2014 Royals Repository

[duncan_idaho]

With my 6,000th post on ChiefsPlanet (it only took me 12 years to get here), I bring you: The 2014 Kansas City Royals Repository.

To be discussed here: All things Royals, as they attempt to post another winning season and make it back to the playoffs for the first time since 1985.

25-man RosterAvailable HERE

AL Central Standings:

Link

Duncan's Top 20 Royals Prospects

Spoiler!

1) 3B Hunter Dozier ETA: 2015
Dozier started slowly at A+ Wilmington but caught fire in May and June, earning a mid-season promotion to AA Northwest Arkansas. Big, strong kid with good plate discipline skills and solid power who projects to be an above-average glove at 3B with solid power.

2) SS Raul (Adalberto) Mondesi ETA: 2017
Mondesis is the opposite of Dozier…. Started red-hot at Wilmington before back spasms derailed him for a few weeks and hasn’t gotten it going since coming back. Scouting reports have been great – defense and speed both improved over the offseason. Still a chance to be an elite SS, with 40 SB speed, plus glove, .300 average and some pop.

3) LHP Sean Manaea | ETA: 2015
Scouting reports outperform the stat line so far. Missing a ton of bats at A+ but not preventing runs like you’d expect to see. Needs to work deeper into games (gradually working about an inning deeper/month so far this year) and improve control. Walks are biggest concern right now, but could be elevated due to work on extra off-speed offerings. Still has No. 2 starter potential, could be higher if the great control he exhibited before his hip surgery eventually comes back.

4) RHP Kyle Zimmer| ETA: 2015
Should be NO. 1 on the list and is probably the Royals most VALUABLE current prospect, but he hasn’t thrown a ball in 4-5 weeks and had only been throwing for 2-3 weeks when he was shut down then.

5) LHP Brandon Finnegan| ETA: 2015
Top 2014 draft choice is an undersized lefty who will start at A+ Wilmington after anchoring CWS run for TCU. Good fastball, better slider, change that needs work to stick as a starter, but if he sticks, No. 2/No. 3 starter upside. Likely a top 10 or even top 5 pick if he doesn’t miss 1 start in the middle of the college season as a precautionary move.

6) RHP Miguel Almonte| ETA: 2016
Have heard some say Almonte is more advanced as a pitcher at A+ than Yordano Ventura was (comparison because both were cheap signs out of Latin America). Really advanced changeup and a curve that is working out well (where the ‘more advanced’ comment comes from). Fastball velo is good but not great – 92-94. Like Manaea, working on his second-best offspeed pitch and leaning less on his bread-and butter (changeup), which has hurt his numbers a bit.

7) RHP Christian Binford 2017
Reverse case of “don’t just scout stat lines.” Based on his stats at A+, you’d think he was an elite prospect, but there are questions about Binford’s stuff playing up at higher levels. Tall righty with great command of fastball, slider and a good and still developing changeup. None of those pitches profiles as better than average, though, limiting his likely upside to back-end rotation guy.

8) SS Orlando Calixte| ETA: 2016
I still like him more than many. Good combination of SS/MI skills and power. Started hot at NWA but in a slump at moment.

9)LHP Foster Griffin | ETA: 2019
Tall, projectable lefty taken in 2014 draft. Viewed as a great value in the sandwich round and probably would have been KC’s pick at No. 17 if Finnegan hadn’t fallen. High school arm who is going to take a while to develop.

10) RF Jorge Bonifacio| ETA: 2016
Hasn’t hit as well as expected in his second go-round at AA NWA. Power still sapped, and average skills have dipped. Once looked like he might be an option in RF at some point in 2015, now looks like 2016 is optimistic. Still young for his level.

11) 3B/2B Cheslor Cuthbert| ETA: 2016
Cuthbert has had better luck at NWA than Boni and is also extremely young for level. HE’s been moved to 2B since Dozier was promoted, which could put a new spin on Cuthbert’s prospects. If he sticks at 2B, bat plays up much better. Good OBP/plate discipline and solid power, but needs to continue improving contact skills

12) C Chase Vallot| ETA: 2020
Young (just 17) C with tremendous power. One of the top prep bats and a great value for KC where it got him. If he sticks at C, expect him to move slowly, but the bat may force the issue (or force him to another position).

