Royals 2013 Kansas City Royals Repository Thread - Page 183

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?

Tytanium · 04-11-2013, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

The ballpark is PERFECT where it is. It's a beautiful facility, plenty of parking, only a few minutes from downtown, and its IN MISSOURI where it should be.

Yech. I hate having to drive through downtown, and then get stuck on 70 at the interchange for 30 minutes before getting to the parkway. If only the west bottoms didn't smell so bad...

WhawhaWhat · 04-11-2013, 09:04 AM

I wouldn't complain about a downtown ballpark, but I also really like where it's at now. I love getting there early and staying late to hang out with my friends.

I've been to several ballparks (St Louis new and old, Colorado, Baltimore, Wrigley, Boston) and Kauffman is by far my favorite, although I am biased. Looking to go to Pittsburgh in a year or two to try to catch a Pirates and Penguins game in the same trip.

duncan_idaho · 04-11-2013, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhawhaWhat

I'm not as good with the advanced numbers. What is a good BABIP and what is bad?

Batting Average on Balls in Play. It measures luck. Generally, major league hitters are somewhere between .290 and .310 when they put the ball in play, league-wide. It varies slightly based on year. If you look at a hitter's line drive percentage, you generally can add about 12 percent percent and a get a good idea of what average a hitter should post with AVERAGE luck.

So, a guy who hits line drives 18 percent of the time should hit .300, basically, with normal luck.

A .280 BABIP is pretty low, especially for a guy like Jeffries (who sprayed a 22% LD rate in 1993)

Now, for a guy that was only hitting line drives about 15 percent of the time, it would be pretty normal.

Deberg_1990 · 04-11-2013, 09:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhawhaWhat

I've been to several ballparks (St Louis new and old, Colorado, Baltimore, Wrigley, Boston) and Kauffman is by far my favorite, although I am biased.

Ive been to some of those and a few others....San Diego, Tampa,...........IMO The K can stand up to any of them.

Parking will always be an issue with any downtown ballpark.

**Saul Good** · 04-11-2013, 09:24 AM

Who gives a shit about parking? I would much rather have a stadium in an area with things to do before and after the game. If you can find parking for 150,000 downtown from 8:00-5:00 every day, you can find parking for 25,000 from 6:30-10:30 Thursday through Saturday 20 weeks a year.

Kauffman is beautiful, but the location is shit for a facility that hosts 81 events a year. 8 Chiefs games? Perfect. 81 Royals games? Nope.

Deberg_1990 · 04-11-2013, 09:35 AM

I guess KC could do a light rail sytem like St Louie does if they build a downtown ballpark.

Flame away!!!

WhawhaWhat · 04-11-2013, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Who gives a shit about parking? I would much rather have a stadium in an area with things to do before and after the game. If you can find parking for 150,000 downtown from 8:00-5:00 every day, you can find parking for 25,000 from 6:30-10:30 Thursday through Saturday 20 weeks a year.

Kauffman is beautiful, but the location is shit for a facility that hosts 81 events a year. 8 Chiefs games? Perfect. 81 Royals games? Nope.

What types of things would you like to do around the stadium before and after games?

**gblowfish** · 04-11-2013, 09:47 AM

This stadium location argument has been raging since KK started it up. It's always douchebags from Kansas that bitch about the location of the stadium.

Look, we have the Sprint Center downtown, and we're lucky to have enough parking for events there. The last good parcel of land for a downtown stadium is where they built the Kauffman Center, so there really isn't an available land area big enough for a baseball stadium, unless you want to knock down a bunch of historic buildings.

Also, Kansas City is NOT Chicago, or St. Louis, or Pittsburgh, and that's fine. Kansas City is about comfort and space. Our city is one of the largest cities in AREA of any metroplex. The airport isn't downtown either, and that's not an issue for anybody. If you want to get drunk and party before and after the game, you can tailgate, or there's PLENTY of bars inside Kauffman Stadium where you can drink till you puke.

It's a perfect set up for families with kids, which is another big thing with baseball in KC. You don't have to drag your kids downtown in an unsafe area.

So there are two sides. And depending on your lifestyle and WHY you go to the game, there's reasons for and against a downtown park.

Kauffman is like the 5th oldest venue for baseball in the majors. It's starting to become hallowed ground, like Wrigley or Fenway. I say, love it and leave it.

