Agreed on the Dozier bad rap. Sure, it was a contract that the Royals probably woudn't do if they had their chance (and another GM, of course, since HD is a fine young man), but offensively, @joshvernier610 pegged it pretty well. Of course, Bo is Bo, and you have all the Bo things he did, but still...
Yeah I saw that tweet. I’d trade .006 of OBP for .043 of SLG, so I didn’t think that was a *great* comparison, but Dozier is a solid enough bat signed for not that much money. They also gave him that deal before they knew they had any first base prospects. It’s certainly a moveable contract.
Most definitely - and not saying HD = BJ in any stretch. I'd take the slugging, too, especially in spacious Kauffman. It was a contract of need at the time that is now an unfortunate luxury. Definitely think they could send him to the a team like the Mets for virtually nothing.
Dozier is not a bad player. Now, they’ve made some bad decisions like letting him play through injury last year. Dozier is a fine player on a good team. He’s not a star, he’s not going to carry a team. Put Dozier on the Cardinals in the 7 slot and you know what….he’s a great fit. Now, the Cardinals wouldn’t do that because they have 6 rookies coming up ready to take that slot as they are just a machine as an organization….but that’s a different story.
Would it surprise you at all if the Cardinals get Soto….it just makes me sick. They do it so well. Goldy, Arenado….it would surprise me none if they use the farm system to get Soto back. The royals have a well run organization in there back yard and can’t seem to pick up any habits from it. News flash…if the Cardinals let Matheny go…….there was a good reason…stay away.
Yeah, Mets will probably spring for Bell and Dozier isn't really any different than the J.D. Davis they already have (except Hunter is a fine human being, according to our front office.) ;)
David……….David………David. You said that Eldred can keep his job if the pitching improves over the second half?!?!?!? The scary part is I absolutely see that happening if for no other reason than reverting back to the mean a little bit. Bubic is probably not a 5.87 era guy…..He may not be better than a high 4 ERA guy but I don’t think he is as bad as he’s been. I can see Lynch getting to the high 4’s by the end of the year. I kinda think Singer is what he is right now which isn’t necessarily bad. I still feel like he should be better but he’s so stubborn its just a slow process to get there. All this is to say….no, no, no, no he can’t still be the coach after this year!!!! That is not how you start a Friday morning!
That’s what happened last year, isn’t it? I think the odds are slimmer, but until he’s actually fired, there’s always the chance he doesn’t get fired. I believe he’ll lose his job after the season, but I can’t guarantee anything and if we see something crazy like Lynch putting up a 2.80 ERA and Singer with a 3.30 or something and maybe Heasley keeps throwing quality starts, I could see a rationalization.
I agree on Melendez long term in RF. His bat and athletic abilities are too good to waste him at catcher, especially when you have Salvy for a few more years and a lot of prospects at C in the system. Catcher is the one position where I am happy to play a defense first type of guy (Cam Gallagher, Martin Maldonado etc) even if when an older Salvy continues to break down and miss time.
I honestly go back and forth on that. But the Royals have no shortage of backup catchers in their system, so I don't think they'll have a hard time finding someone.
Melendez has, from the first time he picked up a ball, wanted to be a catcher.... so for whatever thats worth, he may not want to play RF. Just seems pretty average behind the plate atm. Decent arm, poor framing, etc.
I think it's worth noting that he's been a better defensive catcher in the minors and had -9 DRS prior to Salvy's injury and is just -1 since when he's had a chance to play there almost every day. No, -1 isn't good, but it's much better, so I think him playing every day behind the plate will help the defense quite a bit.
Exactly. You can find guys with defensive value. Rivero is a good example. The Royals also have guys like Luca Tresh and Carter Jensen. Jensen in particular is an intriguing prospect. A 19 year old with one of the highest exit velos in the league. Melendez is a pretty good athlete with above average speed.
Catching shortens careers. It makes guys lose their speed faster.
If we really do get robo-umps next year, the defensive value in framing and pitch presentation will drop to zero. It will be interesting to see how that affects various teams' personnel decisions.
Thanks for your long- and short-term looks at the team! I really loved the Toronto series--even with the losses, looking at the young players who are coming up together. Sure wish Melendez (especially Melendez!)and Singer had felt the same...Maybe they'll change their minds over the next few weeks...
From a baseball perspective, they've got a loooooooong time to change their minds. We'll know how long when the 2023 schedule comes out, but at least they'll play with a full squad the rest of the year.
Just wanted to mention that this will be an ongoing and potentially more devisive situation. Canada at the moment only requires the initial vaccination (single J&J, two mRNA) for visitors They are likely to change this to require boosters. I'd warrant that less than half of the players in MLB are boosted.
That's fine. But I have no way of knowing if that's true for players or not. There are plenty of assumptions we can make, but I'm not going to be the one to do that publicly anyway. There's nothing to be gained from that.
You mentioned that Dayton believes that he always does the right thing. I will comment only that the source of that arrogance is 2,000 years old. I also believe that it's part (not all, but part) of the reason Eldred is still employed by this team.