13) C Zane Evans| ETA: 2017
GA Tech product has handled Wilmington better than most RH bats and probably is in line for a promotion to NWA sometime soon. Decent pop, decent skills behind the plate. Could be a nice reserve catcher.

14) RHP Scott Blewett| ETA: 2020
Tall, projectable righty with a fresh arm but some injury concerns on his shoulder that slipped him out of Round 1 of MLB draft. Big time potential.

15) CF Bubba Starling | ETA:
Bubba Starling has great tools. Bubba Starling (still) can’t hit. That’s all I have to say about that.

16) 1B Samir Duenez| ETA:
I still like him, even though the attempt to run him through full season ball at 17 did not go well.

17)LF/RF Elier Hernandez| ETA:
Hernandez still pops up in scouting reports but still is very raw and toolsy.

18) RHP Pedro Fernandez| ETA:
Pop-up player on the same track as Ventura and Almonte. Similar signing, similar profile. One to watch over next few years.

19) SS Marten Gasparini| ETA:
Royals’ most expensive international signing likely moves to CF eventually, but his speed and athleticism are intriguing abilities. Early reports from complex ball are very positive on him.

20) RHP Niklas Stephenson| ETA:
Interesting pop-up candidate who found 10 more MPH on his fastball by using a weighted ball during workouts over the winter. Now sits mid-90s with fastball and is dominating at rookie ball (after having an ERA over 8 there a year ago). Likely promoted to a higher challenge soon.

[tomahawk kid]

Really feel like they're one more power bat and another solid rotation arm away from making a run at this division.

As it stands today, I think they're just good enough to NOT be good enough (same as last season).

[warpaint*]

Originally Posted by tomahawk kid

Really feel like they're one more power bat and another solid rotation arm away from making a run at this division.

As it stands today, I think they're just good enough to NOT be good enough (same as last season).

Ya unfortunately that's how it looks to me too.

At some point they're going to have to make a couple big moves or it's rinse/repeat. I guess best case scenario is they're holding out to see if any of these young guys come on & if not pull the trigger on something midseason assuming we're in it.

What's more likely is they'd make a small move or 2 & that's about it.

[ChiTown]

Originally Posted by tomahawk kid

Really feel like they're one more power bat and another solid rotation arm away from making a run at this division.

As it stands today, I think they're just good enough to NOT be good enough (same as last season).

An in-house solution:

Zimmer and Ventura - both dudes could be special - we just need one to do it.

Mike Moustakas - if he can crawl out of his offensive slump and have a breakout year with a little power, our lineup could be damned good.

[BlackHelicopters]

Originally Posted by ChiTown

An in-house solution:

Zimmer and Ventura - both dudes could be special - we just need one to do it.

Mike Moustakas - if he can crawl out of his offensive slump and have a breakout year with a little power, our lineup could be damned good.

Anyone have Moose's winter ball stats?

[Strongside]

Originally Posted by theelusiveeightrop

Anyone have Moose's winter ball stats?

I'm guessing they're at or around his norm. Hence no one has heard.

[alnorth]

Originally Posted by tomahawk kid

Really feel like they're one more power bat and another solid rotation arm away from making a run at this division.

As it stands today, I think they're just good enough to NOT be good enough (same as last season).

Where does this "power bat" play? The only option I can see is to give up on Moose and get a 3B, or give up on Cain, move Aoki to CF, and get a RF. Our lineup doesn't have a gaping hole in it. If I'm going to worry about anything, its our rotation, but surely at least one of the young guys is going to step it up.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by tomahawk kid

Really feel like they're one more power bat and another solid rotation arm away from making a run at this division.

As it stands today, I think they're just good enough to NOT be good enough (same as last season).

They need to improve by 3-5 wins to get into reasonable range for making the playoffs/winning a wild card spot.

I'm not CONFIDENT they've done that, but I could see how they have.

