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

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

If Baird were still here, he'd say "**** it," and bring both these kids up. .

If you are going to be an All-Star, you are going to be an All-Star. Bringing you up early may hinder a player's development, but if they are good enough they will make it eventually. There is absolutely no other pro league I've ever heard of where bringing someone up to get experience in the big leagues is a BAD thing.

[Sure-Oz]

I remember when damon first came up and him and george brett did commercials together. i always loved damons ability to stutter and talk weird

[sportsman1]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

BTW, anyone heard when he is coming back??

Mark Quinn? Hopefully soon.. We could use a major bat like Quinn could bring!

[Deberg_1990]

Originally Posted by sportsman1

Mark Quinn? Hopefully soon.. We could use a major bat like Quinn could bring!

heh.

Watching Jacobs swing makes me long for the days of Mark Quinn and Bob Hamlin.

[KChiefs1]

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/9...-All-Star-Game

DETROIT - The numbers say the Royals' Zack Greinke deserves to start the All-Star Game, but you knew that already. Even after losing to the Tigers on Wednesday night, he is 10-5 and leads the majors with a 2.12 ERA.

But that's only one reason Greinke should be standing on the rubber during the bottom of the first inning next Tuesday in St. Louis. There is another consideration here, something simple and complicated at the same time.

Greinke wants to do it.

"I hope to," he said late Wednesday night. "I think (Roy) Halladay's got a pretty good argument himself, especially with the experience he has. I'll be happy with either decision. If it's someone besides us two, I think that'd be a little weird."

Greinke, 25, has been Heartwarming Story No. 1 during the first half of the season. After battling social anxiety disorder, a condition that forced him to step away from the game in 2006, he has become a bona fide star for Kansas City.

At the risk of oversimplifying a complex medical diagnosis, many affected by social anxiety disorder have difficulty with normal-seeming situations that involve other people.

That in mind, consider the following:
On Monday, particularly if he is named the starting pitcher, Greinke will probably encounter more reporters than on any other day of his life.

On Tuesday, regardless of when he enters the game, Greinke will be performing on the biggest stage of his baseball career.

Fellow Royals right-hander Gil Meche, an All-Star in 2007, has offered a few pointers on what to expect. And you know what? Greinke, though still shy, seems to be looking forward to it.

"He says it's one of the most fun times he's had in his life," Greinke said. "We'll see. It probably will be. Everyone says it's an amazing experience. In a couple days, it should be fun."

Trey Hillman has wondered how Greinke will respond to the media attention, because managers think about things like that. But Hillman said he isn't worried now, because Greinke has handled the success "exceptionally well" so far.

Zack Greinke would savor the opportunity to start for the AL in this year's All-Star Game. (Jamie Squire / Getty Images)

"Have I thought about it? Yeah, I've thought about it," said Hillman, who will serve on the American League staff under Rays manager Joe Maddon. "I don't think he'll handle it much differently than he's handled all the attention from the SI article and all the attention he's gotten at home.

"I don't think it'll have a great effect on him, mentally or physically. I think he'll go out, regardless of when Joe decides to pitch him. I think he'll do a very good job."

Hillman said he would "love" for Greinke to get the start, and there's no denying that it would make for compelling theater on a midsummer's night. Because while most baseball fans are familiar with Greinke — to the extent that he (a) has battled social anxiety disorder and (b) is arguably the best pitcher in baseball this year — he's not one of the game's most visible stars.

They know he has amazing numbers. They have seen his strikeouts on the highlight reels. But that's pretty much it. The Royals are not exactly regulars on the Saturday/Sunday national television circuit. And not everyone has the premium baseball package.

So, for all practical purposes, next Tuesday will be the first opportunity for people across the country to sit down, at the same time, and watch Zack Greinke work.

"Everybody's talked about him, but they might not have had an opportunity to watch him pitch this year," Meche said. "What bigger stage to put him on than to start the All-Star Game and show everybody what's been going on? With all the talk about him and the things he's overcome, the things he's doing now ... why not?"

Hard to argue with that. A case could be made for Halladay, who has never started an All-Star Game, but he's already received one honor this season: Most Googled Trade Possibility in a Three-Day Span.

Halladay is scheduled to pitch Thursday afternoon against Maddon's Rays, so he will have the chance to leave a final impression. But it should be noted that Halladay has a 4.85 ERA over his first two starts since coming off the disabled list (groin strain).