Moore, Matheny, Eldred, Carter and Wilson all need to be canned. You don’t give Dozier enough credit, maybe not exceptional but solid at 4 positions. Pitchers; Greinke, Payamps, Garret, Balanois, Hernandez and maybe Kubic all gone, Fielders; Gallagher, O’Hearn, Mondessi, Isbel, Maybe Taylor and Rivera all gone. This should clear the way.
I was pleasantly surprised to see that they kept Pratto on the big-league roster. In the 2nd inning Friday night, he got a 96mph fastball up-and-in, turned on it, and launched it at 106mph to the RF wall. That was impressive.
Now I need me some Michael Massey. With a side of Eaton, please.
3rd inning: Keller walks the leadoff hitter who of course scores. Apparently he enjoyed it because exactly the same thing happened in the next inning.
And just as a bonus, he managed to walk Brett Phillips (hitting .069 in his last 87 AB's) twice in the first four innings.
Gawd, this Hochevar-ish nibbling night after night after night becomes so freakin' tiresome.... If only they had a coach who could help the pitchers in some way. Apparently that's too much to ask.
I don't envy you, David. You're in a position where you pretty much have to watch it all until the bitter end. Even though I remain convinced that baseball is the greatest team sport in the world, I'm not sure I'll be able to force myself to do that. It's gonna take 2 or 3 rookies doing incredible spectacular marvelous things in order to hold my interest a whole lot longer.
Sometimes even when this team does something right they do something wrong. Saturday night Whit had a very nice 2-out 2-run double. But just a couple of pitches later he violated one of the oldest (and most sound) axioms in baseball: never make the first or third out of the inning at third base.
Why he chose to try to steal that base will forever remain a mystery. Did he really think that Pratto, with his OPS of .983 and facing a right-handed pitcher who was struggling, was incapable of driving him in?
The almost nightly baserunning blunders we see from this team are of course just one aspect of a much larger story. But they're instructive nonetheless.
Agreed on the Dozier bad rap. Sure, it was a contract that the Royals probably woudn't do if they had their chance (and another GM, of course, since HD is a fine young man), but offensively, @joshvernier610 pegged it pretty well. Of course, Bo is Bo, and you have all the Bo things he did, but still...
Bo Jackson
511 games w/ K.C.
189 extra-base hits
.250/.308/.480
2,010 PA
Hunter Dozier
511 games w/ K.C.
189 extra-base hits
.245/.314/.437
2,017 PA
Yeah I saw that tweet. I’d trade .006 of OBP for .043 of SLG, so I didn’t think that was a *great* comparison, but Dozier is a solid enough bat signed for not that much money. They also gave him that deal before they knew they had any first base prospects. It’s certainly a moveable contract.
Most definitely - and not saying HD = BJ in any stretch. I'd take the slugging, too, especially in spacious Kauffman. It was a contract of need at the time that is now an unfortunate luxury. Definitely think they could send him to the a team like the Mets for virtually nothing.
Oh sure. I don’t know about the Mets, but he’s a steady enough right-handed bat. A team with lefties in the corners would benefit from him.
Dozier is not a bad player. Now, they’ve made some bad decisions like letting him play through injury last year. Dozier is a fine player on a good team. He’s not a star, he’s not going to carry a team. Put Dozier on the Cardinals in the 7 slot and you know what….he’s a great fit. Now, the Cardinals wouldn’t do that because they have 6 rookies coming up ready to take that slot as they are just a machine as an organization….but that’s a different story.
Sure. But him in the Pujols role next year would work. Lots of teams like that.
Would it surprise you at all if the Cardinals get Soto….it just makes me sick. They do it so well. Goldy, Arenado….it would surprise me none if they use the farm system to get Soto back. The royals have a well run organization in there back yard and can’t seem to pick up any habits from it. News flash…if the Cardinals let Matheny go…….there was a good reason…stay away.
Yeah, Mets will probably spring for Bell and Dozier isn't really any different than the J.D. Davis they already have (except Hunter is a fine human being, according to our front office.) ;)
David……….David………David. You said that Eldred can keep his job if the pitching improves over the second half?!?!?!? The scary part is I absolutely see that happening if for no other reason than reverting back to the mean a little bit. Bubic is probably not a 5.87 era guy…..He may not be better than a high 4 ERA guy but I don’t think he is as bad as he’s been. I can see Lynch getting to the high 4’s by the end of the year. I kinda think Singer is what he is right now which isn’t necessarily bad. I still feel like he should be better but he’s so stubborn its just a slow process to get there. All this is to say….no, no, no, no he can’t still be the coach after this year!!!! That is not how you start a Friday morning!
That’s what happened last year, isn’t it? I think the odds are slimmer, but until he’s actually fired, there’s always the chance he doesn’t get fired. I believe he’ll lose his job after the season, but I can’t guarantee anything and if we see something crazy like Lynch putting up a 2.80 ERA and Singer with a 3.30 or something and maybe Heasley keeps throwing quality starts, I could see a rationalization.
I don’t think it’ll happen. It’s just possible.
Ugh, he’s so bad. I’d fire him even if he dressed up as Santa on Christmas morning and brought me presents.
The whole world would, but the Royals haven’t yet. You know I’d have fired him three years ago.
