2009 Kansas City Royals Repository.

[WilliamTheIrish]

All Royals All The Time!

After consultation with others who peruse the game threads we decided to create this as a repository for all things Royals. Minor league news, AL (ahem) Central (thanks Vonne) news and anything Royals can be found here.

alnorth will continue the game threads as usual. But 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.

If a big story breaks, you can still start a thread about it. There is merely an all inclusive thread that will make a easy for us all to keep up with all things Royals.


Welcome! "Grab a Brew... don't cost nuthin"...[spills beer on feet]


Courtesy of ari:

Hey William... add this link to the opening post, if you want.

here. Free MLB radio... acts like you are a Holiday Inn customer... then you sign in with your MLB login

.
http://guest.ichotelsgroup.com/in_ro...Language=en-US

[Mama Hip Rockets]

tony pena jr. on the 15-day DL! here's hoping he will never return!

[WilliamTheIrish]

In minor league news the Royals Burlington, Ia affiliate has a LH pitcher down there that has been making some news.

Baline Hardy has struck out 25 in 18 innings while giving up exactly zero BB's.

His bio is below:

Biography:

Selected by the Kansas City Royals out of the University of Portland in the 22nd round (No. 655 overall) of the June 2008 First-Year Player Draft.

Highlights:2008
Made his professional debut and spent the entire season with the Idaho Falls Chukars of the (Rookie-level) Pioneer League...went 1-0 with four saves in 21 relief appearances...posted a 4.15 ERA, striking out 34 and walking eight over 34 2/3 innings...first professional win came in third outing June 24, as he held Ogden hitless, walking one and fanning two over three innings...first pro save came in sixth outing July 10, as he held Helena hitless, walking one while fanning two over two innings...did not allow a run in 12 of 21 appearances, including five straight outings Aug. 4-18, in which he gave up two hits and struck out 12 over 7 2/3 innings...struck out a season-high five Aug. 10 during that run, as he picked up a save with two perfect innings vs. Billings

[WilliamTheIrish]

welcome Thurman [fistbump]

[DeezNutz]

Interesting update from Rany (www.ranyontheroyals.com):

Sunday, May 3, 2009
Royals Today: 5/3/2009.

After last night’s epic win, I tweeted, “Looking for another reason to take KC seriously? There's no way we win tonight's game last year...or the year before...or the year before...” Then I read the game recap, where I learned that Zack Greinke was thinking along the exact same lines: “We never win these kinds of games here,” he said. “Along about the seventh or eighth inning, I was thinking, ‘If we win this, things have changed.’ ”

We won. Maybe things have changed.

If you’re not a Royals fan, you may have difficulty understanding just how frightening it is when we play the Twins. The Indians may have dominated us more over the last 15 years, the White Sox may be the target of more personal hatred…but in the late innings of a tight ballgame, no team fills me with more dread than the Twins – and no venue frightens me more than the Metrodome. I’m willing to wager that in the span of time when the Royals were saddled with the worst bullpen of all time (1998-2006, roughly), no team stole more games from the Royals in the late innings than Minnesota.

This series looked like another data point for the theory that the Twins just have our number. Joe Mauer finally returned to the majors on May 1st, just in time to play the Royals – and homers in his first at-bat, then doubles in his second at-bat, then grabs four more hits yesterday. Last night they responded to Royal runs in the second, fifth, and sixth with rallies of their own. After the Royals rallied to tie in the seventh and take the lead in the eighth, Juan Cruz started the bottom of the inning with a pitch that was about 15 feet outside, a fitting introduction to a 24-pitch outing which included two walks, a single, a wild pitch, a passed ball, and just ten strikes. I was tempted to shut off the TV after Delmon Young’s single tied the game; the odds that the Royals would pull this game out were too slim to justify watching it.

But they did. They did because David DeJesus made two great hustle plays in left field in the eighth inning. They did because Ron Mahay came in and finally looked like the pitcher he was during the first half of last season, retiring Kubel-Mauer-Morneau in order in the eighth and ninth, and working into the tenth. They did because Coco Crisp masterfully worked Joe Nathan for a 12-pitch at-bat to lead off the ninth, and even though he eventually grounded out, he set the tone for a grueling 25-pitch inning which insured that Nathan wouldn’t come out for the tenth. From Dick Kaegel’s writeup: “Bench coach John Gibbons turned to Hillman after Crisp’s at-bat and said: “All we have to do is keep seeing some pitches, and hopefully we’ll only see Mr. Nathan for one inning.’”

The Royals won because after Mahay gave up a double to Brian Buscher leading off the tenth – which just missed clearing the fence – it was the Twins who, for a change, had problems with the fundamentals. Carlos Gomez, one of the fastest players in baseball, fouled off two bunt attempts before harmlessly flying out to center. And the Royals won because Trey Hillman decided to see what all this talk about using Joakim Soria for more than one inning was about, and brought him in to pitch in the 10th inning of a tie game. They won because after a wild pitch moved Bruscher to third, Tony Pena (who had apparently already broken the hamate bone in his left hand) made a nice play on a grounder to hold the runner at third, and then Billy Butler made a nice player on a grounder down the line.

