The Royals have been one of the the major league’s most futile franchises for the last two decades. They’ve had one winning season in the past 16 and haven’t made the playoffs since they won the World Series in 1985 with George Brett in the middle of the lineup. Though neither of those are likely to change in 2011, the Royals have the top farm system in the MLB and a great young crop of players that are set to make the big club over the next couple of seasons. This year, however, maybe a struggle.
Projected Lineup:
- Lorenzo Cain (CF) (Melky Cabrera on Opening day but not for long)
- Mike Aviles (2B)
- Billy Butler (DH)
- Jason Kendall (C)
- Kila Ka’alhue (1B)
- Jeff Francoeur (RF)
- Wilson Betemit (3B)
- Alex Gordon (LF)
- Alcides Escobar (SS)
Projected Rotation:
- Luke Hochevar
- Sean O’Sullivan
- Vin Mazzaro
- Jeff Francis
- Kyle Davies
Strengths:
Prospects: Its tough when your number one strength is not even a part of your team but the Royals have 6 players in Keith Law’s Top 100 prospects and a wealth of left-handed pitchers in the minors. Eric Hosmer is a first base prospect and number 5 on Law’s list. Wil Meyers is a catcher and right fielder and number 8 on the list. Alcides Escobar is considered one of the best young shortstops in the game and was acquired this winter from Milwaukee in the Zach Greinke deal.
Closer: Joakim Soria is one of the top and most reliable closers in the Majors. On the rare occasions the Royals have the lead going into the 9th, they can pretty well be sure that they’ll win the game. Soria had 43 saves in 46 chances and the Royals only won 67 games in 2010. That means Soria had a save in 64% of his teams wins last season. I don’t know if that’s the most in majors (its Spring break, you really expect me to check?) but its very impressive.
Weaknesses:
Lineup consistency: For all the youth in the Royals system, the guys who have made it to the majors haven’t performed all that well. Alex Gordon was the second overall pick in 2005 but has a career average of only .244 with 45 career home runs in 408 career games. Kila Ka’alhue is supposed to provide some much much much needed power in the middle of the KC order but he hit only .217 in 52 games last season. Jeff Francoeur is the new right fielder and has been a model of inconsistency during his career. After hitting .293 for the Braves in 2007, Jeff hit .24
Starting Rotation: I’ll cut them some slack because they just traded away a former Cy Young winner and their clear cut ace in Zach Greinke but Luke Hochevar is not anything close to a number one. O’Sullivan and Davies have shown flashes of effectiveness and Jeff Francis and 6th starter right now Bruce Chen are reliable if nothing else but the rotation is clearly a weakness of this roster.
Storylines:
Prospects (again): Which prospects will make it to the big club this year? How will they do? Can they make it up to the majors in time to save the Royals from competing with the Cleveland Indians for last in the AL Central? In addition to Hosmer and Meyers, look for Mike Moustakas and Mike Montgomery to break in a t some point.
That’s really the whole story for KC this season. Though there are definitely some bright spots on the roster, notably Butler, Cain and Aviles, but the hopes and dreams of this team definitely rest with the minor leaguers.
Prediction:
75-87, 4th Place, AL Central. This definitely isn’t the year for the Royals but they are moving in a positive direction. The loss of Gil Meche to retirement and Greinke to the Brewers will hurt but they’ll improve on their record from last year as the young players continue to develop. Realistically, this team is a couple good pitchers and a few good hitters in the middle of the order from contending and the prospects really all have to pan out for them to be able to rely on only internal options over the next couple years. They would be well advised to make a play for a decent bat after the season.
Bold Prediction:
- Lorenzo Cain wins the starting CF job early in the season and never looks back, hitting .300 and stealing 40 bases
That’s all I got today, sorry
-Max Frankel
