The Royals trailed for all of about six minutes yesterday in grabbing two wins in one day. Rad Keller handled the first game and a bunch of rookies took care of game two.
Nice to see Witt Jr have himself a day. If Taylor is injured…..this nightmare is coming true!!! Merrifield out a number of weeks…..
However, I love the trade the front office made yesterday. Do I think Waters is the center fielder of the future? No…probably not. But just because of that it doesn’t mean it isn’t worth making. He’s 23, and I don’t mind change of scenery guys. Do I think the Braves front office is better and knows exactly what they are doing? Yes, yes I do after seeing a bit of Harris, Wright, Contreras, Strider, and of course Acuna come through the system here the last few years. To me the fact that they went and traded for an entirely NEW outfield last years speaks to where they were at with Waters. Which is fine, because he young, and its not like he isn’t talented. Maybe they find something, maybe they don’t. It’s a good trade for a thin position in the system. And more of what they should be doing this year.
I was at the game you were referencing with Shields against the Giants. He gave a salute to the bullpen after the final out. I immediately questioned the thought process when I saw Taylor being put into pitch Saturday. Like you said, why would you risk an injury with him when his trade value has most likely never been higher. I also questioned batting him leadoff yesterday. Leave him at the bottom of the lineup where he's had success. As far as a position player pitching, there is only player on current roster who should be doing that. His name is Ryan O'Hearn.
I have always been very high on Kyle Isbel, and it pains me to admit this, but I am starting to see things I don't like about his hitting. Except for that line drive in the first inning yesterday, he has not been hitting much the last two or three weeks. His fielding is still plus, plus. If they can turn around Waters, that will be a great trade they made yesterday. I like that they are being aggressive, instead of just playing it safe.
Couldn't agree with you more about Taylor, David. The minute I saw him pitching my first thought was, "There goes his trade value. The only questions are what injury will it be and how long will it take us to find out.'"
Your optimism about Waters may force me to revise my (more negative) opinion upwards a bit. But I have to say I'm having a hard time getting past that "1 HR for every 53 PA's against minor league pitching" stat. Please help me understand why I shouldn't be overly concerned about that!
It seems like the Royals' starting pitchers -- whether at the big-league or minor-league level -- are No. 3 starters at best. Can a team seriously compete with a rotation of No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5 starters? Where's the ace and the No. 2 starter? Do they have them anywhere in the system? Can they be acquired in a trade?
Yesterday was a good day for the Royals. I didn't have time to watch as much of the games as I wanted, but I was so happy to see the scores. And what do you think it is with quiet bats and Keller? lol maybe he says, "Leave it all up to me guys! Just relax!" Thanks again for your posts about the games.
Tosar is generally given credit for helping Jorge Soler have that one monstrous HR year. But my memory is failing me a bit... Was Tosar actually working for the Royals back then? Or was he more of an independent consultant at the time?
Vinnie is intriguing.... results haven't been great so far, but still, what makes him special is already showing despite the mediocre overall stats. He has more walks than Ks (9 vs 8). He shows extremely good pitch recognition skills, at least as far as balls and strikes, and extremely good bat to ball skills. He's gotten himself out mostly with weak contact. It remains to be seen how well he can start hunting pitches that he can drive. As I've said before, the only thing that makes this team watchable are the kids, and the hope that they can lead us back to competitiveness. Yesterday, that was on FULL display.
Nice to see Witt Jr have himself a day. If Taylor is injured…..this nightmare is coming true!!! Merrifield out a number of weeks…..
However, I love the trade the front office made yesterday. Do I think Waters is the center fielder of the future? No…probably not. But just because of that it doesn’t mean it isn’t worth making. He’s 23, and I don’t mind change of scenery guys. Do I think the Braves front office is better and knows exactly what they are doing? Yes, yes I do after seeing a bit of Harris, Wright, Contreras, Strider, and of course Acuna come through the system here the last few years. To me the fact that they went and traded for an entirely NEW outfield last years speaks to where they were at with Waters. Which is fine, because he young, and its not like he isn’t talented. Maybe they find something, maybe they don’t. It’s a good trade for a thin position in the system. And more of what they should be doing this year.
I was at the game you were referencing with Shields against the Giants. He gave a salute to the bullpen after the final out. I immediately questioned the thought process when I saw Taylor being put into pitch Saturday. Like you said, why would you risk an injury with him when his trade value has most likely never been higher. I also questioned batting him leadoff yesterday. Leave him at the bottom of the lineup where he's had success. As far as a position player pitching, there is only player on current roster who should be doing that. His name is Ryan O'Hearn.
I have always been very high on Kyle Isbel, and it pains me to admit this, but I am starting to see things I don't like about his hitting. Except for that line drive in the first inning yesterday, he has not been hitting much the last two or three weeks. His fielding is still plus, plus. If they can turn around Waters, that will be a great trade they made yesterday. I like that they are being aggressive, instead of just playing it safe.
Couldn't agree with you more about Taylor, David. The minute I saw him pitching my first thought was, "There goes his trade value. The only questions are what injury will it be and how long will it take us to find out.'"
Your optimism about Waters may force me to revise my (more negative) opinion upwards a bit. But I have to say I'm having a hard time getting past that "1 HR for every 53 PA's against minor league pitching" stat. Please help me understand why I shouldn't be overly concerned about that!
It seems like the Royals' starting pitchers -- whether at the big-league or minor-league level -- are No. 3 starters at best. Can a team seriously compete with a rotation of No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5 starters? Where's the ace and the No. 2 starter? Do they have them anywhere in the system? Can they be acquired in a trade?
Yesterday was a good day for the Royals. I didn't have time to watch as much of the games as I wanted, but I was so happy to see the scores. And what do you think it is with quiet bats and Keller? lol maybe he says, "Leave it all up to me guys! Just relax!" Thanks again for your posts about the games.
Tosar is generally given credit for helping Jorge Soler have that one monstrous HR year. But my memory is failing me a bit... Was Tosar actually working for the Royals back then? Or was he more of an independent consultant at the time?
Help, anyone?
Vinnie is intriguing.... results haven't been great so far, but still, what makes him special is already showing despite the mediocre overall stats. He has more walks than Ks (9 vs 8). He shows extremely good pitch recognition skills, at least as far as balls and strikes, and extremely good bat to ball skills. He's gotten himself out mostly with weak contact. It remains to be seen how well he can start hunting pitches that he can drive. As I've said before, the only thing that makes this team watchable are the kids, and the hope that they can lead us back to competitiveness. Yesterday, that was on FULL display.
David - how would you compare Pratto's trade value right now with what Wil Myers was worth when they traded him to the Rays?