Greinke's first-half résumé is complete after allowing three earned runs in six innings on Wednesday. With better luck and better defense — common laments for the Kansas City nine — Greinke could have kept the Tigers scoreless.

When asked about his accomplishments over the season to date, he replied, "It's been good so far, but it's a whole season thing to me ... The first half doesn't count as the whole season, so you've got to keep going until the season's over."

Good thing others have no trouble praising him.

Before the game, I asked three Detroit players for their opinion on who should start for the AL. Edwin Jackson, an All-Star, picked Greinke. Justin Verlander, an All-Star, picked Greinke. Brandon Inge, who could be an All-Star if the fans' final vote goes his way, pointed at a nearby TV set.

"Start him," he said.

It was Greinke, on a scouting reel.

"It'd be ridiculous if he doesn't," Meche said. "I know it's his first All-Star Game, but his numbers are better than anybody's in the league — in both leagues. If anybody deserves a start, it's him. I'd have to imagine that he's anticipating starting, just from the talks, and hopefully he does.

"You have the best numbers, you start. ... I think it's a no-brainer. If he doesn't, I'll be shocked. If they're going off stats this season, he starts, period."

Whether he gets the nod or not, here's hoping Greinke enjoys the game and associated hubbub. I couldn't help but think about the forthcoming frenzy as I stood among the four-person contingent that interviewed him Wednesday night.

Greinke, the small-market pitcher who everyone sort of knows, is about to go national.

International, even. And he said it himself: It should be fun.

[DeezNutz]

Originally Posted by BWillie007

If you are going to be an All-Star, you are going to be an All-Star. Bringing you up early may hinder a player's development, but if they are good enough they will make it eventually. There is absolutely no other pro league I've ever heard of where bringing someone up to get experience in the big leagues is a BAD thing.

I'd like the top prospects to at least get a cup of coffee in AAA, to succeed at all levels, before making the club.

[sedated]

http://www.delawareonline.com/articl...ives-Moustakas

Blue Rocks third baseman Mike Moustakas picked up a baseball bat at the age of three. He has been taking big cuts ever since.

"My dad always wanted to get me into sports, mostly to stay out of trouble," Moustakas said. "I ended up loving baseball. I played it every day. I never really took a day off. I was playing for like three or four teams at a time, so it was always baseball from day one."

That love for the game enabled Moustakas to enjoy a decorated high school career at Chatsworth (Calif.) High School.

He was a member of Chatsworth's 2004 national championship team. As a senior, he batted .577 with 24 home runs, which earned player of the year honors and a spot on the USA Today All-USA Team. Moustakas holds the California high school record for homers with 54.

"It really started with my freshman year," the 20-year old said. "We had an amazing team. The seniors on the team really taught me how to play the game and about respect for coaches."

The Kansas City Royals selected Moustakas with the second overall pick in the 2007 draft. After playing for Idaho Falls of the Pioneer League and Burlington of the Class A Midwest League, the 6-foot, 195-pounder is leaving his mark with the Rocks.

In the first half of the season, he was fifth in the Carolina League with 42 RBIs, had 15 doubles, and recorded a team-high eight home runs while hitting .265. He was chosed, along with Blue Rocks teammates David Lough and Danny Duffy, to play in the California-Carolina All-Star Game.

"It's amazing, especially in a league like this," Moustakas said. "It was a lot of talent on that one team. It was a lot of fun to be on a team with that type of talent."

Baseball America rates Moustakas as the top prospect in the Royals' farm system. Rocks manager Brian Rupp agrees.

"He's a big league superstar," Rupp said. "He's got power, he can hit. He's got the whole package. He's going to play in the big leagues for a long time."

Moustakas does not take his rating lightly.

"It's really an honor, especially with the type of talent we have throughout this whole system," he said. "We've got guys at every position that have big-league capabilities. Being ranked the top prospect in this organization is definitely an honor."




Moustakas hears the accolades, but tries not to let them cloud his vision. He still sees elements in his game that need improvement.

"My lateral foot speed, moving left to right," he said. "Hitting the ball the opposite way, taking what the pitchers give me instead of trying to do too much with the pitch. I've been working hard every day, extra work, early work, staying after practice. I've got a lot of work to do, a lot of stuff I need to get better on.

"People dream about making the major leagues. I really dream about making it there and sticking around, being a great player for a long time, winning a bunch of championships with the Royals. So, whatever it takes for me to get there."

