2012 Kansas City Royals Repository Thread

[alnorth]

2012 Slogan: Our Time

A better, more accurate 2012 Slogan: It is Finally Next Year
(from Great Expectations)

An alternative slogan if you don't like that one: Someone has to win this crappy division
(from alnorth)

With the beginning of a new year, it is time for the 2012 version of the Royals Repository Thread. We've got Hosmer, we've got a 2011-dominating Gordon, we've got Moose, we've got hopefully a killer bullpen, we've got a stereotypical slow slugging DH, we've got easily one of the best defensive shortstops in the AL, we've got a promising catcher in Salvador Perez. Hell, we've got offense and promising prospects galore.

We do not have starting pitching.

Oh yeah, we've also got this:



Get ready for, (as of January 2012 anyway), one of the most confusing puzzles of a baseball season in recent Royals history. Will they suck? Maybe, I don't know. Will we be given a year of 0.500 baseball? Possibly, I don't know. Will they win the division and go to the playoffs for the first time in 27 years? For the first time in a long time, it could happen, I don't know. 92 losses, 92 wins, or anything in between would not surprise a lot of us.

Everything goes here except Gameday threads and really big news. If a giant story breaks, the Royals achieve some awesome milestone, or we sign/lose a highly significant player/coach/mascot/whatever, then it might also deserve its own thread. This being Chiefs Planet, please do not clutter the board with new threads about trivial Royals news or you will only annoy those who come here for just Chiefs football. If you aren't sure and its not a Gameday thread, it goes here.

What sort of stuff often goes here? SPchief explained it well, so I'll just copy that:

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.

[DeezNutz]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

He should have been out of the 6th with two runs allowed and a very solid game pitched.

Instead, David Lough drops the third out in CF, and the Tigers score 4 more times.

Also... Jeff Francoeur had a brief moment of not f***ing up by driving in a run in the 8th... immediately followed by a major f***up, getting thrown out at second for the third out.

When down by three runs. And 4 outs left. And a runner at third.

Good job, Frenchy.

When he was thrown out at second last night, I said, "**** you, Frenchy" aloud, and my wife was asking what the hell I was saying.

Haven't turned the Royals on since, and this might be my swan song for the year.

[Shogun]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

When he was thrown out at second last night, I said, "**** you, Frenchy" aloud, and my wife was asking what the hell I was saying.

Haven't turned the Royals on since, and this might be my swan song for the year.

Youre missing a gem of a game from Escobar., albiet garbage time

[ChiefsCountry]

Progress - we surpased last year's win total.

[DeezNutz]

Originally Posted by Shogun

Youre missing a gem of a game from Escobar., albiet garbage time

That might be. And I'm spiting myself by not watching Perez, but I simply cannot tolerate one more moment of bullshit in '12 from limp dicks like Hoch and Frenchy. Otherwise, I'll be purchasing a new TV.

[Shogun]

I swear to god. If the Royals move Escobar, I quit watching sports

[Al Bundy]

Looks like the Yankees are going to win the AL East... man it sucks being stuck rooting for a team that rolls over before May.

[Deberg_1990]

Well, looks like the Royals are guaranteed to finish at least 2 games better than last year. WooHoo! Our Time!

[Jenson71]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Well, looks like the Royals are guaranteed to finish at least 2 games better than last year. WooHoo! Our Time!

Obviously, it was a disappointing season. However, there were plenty of bright spots and things that make me look forward to next year. Notwithstanding Moose's own judgment, I think he's developing into a solid, if still inconsistent, hitter. I think Hosmer will rebound from the sophomore slump. I think Gordon has found his groove and will continue to hit above-average and play stellar defense. Butler will continue to be a great foundation of our offense, and Escobar will continue to be a great foundation of our infield (and his surprising offensive stats might dip down, but could still remain a plus).

Barring injury, we will have Perez and Cain for full seasons. That's beautiful. With Myers coming up, our outfield offensive production will rise.

