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.

[Mizzou_8541]

Originally Posted by Reaper16

Royals already signed Zimmer. A very quick signing for a top 5 player.

Thanks! Where is he starting out? Extended spring training?

[DBoweShow]

Originally Posted by Mizzou_8541

Thanks! Where is he starting out? Extended spring training?

Ya. Said they were sending him to Arizona and he has a little groin strain so it would probably be 2 weeks before he sees any game time action.

[gblowfish]

Originally Posted by DBoweShow

Signed Kyle Zimmer.

Has he blown out his elbow or strained a groin yet???

[eazyb81]

Looks like we signed him for $3MM, or about $500,000 under slot. Very nice.

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/20...k-kyle-zimmer/

[mr. tegu]

Originally Posted by gblowfish

Has he blown out his elbow or strained a groin yet???

Nah groin was already strained.

[chefsos]

Originally Posted by mr. tegu

Nah groin was already strained.

And little.

[alnorth]

Originally Posted by Valiant

That does not matter as they would have to have the spot to draft him. The yankees can overpay as much as they want at pick 30, it would not effct the royals overpaying at pick 5 to secure their guy so that he signs and does not go to/back to college.

Sure it is possible the overspend at every pick to screw the draft up, but I doubt they would do it as it would cost a fortune.

They could of caught on as much as they wanted. It just meant spending more money. Slotting without salary floor and ceiling just means it benefits the big markets.

"The Yankees gave that guy $25MM and you are offering me 3? Give me at least 20, or I'm going back to school"

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

So nothing about Sluggrrrs All-Star jersey? DAMN IT!

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Anyone else All-Star voting? I just put in 25 apiece for Butler, Moustakas and Escobar. Melky in the NL. Will put in 50 more with my other 2 e-mail addresses too I suppose.

[chefsos]

Originally Posted by Dr. noonanbeermefever

Anyone else All-Star voting? I just put in 25 apiece for Butler, Moustakas and Escobar. Melky in the NL. Will put in 50 more with my other 2 e-mail addresses too I suppose.

I put in my 25 votes a couple of weeks ago. I didn't vote for those guys



Actually I did put Moustakas in.

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Originally Posted by chefsos

I put in my 25 votes a couple of weeks ago. I didn't vote for those guys



Actually I did put Moustakas in.

Butler deserves your votes more than the other two. Just sayin. Moose and Esky won't be voted in but I voted for them anyway because they're good players who won't get a lot of love outside the KC fanbase. Maybe Moose can make the "last guy in" vote. Butler's a possibility there too.

[Mr. Laz]

Royals sign No. 5 pick Zimmer


Posted: June 7, 2012 - 6:39pm
Follow Capital-Journal Sports on Facebook
By The Associated Press

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kyle Zimmer wasn’t interested in holding out for an extra buck. He was interested in getting on the field as quickly as possible for the Kansas City Royals.

The No. 5 pick Major League Baseball’s amateur draft signed with the Royals on Thursday, less than three days after he was chosen and for a bonus that should help the franchise sign the rest of its top draft picks.

“I’m ready to go out here and compete and get on the mound again,” said Zimmer, who converted from third base to pitcher while he was player college baseball for San Francisco.

Zimmer visited Kauffman Stadium just before the Royals departed for an interleague series at Pittsburgh on Thursday, getting his first glimpse of the ballpark and a chance to chat up a few of the guys in the clubhouse before they boarded a bus and headed for the airport.

Zimmer was joined by his parents and his agent, Mark Pieper. He pulled on a Royals hat and slipped into the bright white jersey that he hopes to be wearing in the next few years.

“I didn’t know exactly how it would play out,” Zimmer said. “It’s been a fast process, so I haven’t had a chance to sit back and reflect on the whole road yet.”

The early signing is a departure from previous years, when high draft picks often negotiated right up to an August deadline, creating some tense moments on both sides of the table.

The new collective bargaining agreement moved this year’s deadline to July 13 and created a bonus pool structure that serves as a compromise between Major League Baseball’s desire for a hard slot system and the player union’s argument that draft picks deserve individual bargaining rights.

Kansas City has a bonus pool of $6,101,500 that it can use for its first 10 picks.

The recommended figure for the No. 5 player in the structure was $3.5 million, which means the Royals managed to save $500,000 on Zimmer’s signing. That becomes additional money that they can use to help sign the other nine players they chose in the first 10 rounds.

“Every negotiation is different,” Royals general manager Dayton Moore said. “Kyle really wanted to get out and play. He had a desire to get out and play right away.”

That was welcome news for the Royals, who have grown accustomed to tense negotiations.

They signed third baseman Mike Moustakas, the No. 2 overall pick in 2007, to a $4 million bonus about 10 minutes before that year’s deadline. First baseman Eric Hosmer signed for a $6 million bonus the following year, once again just minutes before the deadline.

Last year may have been the most anxious, when outfielder Bubba Starling was weighing an offer to play football at Nebraska. The Royals ended up signing him to a $7.5 million bonus in the final seconds before the deadline, setting a franchise record for the largest signing bonus.

Those kinds of numbers may be a thing of the past, though.

Under the new structure, the Houston Astros were able to sign shortstop Carlos Correa, the No. 1 overall pick this year, to a relatively modest $4.8 million bonus.

“The advantage we’re starting to see already is guys are going to get out and start playing this summer,” said J.J. Picollo, the Royals’ assistant GM for player personnel. “It meets the players’ needs and it meets the club’s needs.”

Zimmer plans to head to Arizona in the next few days, where he’ll rehab a hamstring injury that turned into a groin strain. Once he’s ready, he’ll start off in the rookie Arizona League.

Moore said there is no timetable on Zimmer’s progression, though he indicated that he hopes the right-hander can finish the season in the Midwest League. That would put him in position to start next season at Class-A Wilmington in the Carolina League.

“Wherever they think is best for my development,” Zimmer said.

The 20-year-old Zimmer began his college career as a third baseman, but wound up switching to the mound when it became clear that he wouldn’t receive much playing time.

Zimmer admits that he was reluctant to make the switch at first, but he’s grown to love pitching. He went 6-5 with a 3.73 ERA his first full season, outdueling UCLA’s Gerrit Cole — the eventual first overall draft pick in 2011 — to win an NCAA regional game.

With a fastball in the mid- to upper-90s, a sharp curveball and encouraging changeup, Zimmer managed to go 5-3 with a 2.85 ERA this season. He tossed two shutouts among his 13 starts.

It was enough to make him the No. 1 pitcher on the Royals’ draft board.

‘’We’re extremely proud to have him as part of our organization, and extremely proud and happy that he was willing to get out here as quickly as he did,” Picollo said. “His desire is to play professional baseball. We’re just fortunate it’s with us.”

[cabletech94]

don't know if it's a rebroadcast or not, but on COX (cable) 22, they're showing the omaha storm chasers vs. roundrock right now.

said myers hit another homer (may have been a grand slam).

[Valiant]

Originally Posted by alnorth

"The Yankees gave that guy $25MM and you are offering me 3? Give me at least 20, or I'm going back to school"

But it never happened, nor could the Yankees afford to do it.. They would be spending 100m+ a year on picks.. Sure the yanks could realistically offer 10million to the Royals 5-8million, but then the Yankees would have to hope he falls to them next year or another team with a worse record does not select him..

You are very knowledgeable and I enjoy your viewpoint on baseball.. But the current set up with slotting and no caps is worse then it was without slotting..

If there were a cap I would agree with you..

[Sure-Oz]

Myers HR was a grand slam off Oswalt