According to pythag, their record was very close last year to what it should have been. Final numbers were within a half win of what they should have been.

The offense should be improved, and has potential to be improved by a lot. IF Aoki does what he has done the past two years as the leadoff man and Alex Gordon slugs .450 again (his average over the past 3 years), the Royals HAVE added a power bat to the middle of the lineup (unconventionally). A bounce back year from Butler improves the offense. And it's not unreasonable to expect Hosmer and Perez to improve a little bit. Just a quick glance at offensive projections, based on established guys performing to norm/young guys taking small steps:

Aoki - . 285/.355/.400 (30 SB, 90 R)
Infante - . 290/.330/.420
Hosmer - .300/.360/.500 (24 HR, 35 2B)
Butler - .300/.370/.450 (19 HR, 40 2B)
Gordon - .290/.360/.460 (20 HR, 40 2B)
Sal Perez - .290/.330/.440 (15 HR)
Moustakas - .250/.300/.400 (15 HR)
Cain - .260/.320/.400
Escobar - .270/.300/.370 (30 SB - these are his numbers hitting 9th for KC in his 3 years here)

That's maybe not a flashy offense, but it's a deeper and more consistent one that should score more runs.

They also have improved by leaps and bounds in what they'll get offensively out of RF and 2B. Whole lineup should be much deeper and more dangerous.

The key question is going to be the pitching staff. They're likely not going to get as much out of the No. 2 spot in the rotation as a year ago, unless Vargas has a real renaissance. If they can get MORE out of the 4/5 spots in the rotation (and avoid 33 starts of high-5 ERA performance like they got a year ago), it can bridge some of the gap at No. 2.

And the bullpen... it's not fair to expect it to be QUITE as dominant as it was a year ago, but it still should be one of the 2-3 best units in baseball.

Add it all up... and I think you can make a good case for a Royals team that, at its best, could win 90-92 games (and maybe even jump up a little more if it has some positive luck).

No guarantees. Obviously. But it's much easier to make a case for this team winning 90+ games because it has many fewer holes.

[alnorth]

Originally Posted by theelusiveeightrop

Anyone have Moose's winter ball stats?

His stats looked good (in 17 games), but I heard not to read too much into it because anyone should have been able to hit the pitchers in the league he played in.

[Deberg_1990]

Hosmer and Moose need to truly step up.

Hosmer did last season, but needs to do it the whole year.

Both of them need to become 100 RBI guys.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by theelusiveeightrop

Anyone have Moose's winter ball stats?

.288/.360/.515
3 HR
6 2B

It was a small sample size (just 17 games/66 ABs), but Moustakas played like the player we all hoped he'd become in Venezuela. Over a full season, that would be good for 25 HR and 50 2B.

I'd be thrilled to get .260/.320/425 out of Moustakas, if he's playing the defense he showed in 2012. That would be an above average player, if not a star.

A sign of things to come? Probably not, but I guess you could hope a little bit.

[BlackHelicopters]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Hosmer and Moose need to truly step up.

Hosmer did last season, but needs to do it the whole year.

Both of them need to become 100 RBI guys.

If Moose has 100 RBI, then I can see us making a run at the playoffs.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Hosmer and Moose need to truly step up.

Hosmer did last season, but needs to do it the whole year.

Both of them need to become 100 RBI guys.

If Hosmer is .300/.360/.500 with the guys that will be hitting in front of him, the RBIs will come.

If Butler and Gordon hit to career norms to round out the 3-4-5 spots, they don't need Moustakas to be an offensive star. Just getting solid offensive contributions from him would make him a valuable player.

[SPATCH]

Originally Posted by theelusiveeightrop

If Moose has 100 RBI, then I can see us making a run at the playoffs.

Uhhh yeah no shit, dude.

[alnorth]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Both of them need to become 100 RBI guys.

If that happens and our rotation doesn't come unglued, then we should all be doing backflips.

[ChiTown]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Hosmer and Moose need to truly step up.

Hosmer did last season, but needs to do it the whole year.

Both of them need to become 100 RBI guys.

Highly unlikely for both - and very unlikely for Moose without a major correction in his mechanics.