Guthrie may have found a right fit for him in KC. I hope so. I am optimistic he has. We still have solid relievers in Crow, Holland, Herrara, and Collins, and we'll see about Soria, though I'm expecting he's done in one way or another.

We have one weakness. Granted, it's a big one. But it can be addressed this offseason.

I'm really looking forward to next April. I will be very disappointed if Hoch and Chen are anything more than our 3rd starter.

[Deberg_1990]

Originally Posted by Literature

Obviously, it was a disappointing season. However, there were plenty of bright spots and things that make me look forward to next year. Notwithstanding Moose's own judgment, I think he's developing into a solid, if still inconsistent, hitter. I think Hosmer will rebound from the sophomore slump. I think Gordon has found his groove and will continue to hit above-average and play stellar defense. Butler will continue to be a great foundation of our offense, and Escobar will continue to be a great foundation of our infield (and his surprising offensive stats might dip down, but could still remain a plus).

Barring injury, we will have Perez and Cain for full seasons. That's beautiful. With Myers coming up, our outfield offensive production will rise.

Guthrie may have found a right fit for him in KC. I hope so. I am optimistic he has. We still have solid relievers in Crow, Holland, Herrara, and Collins, and we'll see about Soria, though I'm expecting he's done in one way or another.

We have one weakness. Granted, it's a big one. But it can be addressed this offseason.

I'm really looking forward to next April.

Oh i look forward to next year too, but im not getting my hopes up or getting excited yet.

The Royals need to actualy "Show ME" something before i get my expectations up. Not falling for the Fools gold of a good Aug/Sept anymore. . This organization continues to prove over and over that they are at their best when they have nothing to play for.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

When he was thrown out at second last night, I said, "**** you, Frenchy" aloud, and my wife was asking what the hell I was saying.

Haven't turned the Royals on since, and this might be my swan song for the year.

Had a similar moment with my father in law.

I had been crushing Frenchy earlier in the year, and he thought I was being a bit too unfair. Then he started paying close attention to how his season was going. By Monday night, he was right there with me.

FIL continues to be amazed at how poorly the Royals run the bases, and the lack of situational awareness/fundamentals displayed.

As he pointed out, unless you're the tying run, absolutely no baseball reason for Francoeur to try to stretch that hit.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by Literature

Obviously, it was a disappointing season. However, there were plenty of bright spots and things that make me look forward to next year. Notwithstanding Moose's own judgment, I think he's developing into a solid, if still inconsistent, hitter. I think Hosmer will rebound from the sophomore slump. I think Gordon has found his groove and will continue to hit above-average and play stellar defense. Butler will continue to be a great foundation of our offense, and Escobar will continue to be a great foundation of our infield (and his surprising offensive stats might dip down, but could still remain a plus).

Barring injury, we will have Perez and Cain for full seasons. That's beautiful. With Myers coming up, our outfield offensive production will rise.

Guthrie may have found a right fit for him in KC. I hope so. I am optimistic he has. We still have solid relievers in Crow, Holland, Herrara, and Collins, and we'll see about Soria, though I'm expecting he's done in one way or another.

We have one weakness. Granted, it's a big one. But it can be addressed this offseason.

I'm really looking forward to next April. I will be very disappointed if Hoch and Chen are anything more than our 3rd starter.

The offensive outlook is promising, especially if they swap Frenchy for Myers sooner rather than later.

I think Moustakas improves next year, and Hosmer bounces back. Get similar contributions from Butler and Gordon, and you're talking about 4 guys who can really drive an offense.

My fear is that they're going to stick with hitting Cain (and Dyson on some days) in the leadoff spot, and give way too many at-bats to a hitter who isn't one of the best hitters on the team.

I'm also not sold on Escobar as the 2 hitter. Once Myers is up, I think that would be a good spot to slot him. He's a guy who can take a walk and punish fastballs, things that would be handy hitting in front of Gordon and Butler.

