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.

[pkane]

George Brett subject of class action lawsuit

http://network.yardbarker.com/mlb/ar...awsuit/9811753

[Valiant]

Sad face. They messed up alloted tickets for allstar game on my account. Row u section 115 in the first row of the outfield. Now.

[DeezNutz]

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/02/07...-close-on.html

****. Get the long-term deal done, please.

[RockChalk]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/02/07...-close-on.html

****. Get the long-term deal done, please.

You just know DM is going to **** this one up somehow

[alnorth]

I'm fine with the Royals starting with 4/30 as their opening bid, but they shouldn't stick to that. You can understand why Gordon would think he was better than Butler, with gold glove defense in LF vs a pretty-good DH, but you can also understand the Royals hesitation since this is just one breakout year.

I do believe that year was for real, though, and being overly cautious could raise the price tag next year.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by alnorth

I'm fine with the Royals starting with 4/30 as their opening bid, but they shouldn't stick to that. You can understand why Gordon would think he was better than Butler, with gold glove defense in LF vs a pretty-good DH, but you can also understand the Royals hesitation since this is just one breakout year.

I do believe that year was for real, though, and being overly cautious could raise the price tag next year.

I could see him getting $15 million per on the openn market if he has another year like last year.

[RockChalk]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

I could see him getting $15 million per on the openn market if he has another year like last year.

Which is why you go 4 for $40 now. It may seem like a slight reach given only 1 year of "domination", but if he puts up similar numbers it's a hometown bargain.

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Originally Posted by RockChalk

Which is why you go 4 for $40 now. It may seem like a slight reach given only 1 year of "domination", but if he puts up similar numbers it's a hometown bargain.

I tend to agree with this. I'm of the belief that he's not going to be just a one year wonder though. He really does seem to have turned the corner when you read about the kind of work he puts in and he should have plenty of confidence now. IMO he's likely going to become one of those cornerstone guys that you can really build around and you need to make a good faith effort now and show him plenty of love while he's here and wants to be here.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by RockChalk

Which is why you go 4 for $40 now. It may seem like a slight reach given only 1 year of "domination", but if he puts up similar numbers it's a hometown bargain.

Agreed, but I think he would sign a 4 year deal for 32-34.

[SPchief]

An extension will get done.

[gblowfish]

On the Radio TV broadcasts: I don't care who they put on the air....hire Gilbert Gottfried for all I care, just get Bob Davis THE HELL OUTTA KAUFFMAN STADIUM.

He must go.

Splitt dies, Bob Davis lives. Life is so unfair.

[RockChalk]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Agreed, but I think he would sign a 4 year deal for 32-34.

That's fine. And I agree. I was just using the 4 for 40 as a way to say, yeah, we may need to "overpay" him a bit right now. But if he produces the same, paying him $10/mil a year for 2011 production is more than fair.

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Originally Posted by gblowfish

On the Radio TV broadcasts: I don't care who they put on the air....hire Gilbert Gottfried for all I care, just get Bob Davis THE HELL OUTTA KAUFFMAN STADIUM.

He must go.

Splitt dies, Bob Davis lives. Life is so unfair.

You can take your pick between the Mad Hungarian, McLaughlin, and Ricky Horton. Damn, you'd think the Cards would be able to get better announcers than these clowns.

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Originally Posted by PGM

You can take your pick between the Mad Hungarian, McLaughlin, and Ricky Horton. Damn, you'd think the Cards would be able to get better announcers than these clowns.

I like Dan McLaughlin pretty well but yeah the other two..... ugh.

[RockChalk]

From Keith Law's ESPN Insider article

http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/hotst...m-baseball-mlb

1. San Diego Padres

Without Anthony Rizzo, they no longer have a top-25 prospect in their system, but in terms of total future value of players likely to play significant roles in the big leagues, they're ahead of everyone else. Some of these players, especially from the 2011 draft, will develop into stars. But there are so many prospects here with high floors, players who would be top-10 or top-five in other systems but are 11-20 here (such as Robbie Erlin or Edinson Rincon), that they are well-positioned to compete even with modest major league payrolls during the next five to six years. Fans who were upset at the sudden departures of GM Jed Hoyer and assistant GM Jason McLeod for the Cubs should find solace in the fact that the prospects they helped bring into the system (along with many other scouts and execs, including Chris Gwynn, now with Seattle, and Jaron Madison and Randy Smith, still in San Diego) remain in place.

2. Tampa Bay Rays

If you favor ceiling over probability, you could make a strong argument for having the Rays ahead of the Padres, based on the fact that this system could quite easily produce six to eight players who end up as grade-60 players or better in the majors. After that first tier, however, there's a lot less probability here than there was a year or two ago, and several executives from other clubs pointed out that the Rays have a gap in their prospect pipeline coming up that will be filled only if some of their 2011 draft picks move faster than anticipated.

3. Toronto Blue Jays

One of the many reasons criticism of Rogers Communications, the owner of the Blue Jays, for being stingy with free agents is so ignorant is that the club has spent aggressively in the amateur markets during the past three years, grabbing high-ceiling high school players and Latin American prospects by stockpiling picks and paying whatever it took to sign those players. They are the organization most likely to be No. 1 on this list next winter.

4. St. Louis Cardinals

They've drafted very well in the past few years, which has to be heartening to Astros fans, as Houston just hired Jeff Luhnow, who oversaw the Cards' recent drafts, as GM. St. Louis also has done an excellent job of developing the players it's drafted. I really like how the Cards are set up to contend continuously during the next five years.

5. Kansas City Royals

Despite some major losses via promotion (Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Danny Duffy) and injury (John Lamb), the system remains extremely deep and still has two high-ceiling prospects at the top, Bubba Starling and Wil Myers.