Minor leagues: Kaaihue 3-for-4, HR (26) today

I know I'm beating a dead horse here, but this is driving me nuts. I understand he's 24-yrs-old repeating Double-A, but what the heck do the Royals have to lose by moving him up, finding a place for his bat somewhere in the Omaha lineup and seeing if he can repeat this total dominance of the Texas League? He leads the league in OPS (1075 before today) by a good distance. First in HR (26) and walks (80); 10th in batting average. He has 80 walks to 40 strikeouts and an overall line of .307 / .462 / .614 prior to today's game. He has a great approach at the plate and hits the ball solidly even when he makes an out. What more can he possibly do? Correct me if I'm wrong, but unless the Royals add him to the 40-man roster at the end of the season, he will become a minor league free agent. Better to find out now what he is capable of doing at a higher level than possibly let him walk for nothing. I realize Shealy is at Omaha and it's possible the guys at NWA are pushing to keep him in place as he has become the fan favorite of the inaugural Naturals who are trying to build a fanbase, but there are more important things on the line here.. like his career and the improvement of the Royals. Also, Shealy is about to turn 29 and had his chances. There is nothing lose and plenty to possibly gain. What is going on here?

Kila Kaaihue

4 months ago RATW Comment 47 comments 0 recs |

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I need help pronouncing his name

How do you say it.. ive heard..

A. Kill-Ah Kye-AH-who

B. Kee-ah Ka-who-ee

C. Kee-ah Ki-ah-who-ee

which is it.. i thought it was A

Yasuhiko Yabuta is to Major League Baseball as Drew Carey is to The Price is Right

by focs on Jul 27, 2008 10:29 PM EDT 0 recs

Going by the stadium announcer, it is…
Kee-la K-eye-hoo-ay

Longlorious.
Free Kila Kaaihue!

by RATW on Jul 27, 2008 10:45 PM EDT up 0 recs

I think I know

Kee-luh Kah-ah-ee-oo-ay (you have to pronounce each of the vowels individually)

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 27, 2008 10:47 PM EDT up 0 recs

Will he be eligible to become a minor league free agent?

I’m not sure. That rule is somewhat arcane. If so, I hope they move him to the 40-man. I think he might be better than some of th guys on that roster currently. And if he starts in Omaha next year, then the fact that he didn’t make it to Omaha this year wouldn’t be a big deal.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 27, 2008 10:48 PM EDT 0 recs

Ny has a point

there is really no reason to move him up as long as they protect him on the 40 man if they need to. NW is in a playoff push similar to the 05 or 06 team. Let him have fun and bring Shealy to KC in September to see if he sticks or moves. Whatever he does Kila will start next year at AAA. He appears to be a platoon 1b as his splits in AA against lefties are still not great 698 OPS small sample size though.

Every fight is a food fight when you’re a cannibal.
-- Demetri Martin

by kcscoliny on Jul 27, 2008 11:02 PM EDT up 0 recs

The reason he's still in NWA is simple.

If he goes to Omaha, he’ll lose out on playing time because of Shealy.

Shealy is still in Omaha for one simple reason, too: Trey Hillman knows that Ross Gload is the best first baseman in the major leagues, and therefore GMDM knows that Shealy would get no playing time in Kansas City.

Sarcasm™. It's the new gravy.

by jonfmorse on Jul 28, 2008 12:29 AM EDT 0 recs

Kaaihue's MLE

.291/.394/.504

I believe players can be free agents if they have played six full professional seasons without being on the 40 man roster.

Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com

by RoyalsRetro on Jul 28, 2008 9:34 AM EDT 0 recs

So, what is the process? Can they just remove someone else and add

him to the 40 man? or would they have to agree to contract with Kila?

My mother's basement is better than YOUR mother's basement!!

by Royal Kingdom on Jul 28, 2008 9:45 AM EDT up 0 recs

Just add him to the 40 man

Which I believe they will do this winter.

Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com

by RoyalsRetro on Jul 28, 2008 9:51 AM EDT up 0 recs

I hope you’re right, but don’t share your faith. If he was really part of the Royals plans, I doubt they’d let him spend an entire year at NWA just for the sake of Shealy or whoever else is supposedly blocking his promotion. If he were younger, I could see the point, but under the current circumstances, I don’t necessarily see it.

by RATW on Jul 28, 2008 1:18 PM EDT up 0 recs

We'll see. We really have no idea what their plans for Kila are or what they are going to do about him.

