Royals Rumblings - News for April 19, 2018
Is it 2021 yet?
The Royals are looking for answers in the pen, writes Rustin Dodd.
“Grimm just could not find his slot today,” Yost said. “He just couldn’t do it. Then you get bases loaded, you bring in a young guy like Keller, and he’s got really, really good stuff. But it just kind of snowballs on you.”
The performance cannot continue, of course. Yost admitted as much earlier this week. The club opted to send Maurer back to Omaha to hone his powerful stuff. But it cannot do that with Boyer or Grimm, both veterans with no options. That could leave both pitching for their jobs in the coming days and weeks. It could also leave the Royals searching for alternate options in the seventh, eighth and ninth.
On possible bullpen moves, Ned Yost said: "I can't answer that."
— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) April 18, 2018
"I think Dayton and I are always looking, we’re always evaluating," he said. "We always like to try to get through the first month before we start making some changes. It definitely hasn’t been very pretty."
Salvador Perez will continue his rehab in Omaha this weekend.
Mike Moustakas addressed concerns about his weight this winter, in a piece from Ken Rosenthal
“It’s always been my m.o. — I’m a bigger-bodied guy,” Moustakas said. “I guess teams were concerned how I would come in after surgery, which is understandable. But I go out and play 150 games a year, go out every single day, play hurt, play injured.
“In this game, there aren’t a lot of days off. You’ve got to grind through pain and injury. I feel like I’ve done that for a great part of my career. I feel like I’ve been pretty durable.”
Fake Teams’s Eddy Almaguer profiles Khalil Lee as his stock rises for fantasy purposes:
For starters, speed and power players aren’t easy to come by. He was one of just three players in Low-A to have at least 15 home runs and 20 stolen bases (Fernando Tatis Jr and Jose Siri were the others) and one of just 14 players in all of minor league baseball. But simply being able to hit for power and steal some bases isn’t good enough sometimes, just ask Michael Gettys. Lee also has a strong approach at the plate. In 797 career plate appearances he owns a 13.4 BB%. For some context, the major league average is nine percent. Getting on base allows him to use his wheels, though I should caution that he’s A)not a true burner and B) still learning how to steal. Last season he got caught a whopping 18 times in 38 attempts. Worth noting he hasn’t been caught in three attempts this year, though. He maxes out as a plus runner right now and should downgrade to above-average as he fills out a little more.
Former RR overlord Craig Brown writes of the AL’s worst bullpen:
It’s not like Ned Yost has a plethora of relief options. He knows this. “It is a bit of a struggle right now. Grimm just could not find his slot today. He just couldn’t do it”
We can have empathy for the relief corps while staring the truth square in the eye: There’s no one in this bullpen who can be trusted outside of Kelvin Herrera. And the Royals starters aren’t going eight innings, nor is Herrera going to be asked to get a six (or nine) out save. This is how it’s going to be in Kansas City this summer. Buckle up? Hell, get me the horse tranquilizers. That’s the only way to deal with this version of bullpen roulette.
The Royals have the worst bullpen in the American League. That’s not just some kind of rant after a tough late inning loss. That’s a fact.
KoK’s Lance Feyh takes us on a journey through Thoracic Park with Nate Karns.
KCKingdom’s Joel Wagler argues that the Royals have too many weaknesses to compete.
“Every time I flip it over, that pushes me a little harder”: Jarrod Dyson carries with him a literal remembrance of the loved ones he's lost. Their names are stitched into his glove, and there isn’t much space left. By @ZHBuchanan: https://t.co/KN2a2kBXbm
— The Athletic (@TheAthleticAZ) April 18, 2018
BP’s Russell Carleton walks through trying to explain baseball to someone who has never been exposed to the sport. Also at BP, Emma Baccallieri marvels at the story of Lou Boudreau, and Jeffrey Paternostro offers a slew of notes from prospecting that are unbound from their context in this installment of Short Relief.
FanGraphs’ Jeff Sullivan shows how Mookie Betts has been baseball’s best hitter in 2018 and points out that Adam Ottavino is pitching like no one else is pitching.
Kiley McDaniel and Eric Longenhagen have updated their top 55 amateur prospects for the upcoming draft.
It’s looking increasingly likely that Taijuan Walker will need Tommy John surgery. He is seeking a second opinion to confirm.
Bryan Curtis of the Ringer looks at the rise and fall of the Denver Post’s sports section.
How do Cubans feel as they near the end of the Castro family’s rule? Not discernibly different.
A judge’s bizarre ruling looks to be keeping Meek Mill from being included a group of people convicted thanks to a corrupt officer’s testimony.
MoviePass apparently lost $150 million last year.
Stranger Things 3 added Jake Busey and Cary Elwes to its expanding cast. It’s probably safe to assume Elwes will be playing the Dread Pirate Roberts.
The song of the day is “Take My Hand” by Matt Berry: