The Royals are on the verge of making the biggest mistake in franchise history. And that is saying something!
Trading David Cone for principally Ed Hearn was bad. Carlos Beltran for Mark Teahan, John Buck and Mike Wood was suspect at best. Johnny Damon for a bucket of chicken was downright embarrassing.
Just because Zack Greinke wants to win is no reason to trade him and his market-friendly contract. I'm tired of present-day athletes demanding they be traded and getting their way like a spoiled child throwing a temper tantrum.
I want the Royals to win every bit much as Greinke, IF NOT MORE. I grew up with this once proud franchise and remember the Glory Days, but the fact remains we haven't won anything since 1985.
Whole generations of kids have grown up thinking the Royals are "that place you get cool treats and see Sluggrrr" instead of actually seeing great baseball.
The Royals need to understand that Greinke is the franchise.
Trading him will result in further erosion of the fan base which will lead to less people attending games, and ultimately less revenue. The Royals can't afford to lose him. Greinke is the only Royal in the past two decades that has moved people to actually walk up and buy a ticket.
The fans will not understand trading their hero no matter what bounty we get in return.
Dayton Moore insists we need to compete with pitching, defense and a set of core players. According to scouts and other experts, the Royals have a stacked minor league system full of young talent comprised mostly of pitching.
The problem is young pitching rarely comes up to the Major Leagues and has immediate success. The exception to this rule is when you have established veterans on the team to help groom them and shorten the learning curve.
Greinke is one of those core players we need and has learned how to be a professional and successful Big Leaguer. He is also the front line starter to help keep the team on track and avoid extended losing streaks.
Greinke has already given us a "hometown" discount once, and there is no reason why we should expect him not to it again beyond the two years left on his current contract. The steady stream of young talented players coming up and producing will reshape Greinke's thought process of wanting to go elsewhere.
If this wave of talented players doesn't produce as advertised, it will be more than Greinke leaving the Royals family—it will be the last straw for Moore and my Fanhood.
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