I kept clicking on the little "heart" icon but it wouldn't turn red for me. So this is your official notification that I liked that comment!
15 seconds later: of course as soon as I posted that, the icon turned red. Finally.
I agree on Melendez long term in RF. His bat and athletic abilities are too good to waste him at catcher, especially when you have Salvy for a few more years and a lot of prospects at C in the system. Catcher is the one position where I am happy to play a defense first type of guy (Cam Gallagher, Martin Maldonado etc) even if when an older Salvy continues to break down and miss time.
I honestly go back and forth on that. But the Royals have no shortage of backup catchers in their system, so I don't think they'll have a hard time finding someone.
Melendez has, from the first time he picked up a ball, wanted to be a catcher.... so for whatever thats worth, he may not want to play RF. Just seems pretty average behind the plate atm. Decent arm, poor framing, etc.
I think it's worth noting that he's been a better defensive catcher in the minors and had -9 DRS prior to Salvy's injury and is just -1 since when he's had a chance to play there almost every day. No, -1 isn't good, but it's much better, so I think him playing every day behind the plate will help the defense quite a bit.
Hate to say it, but I was really impressed by Sebastian Rivero's framing and pitch presentation. I wasn't impressed by much else about him, though.
Exactly. You can find guys with defensive value. Rivero is a good example. The Royals also have guys like Luca Tresh and Carter Jensen. Jensen in particular is an intriguing prospect. A 19 year old with one of the highest exit velos in the league. Melendez is a pretty good athlete with above average speed.
Catching shortens careers. It makes guys lose their speed faster.
If we really do get robo-umps next year, the defensive value in framing and pitch presentation will drop to zero. It will be interesting to see how that affects various teams' personnel decisions.
Thanks for your long- and short-term looks at the team! I really loved the Toronto series--even with the losses, looking at the young players who are coming up together. Sure wish Melendez (especially Melendez!)and Singer had felt the same...Maybe they'll change their minds over the next few weeks...
From a baseball perspective, they've got a loooooooong time to change their minds. We'll know how long when the 2023 schedule comes out, but at least they'll play with a full squad the rest of the year.
Just wanted to mention that this will be an ongoing and potentially more devisive situation. Canada at the moment only requires the initial vaccination (single J&J, two mRNA) for visitors They are likely to change this to require boosters. I'd warrant that less than half of the players in MLB are boosted.
I'm not sure that there's any way for any of us to know how many players that would impact.
https://www.narcity.com/health-minister-says-canadians-will-never-be-fully-vaccinated-heres-what-it-means-for-boosters
Latest estimate is that 48% of Americans overall have been boosted. I doubt that the MLB rate is much different.
That's fine. But I have no way of knowing if that's true for players or not. There are plenty of assumptions we can make, but I'm not going to be the one to do that publicly anyway. There's nothing to be gained from that.
As Tom Clancy once wrote, assumptions are the mother of all...um...foul-ups. (He may have used a different f-word.)
You mentioned that Dayton believes that he always does the right thing. I will comment only that the source of that arrogance is 2,000 years old. I also believe that it's part (not all, but part) of the reason Eldred is still employed by this team.
Well put.
Thank you.
BTW: I like the handle!
Moore, Matheny, Eldred, Carter and Wilson all need to be canned. You don’t give Dozier enough credit, maybe not exceptional but solid at 4 positions. Pitchers; Greinke, Payamps, Garret, Balanois, Hernandez and maybe Kubic all gone, Fielders; Gallagher, O’Hearn, Mondessi, Isbel, Maybe Taylor and Rivera all gone. This should clear the way.
I was pleasantly surprised to see that they kept Pratto on the big-league roster. In the 2nd inning Friday night, he got a 96mph fastball up-and-in, turned on it, and launched it at 106mph to the RF wall. That was impressive.
Now I need me some Michael Massey. With a side of Eaton, please.
3rd inning: Keller walks the leadoff hitter who of course scores. Apparently he enjoyed it because exactly the same thing happened in the next inning.
And just as a bonus, he managed to walk Brett Phillips (hitting .069 in his last 87 AB's) twice in the first four innings.
Gawd, this Hochevar-ish nibbling night after night after night becomes so freakin' tiresome.... If only they had a coach who could help the pitchers in some way. Apparently that's too much to ask.
I don't envy you, David. You're in a position where you pretty much have to watch it all until the bitter end. Even though I remain convinced that baseball is the greatest team sport in the world, I'm not sure I'll be able to force myself to do that. It's gonna take 2 or 3 rookies doing incredible spectacular marvelous things in order to hold my interest a whole lot longer.
Sometimes even when this team does something right they do something wrong. Saturday night Whit had a very nice 2-out 2-run double. But just a couple of pitches later he violated one of the oldest (and most sound) axioms in baseball: never make the first or third out of the inning at third base.
Why he chose to try to steal that base will forever remain a mystery. Did he really think that Pratto, with his OPS of .983 and facing a right-handed pitcher who was struggling, was incapable of driving him in?
The almost nightly baserunning blunders we see from this team are of course just one aspect of a much larger story. But they're instructive nonetheless.