I doubt they think he’s likely to become a decent major leaguer. I sure don’t. But I would like him on the 40-man roster this winter so that we don’t lose him. I’ll complain when/if that doesn’t happen.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 2:01 PM EDT up 0 recs

Yes

A player not on a major league team’s 40-man roster is eligible for minor league free agency if he reaches six full years of service time in full season ball (low A and up, not rookie leagues or below).

This looks like Kaaihue’s sixth season in full season ball, so it appears that he will be eligible for minor league free agency at the end of the year if the Royals do not add him to the 40-man roster (or sign him to a minor league contract).

by Gopherballs on Jul 28, 2008 4:01 PM EDT up 0 recs

I'll get roasted for saying this

but I would prefer moving him to the 40 man, say TODAY, and calling him up for a 2 month look.

291/394/504 MLE? My God, even if that is a little off, he would STILL be a significant upgrade over Gload.

by loyal2sdad on Jul 28, 2008 11:02 AM EDT 0 recs

I don't think that is a horrible idea, but very Bairdesque.

I would prefer to call Shealy up and see what he can do.

Its funny that they refuse to put the one guy that is probably the most hurt (Guillen) on the DL. I would do that, let him heal and get Shealy up for a look. If you “must” continue to play Gload, he can be the 4th outfielder.

My mother's basement is better than YOUR mother's basement!!

by Royal Kingdom on Jul 28, 2008 11:20 AM EDT up 0 recs

I see what you are saying

but I have to agree with Kingdom, that is very Bairdesque. Let’s let him go through the system one level at a time. This doesn’t seem like the type of prospect that skips levels.

by I need more Esteban on Jul 28, 2008 12:22 PM EDT up 0 recs

Bairdesque

It would be Bairdesque if things didn’t work out, but if Kila hit at the MLB level, it would be more Twinsesque or Raysesque. Or why not GMDMesque for rushing Gordon and Butler and Hochevar?

by Stat Ninja on Jul 28, 2008 12:54 PM EDT up 0 recs

Butler was rushed?

He hit well once he actually got to play last year.

A mind without purpose will walk in dark places.

by NHZ on Jul 28, 2008 1:23 PM EDT up 0 recs

Yes

The plan had been to keep him in AAA and work on his D, and his lack of a position is what kept him out of the lineup all too often.

So said Lee Warren of Royal Reflections and the author of BBTF at the time of Butler’s debut.

I would prefer to have an extra year of Butler’s future rather than his partial and meaningless 2007. Same with Gordon and Hochevar and any other talented prospect. It is self-defeating to trade the last arbitration year or two of a budding star’s career at a time when we hope that the team will have begun to compete for real for a year or two of struggles during a bunch of meaningless losses. Instead of a five-year plan which could lead to a window of competitiveness from 2010-2012, we might get one 2003-like season in 2010 before rebuilding all over again.

by Stat Ninja on Jul 28, 2008 1:51 PM EDT up 0 recs

Butler will be under team control

through 2012 anyway, so I’m not sure what that has to with anything. I really disagree that Billy was rushed…unlike Gordon, he was killing the ball at AAA when he first got called up to the majors.

As for working on his defense…okay, well, you can argue the organization should’ve handled that better, but Butler coming up through the system was always seen as a guy who was going to be a work in progress at first or left and probably end up DHing anyway. It’s not as if the Royals have wasted someone with immense defensive value.

A mind without purpose will walk in dark places.

by NHZ on Jul 28, 2008 2:02 PM EDT up 0 recs

I'm pretty sure we'd have him till 2013.

by djk royal on Jul 28, 2008 2:07 PM EDT up 0 recs

I'm not sure what's up with

his arb status, though, based on his PT last year. MLB doesn’t really help you figure these things out, either.

A mind without purpose will walk in dark places.

by NHZ on Jul 28, 2008 2:18 PM EDT up 0 recs

djk royal is right

Butler is under team control through 2013. He only accrued 120 days of service time last year, and assuming he remains in the majors the rest of this year, he will have about 150 days of service time for 2008. 172 days equals one year of service time, so entering 2009, he will have approximately 1 year, 98 days of service time (let’s round up to 100 days for simplicity’s sake). A player needs 6 full years of service time, so assuming Butler does not return to the minors for any length of time, Butler would not be eligible for free agency until after the 2013 season.

