2012 Kansas City Royals Repository Thread

[alnorth]

2012 Slogan: Our Time

A better, more accurate 2012 Slogan: It is Finally Next Year
(from Great Expectations)

An alternative slogan if you don't like that one: Someone has to win this crappy division
(from alnorth)

With the beginning of a new year, it is time for the 2012 version of the Royals Repository Thread. We've got Hosmer, we've got a 2011-dominating Gordon, we've got Moose, we've got hopefully a killer bullpen, we've got a stereotypical slow slugging DH, we've got easily one of the best defensive shortstops in the AL, we've got a promising catcher in Salvador Perez. Hell, we've got offense and promising prospects galore.

We do not have starting pitching.

Oh yeah, we've also got this:



Get ready for, (as of January 2012 anyway), one of the most confusing puzzles of a baseball season in recent Royals history. Will they suck? Maybe, I don't know. Will we be given a year of 0.500 baseball? Possibly, I don't know. Will they win the division and go to the playoffs for the first time in 27 years? For the first time in a long time, it could happen, I don't know. 92 losses, 92 wins, or anything in between would not surprise a lot of us.

Everything goes here except Gameday threads and really big news. If a giant story breaks, the Royals achieve some awesome milestone, or we sign/lose a highly significant player/coach/mascot/whatever, then it might also deserve its own thread. This being Chiefs Planet, please do not clutter the board with new threads about trivial Royals news or you will only annoy those who come here for just Chiefs football. If you aren't sure and its not a Gameday thread, it goes here.

What sort of stuff often goes here? SPchief explained it well, so I'll just copy that:

If you locate something of interest.. ANYTHING.. deals on apparel, best ways in/out of the stadium, giveaways, great stories from this season or from seasons gone by, rumors, trades, anything.... feel free to post it here.

[alnorth]

Apparently Haren's no-trade expired when the world series ended.

There must be something about Haren that we don't know about, A LOT of teams could have beaten this deal and no one did. This deal is arguably WORSE than the Angels just letting him walk and getting nothing because aside from being God-awful, Marmol also is due almost $10MM next season. So the Angels aren't saving any money unless the Cubs are sending them a ton of cash. They may as well have just paid Haren's option instead of paying this much for freaking Marmol.

Why were the Angels so desperate to get rid of him?

edit: I'm now thinking they got bad news in a physical or something. Haren's always had chronic back problems, maybe something medically-related has spooked everyone.

[alnorth]

Rany Jazayerli ‏@jazayerli
Or the massive decrease in velocity - far more than Santana. RT @royalsauthority Royals had to be scared of Haren's back problems. Right!?!

Interesting. I knew Santana was off a tick but didn't know Haren lost a lot of speed.

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Wouldn't it be cool if there was breaking news sometime about an actual blockbuster signing/trade where the Royals got a guy who was a true ace? It doesn't even enter the consciencenous as a possibility. It would be fun though.

[alnorth]

Originally Posted by Dr. Johnny Fever

Wouldn't it be cool if there was breaking news sometime about an actual blockbuster signing/trade where the Royals got a guy who was a true ace? It doesn't even enter the consciencenous as a possibility. It would be fun though.

Better daydream: somehow I'm a massively wealthy mega-billionaire, buy the team, and then just go ape.

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Originally Posted by alnorth

Better daydream: somehow I'm a massively wealthy mega-billionaire, buy the team, and then just go ape.

No doubt. I'd trade Irving Falu and Vin Mazzaro for Justin Verlander and the Tigers would like it!

[alnorth]

Originally Posted by Dr. Johnny Fever

No doubt. I'd trade Irving Falu and Vin Mazzaro for Justin Verlander and the Tigers would like it!

My GM would have standing orders to aggressively go after any Yankee players we might want every time they reach free agency or a contract expires. No budget, don't worry about the luxury tax, because in my daydream, I have over $500B in the bank.

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Originally Posted by alnorth

My GM would have standing orders to aggressively go after any Yankee players we might want every time they reach free agency or a contract expires. No budget, don't worry about the luxury tax, because in my daydream, I have over $500B in the bank.

See... being a Royals fan for so long has hindered my ability to even daydream correctly. While I got Verlander I immediately thought about trading him for prospects because I didn't think I could sign him long term.

[Great Expectations]

Originally Posted by Dr. Johnny Fever

Wouldn't it be cool if there was breaking news sometime about an actual blockbuster signing/trade where the Royals got a guy who was a true ace? It doesn't even enter the consciencenous as a possibility. It would be fun though.

I keep hoping against hope that this will happen each time I open this thread.

[ShowtimeSBMVP]

Carrie Muskat ‏@CarrieMuskat

#Cubs source says Marmol-for-Haren trade "not happening"

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Originally Posted by Great Expectations

I keep hoping against hope that this will happen each time I open this thread.

You must have missed the Volstad pick up. It's good that you have great expectations though.

[stonedstooge]

Originally Posted by Great Expectations

I keep hoping against hope that this will happen each time I open this thread.

Glass stated in his interview with the radio dudes near the end of the season that the Royals would "do whatever it takes to get pitching". Wonder what he meant by that?

[BigMeatballDave]

http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/news/a...s_mlb&c_id=mlb

[alnorth]

Well, that was strange. The Cubs backed out at the last second, and apparently the Angels didn't have another offer from anyone because they just paid Haren his $3.5MM buyout. He's now a free agent.

[Jenson71]

Guillermo Moscoso > Luke Hochevar

Moscoso’s best season came in Oakland when he was 8-10 with a 3.38 ERA in 23 games, allowing three hits or fewer in eight of his 21 starts. That included a Sept. 7 start in Oakland in which he retired the first 17 Royals he faced. Moscoso took a no-hitter into the ninth but Alex Gordon singled with one out.

“It’s important that we acquire as much depth as possible as we go deeper into the winter,” Moore said. “We have a positive feeling on Guillermo based on our reports in 2011 and sporadically through 2012. He’s a very good makeup guy, he’s a strike thrower and he gives us depth.”

According to FanGraphs, 51 percent of the balls put in play off Moscoso during his career are flyballs, which helped in Oakland’s spacious park and obviously hurt in Colorado. That could serve him well at Kauffman Stadium. In 2012 road games, Moscoso had a 2.70 ERA, albeit in just 231/3 innings pitched.

The Royals have found prior success tapping into the Rockies’ pitching staff. Moscoso’s teammate this year Jeremy Guthrie was 5-3 with a 3.66 ERA in Kansas City after a July 20 trade to the Royals, and Paulino pitched effectively before suffering the elbow injury. Guthrie is now a free agent.


Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/11/02...#storylink=cpy

[Bowser]

Originally Posted by alnorth

Well, that was strange. The Cubs backed out at the last second, and apparently the Angels didn't have another offer from anyone because they just paid Haren his $3.5MM buyout. He's now a free agent.