But mostly, they won because after a half-decade of talking about the importance of on-base percentage, the Royals have finally figured out how to use the walk as an offensive weapon. Crisp didn’t swing at any of the six pitches he saw in the top of the 11th, the first three and the last of which were balls. Willie Bloomquist showed bunt, but pulled the bat back twice on pitches out of the strike zone, and realizing that there was no point bunting on a pitcher who couldn’t throw strikes, worked his own five-pitch walk. Butler grounded out, but Mark Teahen pinch-hit and walked on four pitches. R.A. Dickey relieved Craig Breslow and got John Buck down in the count, 1-2, but Buck worked the count full, fouled off two pitches, then took ball four to drive home the go-ahead run. Callaspo then hit a slow grounder to plate another. Against the best control pitching staff in baseball, the Royals had scored two runs, in the 11th inning of a tie game, without benefit of a hit.

Maybe things have changed. Much like this game went a long way towards eliminating doubt that the 2003 Royals were in it for the long haul, the fact that the Royals had the last word in a game that had ten lead changes tells me that they’re not going away anytime soon.

- Thanks to scoring 34 runs in their last four games, the Royals now rank a respectable 10th in the league in runs per game. A few days ago, there was a big disconnect between the Royals offensive stats and their run totals, due primarily to a poor performance with runners in scoring position. The team’s performance with RISP has evened out, as it tends to do, with some nice work the last few days.

The Royals have scored 112 runs and allowed 96; according to BP’s Equivalent Runs, they “should” have scored 114 runs and allowed 97. The difference is immaterial. The team is playing well because they should be playing well.

- You want to know the biggest single reason why the Royals are playing better than last year? The Royals have drawn 86 walks in 24 games; they rank 7th in the league in that category. The last time the Royals ranked in the top half of the AL in walks? 1989. Before that? 1980. I’m not saying the Royals should be putting Kevin Seitzer in their Hall of Fame yet. But it wouldn’t be a bad idea to start working on the portrait.

- The man leading the Royals’ foray into the land of plate discipline is Coco Crisp, who has 17 walks already. I’m as shocked as anyone. Crisp’s career high in walks is 50 – he’s on pace to get there before the All-Star Break. On the one hand, when a 29-year-old player is on a pace to basically double his career high in a category, you have to suspect it’s a small sample size fluke. On the other hand, walk rates are one of the most stable statistics in baseball. Guys hit .400 in April and .200 in May all the time; drawing 17 walks in a month and four walks the next is a much rarer event.

Crisp certainly has the look at the plate of someone who is looking to work the count at every opportunity. If you knew nothing about his track record, you’d think he absolutely could draw 100 walks in a season. But it’s hard to just ignore the track record. I mean, Crisp played for the RED SOX the last three years, a team for who plate discipline is akin to a religion, and never walked in even 10% of his plate appearances. Could Seitzer have really found a way to get Crisp to double his walk rate?

- If Crisp does draw 100 walks this year, he’ll be the first Royal to do so since, again, 1989. Who did it that year? Kevin Seitzer.

- Alberto Callaspo. My God. Batting average is subject to a lot of variation, but still – he’s hitting .382, he’s second in the league with 11 doubles, and he’s struck out just four times all year. He’s not going to hit anywhere near this well all season – one of the best hidden indicators of batting average is line drive percentage, and Callaspo’s mark of 18% this season is right around league average – but he’s a legitimate .300-plus hitter. He’s also spent all but two games this year batting 6th or lower in the lineup. Is there any legitimate reason why Callaspo shouldn’t be batting third?

- Willie Bloomquist. Um, yeah, I didn’t see this coming either. Before the season, the one reason to be a little intrigued about Bloomquist was that last season, his walk rate spiked, as he drew 25 walks in under 200 plate appearances and posted a very solid .377 OBP. My feeling was that the Royals would beat that out of him in quick order, but instead he’s maintained that discipline, already drawing eight walks. Throw in his defensive versatility and clubhouse presence, and that justifies a roster spot. Then add in a fluky batting average and some accidental power, and suddenly you have a guy who’s winning games for the Royals.

I mean, this next phrase is inarguable: Willie Bloomquist willed the Royals to victory last night. He singled in the first to set up a run. He homered with two outs in the fifth to tie the game. After hitting into a fielder’s choice in the seventh, he stole second base and then scored on Butler’s single. In the ninth he singled again, stole second again, but was stranded at third base. In the 11th he was sent up to bunt, but walked instead to key the three-run rally. It might not last for long, but for now: all hail The Golden Spork!

(That still doesn’t mean he has any business starting against a right-handed pitcher, mind you.)

