Kansas City Royals

Zack Greinke certainly finds himself on the list of players who disappointed in 2010.  After posting a 2.16 ERA and 1.07 WHIP, while striking out 9.5 batters per nine innings in 2009, he was considered one of the elite pitchers in the game.  Unfortunately, his numbers ballooned in 2010:

10 Wins
220.0 Innings
4.17 ERA
1.25 WHIP
181 Strikeouts (7.4 K/9)
55 Walks (2.3 BB/9)
.314 BABIP

Come March, the Royals aren't projected to walk in a contender. It's gonna take a little work, starting with editing our starting lineup and acquisitions, which will most likely involve dealing Zack Grienke. David DeJesus could be on the outs, Grienke most likely is, and Soria has a chance, but, a very slim chance considering he sets the place on fire (if you've been to Kauffman, you know what I mean). Are you listening, Dayton Moore and Ned Yost? 

Kansas City Royals GM Dayton Moore gets a lot of flack from the internet community (myself included) for some of the moves and comments he has made over the last couple of years. However, every now and then he does make some good moves.

With Game one of the Texas League semis in the books, the league's best team in the regular season finds themselves in a 1 - 0 hole, having lost in 12th as the semi-stable Patrick Keating gave up two earned on Peter Kozma's second home run of the night.

The Kansas City Royals have numerous players who are capable of being dubbed their Fantasy Baseball Minor League Player of the Year, but ultimately it is hard to give the honor to anyone but Mike Moustakas.

The third baseman split time between Double and Triple-A, posting the following amazing line:

478 At-Bats
.324 Batting Average (155 Hits)
36 Home Runs
123 RBI
94 Runs
2 Stolen Bases
.371 On-Base Percentage
.636 Slugging Percentage
.316 Batting Average on Balls in Play

It’s time to continue our journey around the league, looking at each team’s closer situation.  

The AL Central is home to one of the most fluid closing situations and also one of the most stable options in the league.  Let’s take a look at their updated situation, as well as the other three teams in the division:

Chicago White Sox

The Kansas City Royals are trying to turn around their franchise, from the bottom up.  They are asking their fans to be patient as they try to get the talent in the minor leagues to build from within.  Slowly but surely, we’re seeing positive signs.

We’ve talked about Mike Moustakas (he’s a part of our Prospect Tracker, so click here to find the latest update)

Just because you’ve slipped behind in the Stolen Base category doesn’t mean you can’t catch up.  Here are some reasonably available SB threats.

Coco Crisp, OF, Oakland A’s

If steals are what you’re looking for Coco is your guy.

Well, it's been a while, hasn't it? Since my last post, I've gone out of town twice, bought a new car, worked nearly every day in between (pulling doubles three days a week), and have begun to prepare for a move to a new apartment.

This has left little time for blogging and little time for the Royals. Under new manager Ned Yost, the Royals are playing roughly .500 ball. This has been more a curse than a blessing, as the perception of success has led to hesitation in getting involved as sellers on the trade market.