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.

[Reaper16]

My problem is that half of it is a lie. No, Yost, you don't actually like Hoch's makeup. Hoch is the most mentally fragile pitcher I can remember in a Royals uniform in a long time.

[sedated]

Originally Posted by Reaper16

This. Perfect GIF.

[chefsos]

Onion articles are really getting more and more authentic looking. Impressive. I almost thought that was real.

[chefsos]

But are they actually allowed to put Dutton's name on it and everything?

[BigMeatballDave]

LOL bounce back from what?

[SAUTO]

Originally Posted by sedated

This. Perfect GIF.

Agreed
Posted via Mobile Device

[SAUTO]

Originally Posted by Dave

LOL bounce back from what?

The beating Cassel has been putting on him
Posted via Mobile Device

[SCTrojan]

What is this unnatural obsession Moore and Yost have with guys like Hochevar, Getz, Kendall, Davies, etc? It's almost as if they are watching something completely different than we are.

[Nightfyre]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I think it's also TINSTAAPP (There is no such thing as a pitching prospect) and that I look at each of those Seattle guys and see huge problems with them:

Hultzen: Showed severe control problems in his debut season.
Paxton: Has severe control problems that have been present throughout his pro career.
Walker: Stud and I like him, but he's got a long way to go, and I have seen some legit questions about his delivery that make his long-term health a big problem.

They're all great prospects. But that's all they are at this point, and that's why I hesitate. Call it recent burnout of pitching prospects in the Royals system if you want (Combined with Lamb, Zimmer, Ventura all having 2014 likely arrival dates, too).

But you're right. It's just a difference in perspective.

And Duffy and Paulino and probably Odorizzi... This rotation is going to look different in a year. If only we could get a deal on a pitcher like the nationals did on Edwin Jackson last year - a one year stop-gap as a last resort for the player.

[Al Bundy]

Originally Posted by ChiefsandO'sfan

Yost believes Hochevar can turn the corner for Royals
By BOB DUTTON The Kansas City Star
Luke Hochevar was 8-16 last season for the Royals with a 5.73 ERA in 32 starts.
JOHN SLEEZER
Luke Hochevar was 8-16 last season for the Royals with a 5.73 ERA in 32 starts.


NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- That impact addition the Royals are seeking for their rotation, manager Ned Yost suggests, could already be in hand.

“I look for Luke Hochevar to bounce back,” Yost declared Monday in his news conference at the Winter Meetings. “I really do. I think Luke has great stuff, and I feel good every time he steps on the mound.

“The optimist in me thinks he’s going to have a great year.”

The Royals reinforced their rotation in recent weeks by obtaining Ervin Santana in a trade from the Los Angeles Angels and retaining free-agent Jeremy Guthrie. They continue to push hard on trade possibilities for a front-of-the-rotation addition.

That quest – and a willingness to surrender prospects — is one of the major storylines this week while baseball convenes as an industry for its annual meetings at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center.

“Would I like to have another starting pitcher?” Yost parried. “Would I like to have two more starting pitchers? Sure. I think every major-league manager would … but at what cost?”

Yost is adamant the Royals continue to see Hochevar as a potential cornerstone despite all indications to the contrary through seven professional seasons. Hochevar was 8-16 last season with a 5.73 ERA in 32 starts.

Ask Yost to explain his conviction, and he rapidly ticks off a series of points.

“One, he’s got great stuff,” Yost said. “Two, he’s a great competitor. Three, he’s not afraid …”

Pause.

“You can pinpoint why a guy doesn’t have success more times than not,” Yost said. “You can look at a pitcher and see makeup flaws. Or maybe it’s stuff. Or maybe he doesn’t throw enough strikes. Or maybe the quality of his pitches isn’t really good.

“I don’t see any of that with Hoch.

“I like his pitches. I like the quality of his pitches. I like his stuff. I like the way he competes on the mound. I like his makeup. He’s not scared. He goes right after hitters. He does his homework. The intangibles are there to have success. He just hasn’t had it.”

Hochevar was the first overall pick in the 2006 draft and reached the majors late in the 2007 season. While he has flashed dominant potential on occasion, he is also a combined 38-59 with a 5.39 ERA in 132 career games.

Even so, general manager Dayton Moore said the club never considered non-tendering Hochevar prior to last Friday’s deadline, which means the Royals are probably looking at, roughly, a $4.4 million outlay for next season.

Yost acknowledged Hochevar’s lack of success is puzzling.

“I’ve never really had a player,” he said, “who I couldn’t figure out why he hasn’t been successful. Again, you can, generally, identify one thing for why a player isn’t successful With Hoch, I can’t.

“I think, at the blink of an eye, it can turn around for him. I just think it’s a matter of time before he is successful. I think this year, with the addition of Santana and having Guthrie from the beginning of the year, I think it’s really going to help Hoch.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/12/03...#storylink=cpy

Well... I think I am done with the Royals.

[Jenson71]

Well, if we can't sign Soria, that frees up money, right?

[Nightfyre]

Originally Posted by Al Bundy

Well... I think I am done with the Royals.

And there was much rejoicing.

[alnorth]

Originally Posted by Literature

Well, if we can't sign Soria, that frees up money, right?

No. We never had any intention of picking up his option, and our bullpen no longer needs him. Every estimate of projected Royals payroll excluded Soria.

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by Al Bundy

Well... I think I am done with the Royals.

Thank ****ing God! This is now the sole reason I am excited for the upcoming season.

[CaliforniaChief]

I just wish that we were the "surprise" team at the Winter Meetings this year. I know, rooting for the Royals precludes that.

Mortgage a few Walmarts for Josh Hamilton.
Trade LoCain and Bonifacio for Dickey. (even without an extension)
Dump Francouer.
Move Myers to Center.

BOOM.