It's that attitude that makes him a joy to manage.

"He's a great kid," Rupp said. "He's a young kid, but he is the kind of guy that guys gravitate toward. He's not always loud and vocal, but he plays hard and plays the game the right way. It's nice to see that being 20 years old, he's not carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders."

High praise aside, Moustakas was not satisfied with the Rocks' first half and is focused on improving.

"It could have been better. We weren't putting up a lot of runs as a team," he said. "Hopefully this second half can go a lot better. We came alive towards the late end of the first half, so hopefully it carries through to the second half.

"We're trying to bring a championship back home to Wilmington. It's going to be a lot of fun. We've got a great group of guys here and we're going to take on the second half."

With a bright future, Moustakas is just enjoying the ride.

"Right now, it's just taking it day by day," he said. "Just going out there and playing hard, and we'll see. I'm out here living a dream. People are back home working nine-to-five jobs and I'm out here doing what I love to do. It's a dream come true."

[DeezNutz]

http://bases.newsvine.com/_news/2009...ategory=sports

[Reaper16]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

http://bases.newsvine.com/_news/2009...ategory=sports

Rah Roh

[Sure-Oz]

Gordon 2-4 hr and 2 rbis...

batting .368 during AA

In 10 total games in the minors combined he's 10/29 2 dbls 3 hr 13 rbi 10 walks batting overall .345 1.224 ops

yeah i know he's always hit minor league pitching but its good to see

[DeezNutz]

More uplifting stuff from JoPo (http://www.kansascity.com/180/story/1320086.html):

ST. LOUIS | So, it’s the All-Star break now. And in the final weekend of the first half:

•The Royals lose three games in a row.

•They average three runs per game in the losses, only they do it the hard way, by scoring zero runs, nine runs and zero runs again.

•With the bases loaded, they get a runner (Miguel Olivo) forced out at home plate by an outfielder. Well, that’s new.

•They have another player (José Guillen) lose track of the number of outs. By my unofficial count, that’s the fourth time that has happened to a Royals player this year.

•Tony Peña Jr. picks up both his fifth hit and fifth error of the season.

•They trade for a shortstop, Yuniesky Betancourt, who has the lowest on-base percentage in all of baseball among regulars since 2007.

•They finish the first half with a 37-51 record — two games worse than last year, even though they actually started this season 18-11.

It all went so wrong. Nobody was demanding that the Royals win a championship this year. But I do think people expected this team to put away the embarrassment of the past and be a reasonably good team. A .500 record seemed a reasonable goal. A few meaningful games in August seemed a plausible hope. This team has pretty good starting pitching. This team has a dominant closer. This team has spent more than $50 million the last couple of years to improve this offense — think for a moment about what you could get for 50 million dollars.

And then the Royals got off to that good start, and Zack Greinke was the talk of baseball and … it all went so wrong. Injuries. Travesties. Comedies. You name it. At one point, the Royals got blown out by five or more runs on five consecutive days — first time that happened in team history. Another time, they scored one or fewer runs in four consecutive games — tied a team record there. In just the last two months, they’ve had an eight-game losing streak, a six-game losing streak, a five-game losing streak and two four-game losing streaks. That’s some seriously bad baseball.

There were the moments. José Guillen got hit in the face with a ball while trying to field it. Mitch Maier tackled a third baseman who was trying to field a ground ball. In one game, two different Royals got doubled off first base on routine fly balls to the outfield. In another, the Royals hit into double plays in six consecutive innings.

The Royals opened an entirely renovated Kauffman Stadium, and their pitcher for that celebratory first game was Sidney Ponson. The Royals lost a game in Cleveland when the game-winning hit bounced off a seagull.

There were the injuries. Catcher John Buck got hurt picking up a batting helmet. Pitcher Kyle Farnsworth got hurt by breaking up a fight between his dogs. Guillen decided to play doctor and remove his own ingrown toenail.

And then, special category, there was the fun relationship between Royals manager Trey Hillman and starter Gil Meche. Early in the year, Meche complained of back trouble. He pitched through it. And then, one day, Hillman allowed Meche to throw 132 pitches — most of his career. Meche wanted to do it and said it did not affect him at all. But his next two starts were terrible, and Meche said his arm felt dead. He didn’t think it had anything to do with the 132-pitch outing. He really didn’t.

