The Offseason Thread

[Fountain City Blues]

Salvador Perez, Alex Gordon, and Eric Hosmer all win GG's... Hosmer is the 1st Royal to ever win a GG at 1st base.

Alcides Escobar and Lorenzo Cain's GG candidacy did not go as well... I really felt Cain had a good case to get it despite the DL trips, but he'll get plenty of GG's if he stays healthy.

 

[da55bums]

I can see Escobar and Cain both getting them next year...Escobar should be better with the bat after the HR hitting disaster and Cain will get at least 1 injury free season in...

Still don't think Hosmer should have got one yet..needs to quit throwing the ball all over the place still..hopefully it doesn't go to his head..he definately can be better defensively than he has been...

Would be pretty sweet to see Gordon, Perez and the 3 others pull off a 5 GG haul next year.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

I can see Escobar and Cain both getting them next year...Escobar should be better with the bat after the HR hitting disaster and Cain will get at least 1 injury free season in...

Still don't think Hosmer should have got one yet..needs to quit throwing the ball all over the place still..hopefully it doesn't go to his head..he definately can be better defensively than he has been...

Would be pretty sweet to see Gordon, Perez and the 3 others pull off a 5 GG haul next year.

I think the real question is if guys like Hosmer, Moose, and Gordon can put up solid numbers with the glove and at the plate. Additionally, guys like Cain, Escobar, and E.Boni need to step up at the plate. They all have the ability to do better than they did last year with the bat, will be interesting if that proves to be the case with what is a very green lineup for the most part.

 

[da55bums]

In the USA today they listed the OF FAs...


I think the royals could get Murphy (tex) really pretty cheap...he could do 12 to 18 HR...275 ave...5 to 10 sbs...a real Veteran in the lineup...a guy who has played in the post season quite a few times.....although David Lough might do the same in the same amount of AB's....but I really like the veteran post season experence.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

#Royals RHP Ervin Santana, 12 others, face 4 p.m. deadline Monday to accept/reject free-agent qualifying offers. http://SportsHoopla.com/1hygcDS

 

[Fountain City Blues]

Joel Sherman @Joelsherman1
Ervin Santana's agts asking 5 yrs, $112M. Would be 9th-highest avg ever. Case built around similarities to Greinke from 2011-13. #Royals
Retweeted by Bob Dutton

time to bail on signing Santana... asking price or not, that is outrageous.

Bob Dutton @Royals_Report Former #Royals RHP Luis Mendoza's new two-year deal with Nippon Ham Fighters is for approximately $1 million a year. Made $532,000 in 2013.

Mendoza is gone... awesome

Bob Dutton @Royals_Report
Can confirm. High on their list. @JonHeymanCBS royals, who have a connection, are interested in phil hughes. http://cbsprt.co/1hzYmQM

Intriguing idea, but I can't say I am 100% on board with this either given the expectations are to make the playoffs.

 

[da55bums]

I think Tim Hudson would be the way to go, he has got to be less expensive than Hughes with a chance of a bit better results. Hughes seems like a Guthrie clone.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

Well, it appears we have our FA pitcher for the offseason. Vargas seems to be a pretty decent acquisition. Maybe we could have done better, but Vargas probably will be effective, not his fault the Royals set him up to be a #2 when he is probably a good #4 or a very good #5. If he can produce through the course of the contract, that is great. Actually, come to think of it, if the young pitchers develop, we could slot Vargas beyond 2014 as a #4 or even #5 where he would be awesome. It should be interesting to see how he performs at the K which is bloody murder on HR's and will favor a pitcher such as Vargas to an extent, especially with the Outfield defense being money. Infield is pretty damn good too for the most part.

Now, we just need a an OF'er who can hit RHP and I think that will be the offseason for all intents in purposes. Alternatively, we could get creative and sign a 2B such as Infante and put Bonifacio in a platoon with Maxwell, but that seems like a rather dopey strategy in my opinion to put Emilio Bonifacio in the outfield.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

In case people didn't already know, Paulino is a FA right now. The Royals do not have him under contract.

 

[da55bums]

Royals must plan on Ventura as the 4 or 5 already...or just don't want to pay Paulino to rehab.

Smith has got to be the other planned unless Duffy looks really good. They move Hoch back to starting and I will be the one buying one of his Tshirts, lighting it up and tossing it in the fountain....

I have been screaming for Hoch to be a middle guy for years..and I finally WANTED the royals to bring him into pitch for the first time in his career last year...it was weird but I did.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

Well, since we got a steady eddy in Vargas ( we assume anyway) it puts the burden to make the playoffs placed upon the young SP'ers and offense or we are still stuck in 87 win land- no playoffs.

Basically this needs to happen:

Hosmer needs to be at 125 WRC+ or better

Butler needs to revert back to 2012 Butler or something close to it

Moose needs to be to cross 100 WRC+ or better ( was at 77 last year)

Escobar needs to hit league average for SS

Cain must be healthy

Absolutely No Frenchys

Duffy needs to avg atleast 5 2/3 IP with an ERA under 4; same with Ventura

Pen needs to be stellar

Defense must be stellar

 

[Fountain City Blues]

Pete Grathoff @pgrathoff That's $68.5 million for nine players for the #Royals, whose 2012 payroll was $64 million total