used to be. Still looks great and checks most of the scouting boxes, but the performance hasn’t matched, and it almost knocked him out of the list.
19. Christian Binford, RHP: After a breakthrough 2014, Binford struggled mightily at AAA and suffered a demotion. His upside remains similar – a back-end starter who can eat innings – but Binford’s lack of velocity and reliance on command have caught up to him so far.
20. Marten Gasparini, OF, SH: Gasparini is intriguing because of his speed and athleticism. He’s a LOOOOONG ways from the majors and young for his level, but reports on his bat speed, swing, and speed remain positive enough to keep him on the bubble.

[suzzer99]

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

I don't have the guts to create a thread headlined: Royals release Herrera.

The #Royals have released minor league pitcher Carlos Herrera

— Jeffrey Flanagan (@FlannyMLB) July 16, 2015

Just reading the start of this post got my adrenaline going.

[suzzer99]

Yeah I suspect that w/o the K and our D, Frasor is pretty much replacement level. Still what a luxury this year to be able to release a guy like Frasor when last year he was an upgrade over Crow and Chen.

[ReynardMuldrake]

Vegas is betting on the Royals

Las Vegas sports books are sweating the Kansas City Royals and Houston Astros heading into the final 2½ months of the season.

The Royals are the consensus World Series favorites in Vegas. They are listed at 4-1 at the MGM sportsbook and have been attracting some significant wagers since early in the season.

"We took some pretty heavy action on the Royals the first weekend of the season," MGM vice president of race and sports Jay Rood said. "A gentleman bet them three times, at 18-1, 15-1 and 10-1, all the way down, between $25,000 and $30,000 a pop."

William Hill's Nevada sportsbook took a $7,500 futures bet on the Royals at 28-1 on April 12.

The St. Louis Cardinals are the second favorites at 9-2, followed by the Washington Nationals (5-1) and Los Angeles Dodgers (6-1). The Astros, after opening at 100-1, are down to 8-1 at MGM.

"We're on the hook for a seven-figure risk at 100-1 [on the Astros]," Rood said.

While the Royals are No. 1 in money wagered at William Hill and the Westgate SuperBook, the Chicago Cubs still own the distinction at the MGM. Nearly 4,000 bets have already been placed on the Cubs to win the World Series at MGM properties. That's more than double the number of bets on any other team. Chicago is currently listed at 15-1. The Cubs (47-40) are in third place in the National League Central, 8.5 games behind the Cardinals.

At the MGM, the New York Yankees are 15-1, along with the defending World Series champion San Francisco Giants. The Boston Red Sox are 50-1.

The Texas Rangers are a popular pick at the Westgate, where only the Royals have attracted more money. William Hill took a $4,000 bet on the Rangers at 75-1 on June 18.

The Cincinnati Reds have seen their odds decrease the most. The Reds opened at 18-1 and are now 250-1 at the MGM.

The Philadelphia Phillies are the biggest long shots on the board. They are 9,999-1 to win the World Series at the Westgate. Some people still believe, though. On June 18, a bettor put $500 on the Phillies to win the World Series at 1,000-1 at William Hill. Philadelphia (29-62) is 21 games back of the Nationals in the NL East.

http://espn.go.com/chalk/story/_/id/...egas-concerned

[WilliamTheIrish]

Frasor is the luckiest mf'er on earth.

Gets picked up by the Royals and then cries about having to face his "BFF's" Texas Ranger teammates.

Gives up the WP to put the lead run at third base in 12th inning of the WC game. Then gives up the single to Callaspo to give the A's the lead. Gets bailed out by Salvy and Co.m

Now he gets picked up by the Braves. Guy is living on the wings of Angels.

[siberian khatru]

Originally Posted by WilliamTheIrish

Frasor is the luckiest mf'er on earth.

Gets picked up by the Royals and then cries about having to face his "BFF's" Texas Ranger teammates.

Gives up the WP to put the lead run at third base in 12th inning of the WC game. Then gives up the single to Callaspo to give the A's the lead. Gets bailed out by Salvy and Co.m

Now he gets picked up by the Braves. Guy is living on the wings of Angels.

Speaking of ...

DISRESPECT!

My new World Series pick: #Pirates over #Angels. My second-half preview column for @FOXSports: http://t.co/yw6ZMIVKQn @MLBONFOX

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 16, 2015

[Hootie]

well, I picked the Angels to win the West when the Astros were up 6 games so ...

[WhawhaWhat]

KC held John Lamb out of the Triple-A All-Star Game because they are considering using him as the 26th man tomorrow, Dayton Moore said.

— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughStar) July 16, 2015

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by KChiefs1

The Great Balbino:

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/balbi...vant-prospect/

Spent the year off, in indie ball, and comes back and rakes out of no where. There is literally almost no way this guy isn't HGH or juicing. But, if there is someone that should juice, it's a minor leaguer who just wants to keep their job.

[WhawhaWhat]

KC is "leaning toward" bringing Jason Vargas back without another rehab start, Moore said. There will be an opening in rotation on Tuesday.

— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughStar) July 16, 2015

As for Kris Medlen, Moore said the club still hasn't decided whether he'll start or relieve. "It's a fluid situation, obviously," he said.

— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughStar) July 16, 2015

[BigCatDaddy]

Medlen can be a much better weapon for this team in the rotation. Seems like a no brainer

[Sure-Oz]

http://www.si.com/mlb/2015/07/16/bol...alex-rodriguez

Bold Predictuins by SI's Jay Jaffe

2. The Royals will trade for Johnny Cueto and win the AL Central going away

The second half of that prediction isn't such a reach, as the defending AL champions own the league's best record (52–34) and largest division lead (4 1/2 games). But after coming within one win of a championship last year, the Royals are quite rightly hungry for more. Though the loss of Alex Gordon to a groin strain is a serious one, particularly with rightfielder Alex Rios under-producing as well, Kansas City's bigger need is in the rotation. The unit's 4.32 ERA ranks 12th in the league, its 6.0 strikeouts per nine is just a hair above dead last, and the only ERAs below 4.10 among the starting five belong to reclamation projects Chris Young (3.00) and Edinson Volquez (3.79).

With no obvious choice to take the ball in a series opener, the Royals are among the teams aggressively pursuing pending free agent Cueto. Trading for him won't be painless, but given that this team is in better position to win now relative to the Astros, who also covet Cueto, bet on general manager Dayton Moore to bite the bullet to acquire an ace.

[DeezNutz]

Regarding earlier points about not wanting to trade parts from the farm, this is one of the main reasons for building a strong farm system in the first place. Yes, a team must develop and utilize its own talent, but teams also MUST use pieces to acquire ML-ready players.

It's an AND proposition, not an either/or.

[Demonpenz]

Royals at one time were failing at drafting at trading for talent and development of talent. We might be looking a period of time where they can draft, develop talent, keep talent, and trade for talent that is worth a shit. Savor every last minute of it because soon you will get nut cancer and die Royals Fans!

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by BWillie

Spent the year off, in indie ball, and comes back and rakes out of no where. There is literally almost no way this guy isn't HGH or juicing. But, if there is someone that should juice, it's a minor leaguer who just wants to keep their job.

If he sucked in Toronto, it wasn't for lack of juicing. I don't know why he would suddenly start doing it in KC.

[BigCatDaddy]

So whats Cueti getting? At least 6 for 150?