**ChiTown** · 04-11-2013, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

This stadium location argument has been raging since KK started it up. It's always douchebags from Kansas that bitch about the location of the stadium.

Look, we have the Sprint Center downtown, and we're lucky to have enough parking for events there. The last good parcel of land for a downtown stadium is where they built the Kauffman Center, so there really isn't an available land area big enough for a baseball stadium, unless you want to knock down a bunch of historic buildings.

Also, Kansas City is NOT Chicago, or St. Louis, or Pittsburgh, and that's fine. Kansas City is about comfort and space. Our city is one of the largest cities in AREA of any metroplex. The airport isn't downtown either, and that's not an issue for anybody. If you want to get drunk and party before and after the game, you can tailgate, or there's PLENTY of bars inside Kauffman Stadium where you can drink till you puke.

It's a perfect set up for families with kids, which is another big thing with baseball in KC. You don't have to drag your kids downtown in an unsafe area.

So there are two sides. And depending on your lifestyle and WHY you go to the game, there's reasons for and against a downtown park.

Kauffman is like the 5th oldest venue for baseball in the majors. It's starting to become hallowed ground, like Wrigley or Fenway. I say, love it and leave it.

KCUnited · 04-11-2013, 09:50 AM

We need MOAR downtown trolleys first!

**gblowfish** · 04-11-2013, 09:51 AM

Sorry I should have been more specific and said Johnson County Douchebags.

I don't see Johnson County stepping up with any stadium proposals. Johnson County is all about gated communities and private golf courses. They offer NOTHING for the greater community good. Platte County has the Airport, Clay County has Worlds of Fun and Casinos, Wyandotte County has Sporting, Kansas Speedway and the T-Bones, Jackson County has all the museums and major sports venues.

Johnson County just uses the stuff everybody else paid for, then bitches about the condition of the stadium or roads. That's just the way they roll.

**Saul Good** · 04-11-2013, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhawhaWhat

What types of things would you like to do around the stadium before and after games?

Go to work downtown, grab a bite to eat, and walk to the stadium...maybe grab a few drinks after the game... Wierd, I know.

**Saul Good** · 04-11-2013, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

Sorry I should have been more specific and said Johnson County Douchebags.

I don't see Johnson County stepping up with any stadium proposals. Johnson County is all about gated communities and private golf courses. They offer NOTHING for the greater community good. Platte County has the Airport, Clay County has Worlds of Fun and Casinos, Wyandotte County has Sporting, Kansas Speedway and the T-Bones, Jackson County has all the museums and major sports venues.

Johnson County just uses the stuff everybody else paid for, then bitches about the condition of the stadium or roads. That's just the way they roll.

Yeah, I wasn't born and raised in Missouri or anything.

When your argument is that the airport being 30 miles away from civilization has worked out well, your argument sucks. The location of our airport has been an albatross around the neck of KC for decades.

Deberg_1990 · 04-11-2013, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

Sorry I should have been more specific and said Johnson County Douchebags.

I don't see Johnson County stepping up with any stadium proposals. Johnson County is all about gated communities and private golf courses. They offer NOTHING for the greater community good. Platte County has the Airport, Clay County has Worlds of Fun and Casinos, Wyandotte County has Sporting, Kansas Speedway and the T-Bones, Jackson County has all the museums and major sports venues.

Johnson County just uses the stuff everybody else paid for, then bitches about the condition of the stadium or roads. That's just the way they roll.

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

This stadium location argument has been raging since KK started it up. It's always douchebags from Kansas that bitch about the location of the stadium.

Look, we have the Sprint Center downtown, and we're lucky to have enough parking for events there. The last good parcel of land for a downtown stadium is where they built the Kauffman Center, so there really isn't an available land area big enough for a baseball stadium, unless you want to knock down a bunch of historic buildings.

Also, Kansas City is NOT Chicago, or St. Louis, or Pittsburgh, and that's fine. Kansas City is about comfort and space. Our city is one of the largest cities in AREA of any metroplex. The airport isn't downtown either, and that's not an issue for anybody. If you want to get drunk and party before and after the game, you can tailgate, or there's PLENTY of bars inside Kauffman Stadium where you can drink till you puke.

It's a perfect set up for families with kids, which is another big thing with baseball in KC. You don't have to drag your kids downtown in an unsafe area.

So there are two sides. And depending on your lifestyle and WHY you go to the game, there's reasons for and against a downtown park.

