The Royals have promoted the first of a long stream of extremely talented prospects. Baseball world meet Eric Hosmer. The first baseman of the future for the Royals and a guy we will likely be hearing about for the next 10 years. The earnest appraisals of this kid are impressive. Scouts have him as a guy who can hit .300 with 30-35 homeruns. Hosmer reminds some of Joey Votto, the reigning MVP. These scouts also love his defense, baserunning, and patience at the plate. From Buster Olney’s blog, “He could have Jason Heyward-type impact this year.”
The question arises why does KC make this move so early? Shouldn’t they wait to start his arbitration clock in an attempt to keep him cheap for at least an extra year? The simple answer is no. I get that KC has little starting pitching but we at Off The Bench love watching this team play. They get after it and seem to enjoy the game. They have a legitimate chance at competing this year in what has turned out to be a competitive AL Central. There’s no way the Indians continue to play this well, or that the Twins and White Sox are THAT bad. The Royals could have a chance to win the AL Central this year with no defined favorite in the division.
Quite simply, Hosmer makes this team better and here’s why:
- He’s amazingly talented – You read what scouts think he could do
- He’s hot. He hit .439, with a .525 on-base percentage for AAA Omaha
- He’s a major upgrade at first. Kila Ka’aihue can’t hit a curveball. His line this year: .195/.295/.317 so that’s an OPS of .612 with 2 HR.
- Excitement for the organization. If KC is able to draw more fans, payroll could get a bump up from dead last in the league allowing for a deadline deal to help this team compete
I missed the call on Kila: I had him as a major fantasy sleeper this year especially after his .415 Avg, 7 HR, 17 RBIs in 53 ABs this spring. Kila still has immense natural power and could give an impact on a different team down the road but, Hosmer will play first for a while in KC.
Eric Hosmer is ready to help the big club. “He helps us put the best team on the field that we can,” GM Dayton Moore said.
Stat of the Day: Lance Berkman has hit .472 with 6 of his 10 HR against the fastball this season.
-Sean Morash