Meche thought about skipping a start. Instead, after resting a couple of days, Meche said he felt better. He would start, though the Royals (obviously) said that they would monitor his pitch count. And they did — Hillman monitored while Meche threw 121 more pitches — a ton of pitches for anyone, much less someone with a bad back and a dead arm.

Two starts later — Saturday — Meche had to leave the game because of back spasms. As of Sunday, he said he still could not bend over — though he anticipates trying to make his next start. Well, sure he will — the guy’s like the Black Knight from “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” You’d have to cut off both his arms and legs to make him miss a start. But don’t tempt Trey Hillman.

And so it goes. With things going downhill, the Royals traded their 2008 minor-league pitcher of the year, Dan Cortes, to Seattle for Betancourt. Now, how you look at this move probably depends on how you look at advanced statistics. Defensive statistics — like Ultimate Zone Rating and the Fielding Bible Plus/Minus — show Betancourt to be the very worst shortstop in the game. Offensive statistics — like on-base percentage, OPS+, VORP (Value Over Replacement Player) — show him to be one of the worst offensive players in the game. Base-running statistics show him to be one of the worst base runners in the game.

“Might be the worst everyday player in baseball,” ESPN’s Keith Law says, summing up the general reaction of the Internet community.

But … maybe you don’t believe in advanced statistics. The Royals like Betancourt. Former teammates like Meche, Guillen and Willie Bloomquist like him. Hillman is in his office having fun playing around with new Yuniesky-infused lineups. Royals general manager Dayton Moore talks about how Betancourt can make an impact with both the bat and the glove … and he will undoubtedly do that.

To give us a preview, here’s Tacoma columnist John McGrath from his column:

“Yuniesky Betancourt gave it no thought — when it comes to baseball, he gives no thought to anything — but at least he had a chance to show why he fell from grace with the Mariners organization the other night. During a rehab assignment at Cheney Stadium, Betancourt forgot there was only one out and ran from second to third on a routine fly ball. The resulting double play put a punctuation mark on his extraordinarily disappointing regression from shortstop of the future to addition-by-subtraction trade commodity.”

Well, we’re at the All-Star break of another depressing season, so what can you say? At least Yuniesky Betancourt should fit right in.

[Reaper16]

From the pathetic headlines department: "Manny Acta has been fired as manager of the Washington Nationals, he told ESPNdeportes.com's Enrique Rojas on Sunday."

Let's hope that the Nats have the good sense to pursue Trey Hillman.

[ChiTown]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

“Yuniesky Betancourt gave it no thought — when it comes to baseball, he gives no thought to anything — but at least he had a chance to show why he fell from grace with the Mariners organization the other night. During a rehab assignment at Cheney Stadium, Betancourt forgot there was only one out and ran from second to third on a routine fly ball. The resulting double play put a punctuation mark on his extraordinarily disappointing regression from shortstop of the future to addition-by-subtraction trade commodity.”

Well, we’re at the All-Star break of another depressing season, so what can you say? At least Yuniesky Betancourt should fit right in.

God, make it STOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Do we just actively shop for players who jump off the Short Bus?

[Sure-Oz]

DM on 810 right now about betancourt...

say's that you can only acquire the talent that is made available to you...(sounds as if yunel escobar wasn't available)

Hopes betancourt can turn the ship around and become the player that they see that plays good defense and can hit for avg and solid power for a SS. Change of scenery may be good for him and knows alot of people from SEA, including players and staff on his ballclub, considered all sources and tried to get him for about a month now. Said looking at FA for the next 2 years this was the best idea, cause they expect to pay alot for a jack wilson or scutaro and the price isn't too much with the money they got for betancourt either. Payroll is around $70 mill....

Said when they acquired pena jr a few years ago they tried to get orlando cabrera and miguel tejeda but gordon and butler were the names mentioned to getting them by the clubs, so he refused to deal them to get them cause it would be a really bad move.
Said he is aware of OBP and doesn't ignore it and looks at stats. Knew he was going to get alot of criticism for the move, but thinks it will work out in the end and knows betancourt is better than he has shown this year, esp defensively.

Had to go inside to work now so i can't hear the rest, but interesting info. Said he'll always be aggressive in getting ML talent. Say's he has guys that use sabremetrics and takes everything into consideration etc. Has a great staff that he keeps close etc..

[Mecca]

Well that's nice he thinks it'll work out, I'm sure he thought all of his other stupid moves would work out too.