- Can we all agree that the Sidney Ponson Experiment has failed? Please? Yes, Ponson has pitched well in three of his five starts – but the other two starts were so bad that he still has a 7.16 ERA. Meanwhile, Luke Hochevar is trying to become the Zack Greinke of the Pacific Coast League – after last night’s seven-inning shutout he’s 5-0 with a 1.13 ERA. Is common sense really that rare a commodity in the Royals’ front office?

“We looked at the video,” Hillman said. “We see stuff. Hopefully, sooner than later, it will play out. I plan on him making his next start if that’s the question.”

I think we have our answer.

- Should we be a little worried about Juan Cruz? It’s not just his performance last night, it’s the fact that in 11.1 innings, he has just six strikeouts. For a guy who had 158 Ks in 113 innings the last two years, it’s something which warrants watching.

- There is a body of evidence which suggests that when it comes to platoon splits, all hitters are essentially equal – if one player shows a larger platoon split than another, it’s likely due to pure luck.

I can only assume this evidence did not take into account the curious case of one Miguel Olivo.

Olivo is having a pretty awful year overall, but once again he’s hitting lefties: he’s 8-for-26 (.308) against them with a double, triple, and homer. The problem is that he’s 3-for-27 against RHP with 13 strikeouts. Watching Olivo, it’s pretty obvious the reason for the discrepancy: the man is completely hypnotized by the slider. He can neither identify nor lay off it.

Statistically speaking, Buck is a similar player, but his approach against RHP is much, much better, and I hope that Hillman eventually adopts a platoon of sorts, starting Buck against RHP and Olivo against southpaws (with Buck occasionally DHing). Olivo’s career line against RHP is .222/.258/.365. There’s no reason to give those numbers relevance any more than necessary.

- Finally, from the “Awkward Moments in Radio Broadcast History Department”: this week’s podcast is here. Towards the end of our interview with Keith Law, my connection to the studio suddenly died. I quickly called back in, and when Keith was still talking about Mike Moustakas when I finally got re-connected, I was hopeful that no one would notice my absence.

But then Keith finished his sentence, and there was a pause for a second…two seconds…five seconds, before my co-host Jason Anderson finally rescued us by saying, “I completely agree.” What I didn’t know was that just seconds before I got re-connected, Keith had started his sentence by saying, “Rany, I think this kind of up your alley too” – setting me up for a reply which never came. You can hear this exchange around 39 minutes in, if you’re the kind of person who, you know, holds up traffic to look at car accidents.

Also, this is a good time to point out that I should be making regular appearances promoting the show every Monday morning on The Border Patrol with Steven St. John and Nate Bukaty, usually a little after 9 o’clock.

[Mama Hip Rockets]

Originally Posted by WilliamTheIrish

welcome Thurman [fistbump]

why thank you.

[VonneMarie]

Why do you keep referring to the AL West? Don't you mean the AL Central?

[Mama Hip Rockets]

is anybody watching the white sox game on espn? carlos quentin just flied out/flew out with the bases loaded and 2 outs. he screamed a very loud f-word, and tried to cover his mouth with his helmet so no one could see. but you could totally see the "FUUUUUUCCCCCKKKK" coming out before he covered his mouth.

[WilliamTheIrish]

Because I'm and idiot. Al Central it is.

[WilliamTheIrish]

Dye may be back as early as Monday.

When I saw the highlight of this I immediately thought: "He's out for 6 weeks". Losing Dye would alter the balance in the AL Central and be a difficult void for the SOX to fill.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports...,7606002.story

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Shortly after fearing Jermaine Dye would be lost for the remainder of the season, manager Ozzie Guillen said his valuable right fielder could return to the White Sox's lineup as soon as Monday night.

"If he tells me he's ready to go, yes," Guillen said of Dye, who suffered only a left hand bruise after getting hit Saturday by a pitch from Texas reliever Luis Mendoza.

Dye was in the trainer's room before Sunday night's game and didn't take batting practice.

But that's a nice consolation after Guillen initially thought Dye was lost for the year after getting hit

.

[VonneMarie]

Originally Posted by WilliamTheIrish

Because I'm and idiot. Al Central it is.

Nope, you're stuck in the 80's.

[Saulbadguy]

I feel this will last until the impending collapse and 12 game losing streak. Damnit, you can just feel this team is a ****s hair away from disaster. I'm enjoying it though.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by VonneMarie

Why do you keep referring to the AL West? Don't you mean the AL Central?

used to be the AL west untill they added another division to each league

[Mama Hip Rockets]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

Interesting update from Rany (www.ranyontheroyals.com):

man, that guy rules.

[DeezNutz]

Originally Posted by Saulbadguy

I feel this will last until the impending collapse and 12 game losing streak. Damnit, you can just feel this team is a ****s hair away from disaster. I'm enjoying it though.

It might happen, who knows...

But I'm going to be ****ing shocked if we're able to go through the rotation 2 times without one of our pitchers putting the brakes on any prolonged losing streak. This assumes, of course, that Hochevar is soon to be part of the mix.