I love Escobar, but him hitting second is, to me, an indication or relic of Yost's obsession with "old-man baseball" that dictates your 2 hitter be a really good sacrifice bunter.

As for the rotation... I think you can probably extinguish all hope - except blind luck - if both Hochevar and Chen are in the rotation to start the season.

Chen I'm fine with. He didn't have a great year, but I think his performance would take a step up in a better rotation (Where Yost asks him to stretch out less - it seems like MOST of the damage done vs. Chen was in the last inning of his outings). A quicker hook makes him more effective.

You can afford a quicker hook IF the rest of the rotation is solid and eats innings.

I'd still like to see the Royals acquire Anibal Sanchez. He's been my favorite target for a LONG time.

Throw in re-signing Guthrie (2 years, option for 3rd) and someone on a one-year flyer (High-end: Dan Haren; Low-end: Kevin Millwood type), and the rotation is in shape to compete in the Central, IMO, with a pretty good shot to make the playoffs IF the one-year flyer pitches really well.

Final two spots would come from Chen, Mendoza, Odorizzi, Will Smith, John Lamb, etc.

[gblowfish]

The Good News: This year we didn't finish in last.
The Bad News: Next year will be pretty much like this year.

[Deberg_1990]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I think you can probably extinguish all hope - except blind luck - if both Hochevar and Chen are in the rotation to start the season.

If this happens it tells me all i need to know about this franchises committment to winning and im done.

[KevB]

I'm going to be very upset if Hochever begins the season in the rotation. He's a bad pitcher, and has only gotten worse as the season has gone along.

Moose and especially Hosmer need to be better at the plate next season if we're going to compete for anything. I'm optimistic.

I wouldn't mind if we brought in a veteran 2nd baseman at this point, although pickings appear to be slim in the free agent pool. Org clearly doesn't believe in Gio.

Otherwise, go get some starting pitching. Edwin Jackson, A. Sanchez, Marcum, Peavy, Haren, McCarthy, E. Santana, etc. are all guys that may be available as free agents. Add two, re-sign Guthrie and let the existing rotation guys fight for those last two spots.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by KevB

I'm going to be very upset if Hochever begins the season in the rotation. He's a bad pitcher, and has only gotten worse as the season has gone along.

Moose and especially Hosmer need to be better at the plate next season if we're going to compete for anything. I'm optimistic.

I wouldn't mind if we brought in a veteran 2nd baseman at this point, although pickings appear to be slim in the free agent pool. Org clearly doesn't believe in Gio.

Otherwise, go get some starting pitching. Edwin Jackson, A. Sanchez, Marcum, Peavy, Haren, McCarthy, E. Santana, etc. are all guys that may be available as free agents. Add two, re-sign Guthrie and let the existing rotation guys fight for those last two spots.

My dream offseason:

1) Royals sign Anibal Sanchez
2) Angels pick up Dan Haren's contract after all, then trade Haren to the Royals for Jason Adam and a spare part or two (i.e. Cam Gallagher)
3) Royals re-sign Guthrie
4) Royals sign Stephen Drew to a one-year, incentive-laden deal and play him at 2B. He adds some lefthanded pop to the lineup, upgrades the defense at 2B (despite the position switch), and gives the Royals a legitimate backup shortstop (allowing more rest of Escobar).
5) Jeff Fracouer is exiled.
6) Luke Hochevar is non-tendered

Rotation:

Sanchez (very good No. 2 with No. 1 stuff)
Haren (Not quite a No. 1 anymore, but has that potential and should be an excellent No. 2 if he can bounce back)
Guthrie
Chen (not great, but you can live with him here... )
Odorizzi

Lineup:
LF - Gordon
RF - Myers
1B - Hosmer (assuming he bounces back - if he doesn't, hit Gordon 3rd and Drew/Cain first)
DH - Butler
3B - Moustakas
C - Perez
2B - Drew
CF - Cain
SS - Escobar

That would be a deep and dangerous lineup. And you'd see plenty of RBI opportunities for Gordon because of the depth.