Kauffman is like the 5th oldest venue for baseball in the majors. It's starting to become hallowed ground, like Wrigley or Fenway. I say, love it and leave it.

off to D.C. ?

**gblowfish** · 04-11-2013, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Yeah, I wasn't born and raised in Missouri or anything.

Are you Kevin Keitzman's Evil Twin???

Hey, there are merits to downtown and NOT downtown.

I like it where it is.

If you must have downtown baseball, move to St. Louis and become a Cardinal fan.

12-11-2012, 09:59 AM
duncan_idaho M-I-Z-Z-O-U Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Kansas City Casino cash: $1760308	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: 21,085

04-11-2013, 09:04 AM	#2732
WhawhaWhat MVP Join Date: Feb 2013 Casino cash: $1591116	I wouldn't complain about a downtown ballpark, but I also really like where it's at now. I love getting there early and staying late to hang out with my friends. I've been to several ballparks (St Louis new and old, Colorado, Baltimore, Wrigley, Boston) and Kauffman is by far my favorite, although I am biased. Looking to go to Pittsburgh in a year or two to try to catch a Pirates and Penguins game in the same trip.
Posts: 17,230

04-11-2013, 09:24 AM	#2735
Saul Good Quit your bullshit Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Bored of winning Casino cash: $10052799	Who gives a shit about parking? I would much rather have a stadium in an area with things to do before and after the game. If you can find parking for 150,000 downtown from 8:00-5:00 every day, you can find parking for 25,000 from 6:30-10:30 Thursday through Saturday 20 weeks a year. Kauffman is beautiful, but the location is shit for a facility that hosts 81 events a year. 8 Chiefs games? Perfect. 81 Royals games? Nope. __________________ Today is not a good day to be a pussy.
Posts: 41,870

04-11-2013, 09:35 AM	#2736
Deberg_1990 In Search of a Life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: San Antonio Tx. Casino cash: $3914454	I guess KC could do a light rail sytem like St Louie does if they build a downtown ballpark. Flame away!!! __________________ Originally Posted by Cassel's Reckoning: Matt once made a very nice play in Seattle where he spun away from a pass rusher and hit Bowe off his back foot for a first down. One of the best plays Matt has ever made.
Posts: 66,914

04-11-2013, 09:47 AM	#2738
gblowfish Be Kind To Your Pets Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Glorious Independence, MO Casino cash: $17686178 VARSITY	This stadium location argument has been raging since KK started it up. It's always douchebags from Kansas that bitch about the location of the stadium. Look, we have the Sprint Center downtown, and we're lucky to have enough parking for events there. The last good parcel of land for a downtown stadium is where they built the Kauffman Center, so there really isn't an available land area big enough for a baseball stadium, unless you want to knock down a bunch of historic buildings. Also, Kansas City is NOT Chicago, or St. Louis, or Pittsburgh, and that's fine. Kansas City is about comfort and space. Our city is one of the largest cities in AREA of any metroplex. The airport isn't downtown either, and that's not an issue for anybody. If you want to get drunk and party before and after the game, you can tailgate, or there's PLENTY of bars inside Kauffman Stadium where you can drink till you puke. It's a perfect set up for families with kids, which is another big thing with baseball in KC. You don't have to drag your kids downtown in an unsafe area. So there are two sides. And depending on your lifestyle and WHY you go to the game, there's reasons for and against a downtown park. Kauffman is like the 5th oldest venue for baseball in the majors. It's starting to become hallowed ground, like Wrigley or Fenway. I say, love it and leave it.
Posts: 40,830

04-11-2013, 09:50 AM	#2740
KCUnited Cheat Death Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Land of Drincoln Casino cash: $2298244	We need MOAR downtown trolleys first!
Posts: 33,917

04-11-2013, 09:51 AM	#2741
gblowfish Be Kind To Your Pets Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Glorious Independence, MO Casino cash: $17686178 VARSITY	Sorry I should have been more specific and said Johnson County Douchebags. I don't see Johnson County stepping up with any stadium proposals. Johnson County is all about gated communities and private golf courses. They offer NOTHING for the greater community good. Platte County has the Airport, Clay County has Worlds of Fun and Casinos, Wyandotte County has Sporting, Kansas Speedway and the T-Bones, Jackson County has all the museums and major sports venues. Johnson County just uses the stuff everybody else paid for, then bitches about the condition of the stadium or roads. That's just the way they roll.
Posts: 40,830