Accrued Service Time at End of Season:
2008 1 year, 100 days
2009 2 years, 100 days
2010 3 years, 100 days 1st year of arbitration eligibility
2011 4 years, 100 days 2nd year of arbitration eligibility
2012 5 years, 100 days 3rd year of arbitration eligibility
2013 6 years, 100 days Free agency eligible

Butler would miss “Super Two” arbitration eligibility in 2009 by about 30 days of service time (the cutoff is usually around 2 years, 130 days).

by Gopherballs on Jul 28, 2008 3:54 PM EDT up 0 recs

Okay then!

Sounds good to me.

A mind without purpose will walk in dark places.

by NHZ on Jul 28, 2008 5:47 PM EDT up 0 recs

Butler

He would be ours for another year had he stayed in Omaha last year.

In my humble opinion, it makes no sense for a small market team to call up a prospect with less than a full year of AAA experience, especially one who is working on something like defense, which can’t/shouldn’t really be done at the major league level. We effectively lost a year of Billy Ray’s future because GMDM was overeager to have a year in which Buddy Bell kept him out of the lineup because the team deserved an experienced first baseman and the team didn’t win anything. How is that an ideal move, in your opinion? How is BB better off, offensively and defensively, for 2007 in KC vs. Omaha, in your opinion?

I think BB could have become a serviceable 1B with a year of work on it in Omaha.

by Stat Ninja on Jul 28, 2008 2:25 PM EDT up 0 recs

I think your are incorrect regarding Butler:

He would be ours for another year had he stayed in Omaha last year.

If a player spends roughly 3-4 weeks in the minors at the start of the season and then gets called up he will not be eligible for free agency until 6 seasons past that season. Essentially you call almost get 7 years of service from prospects before free agency if you manipulate the service time right. They will, however, probably be eligible for super two status meaning of those almost 7 years they play for your team they would be arbitration eligible for four of them.

by djk royal on Jul 28, 2008 2:36 PM EDT up 0 recs

I could be wrong

I don’t know the rules verbatim, and this is the sort of thing I’d love to be wrong about.

by Stat Ninja on Jul 28, 2008 3:35 PM EDT up 0 recs

Rushing him is a recipe for failure and probably the worst way to develop him (even worse than having him languish in AA)

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 2:02 PM EDT up 0 recs

"Or why not GMDMesque for rushing Gordon and Butler and Hochevar?"

None of these 3 were called up from AA before September?

My mother's basement is better than YOUR mother's basement!!

by Royal Kingdom on Jul 28, 2008 1:01 PM EDT 0 recs

Doh! - meant to be a reply to Stat Ninja.

My mother's basement is better than YOUR mother's basement!!

by Royal Kingdom on Jul 28, 2008 1:01 PM EDT up 0 recs

Gordon skipped AAA and the other two were there about half a season.

by djk royal on Jul 28, 2008 1:50 PM EDT up 0 recs

None?

Gordon skipped AAA altogether, so he was called up in April.

Butler was called up in May of last year, not September.

Hochevar’s minor league career is just baffling. I understand that his stats weren’t good because he wasn’t allowed to throw his best pitch(es), and that doesn’t clear anything up for me. He certainly didn’t metriculate to AAA and MLB in 2007 by sheer dominance and effectiveness. I would have preferred a season in AAA of putting it all together, but since his arbitration clock was already ticking from last year’s September callup, it was too late to make a sound decision in 2008.

by Stat Ninja on Jul 28, 2008 2:01 PM EDT up 0 recs

Those were great prospects (top 20 MLB prospects), so it wasn't a reach to think that they were ready and not being rushed

Kila is not a great prospect who has never hit well before this season. This would be rushing him and would likely hurt his development. Is it Twin-esque to bring up a mediocre non-prospect from AA and have him do well? No.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 2:04 PM EDT up 0 recs

Not advocating rushing Kila, too

I agree with you on Kila, except I think that his (or any prospect’s) performance outweighs whether said prospect was expected to be a star or mediocre or what. I’m glad the Royals can keep him on the 40 and give him a chance if he continues to earn it.

I wasn’t comparing Kila to Butler/Gordon/Hoch, I was point out that rushing players to the majors wasn’t uniquely “Bairdesque”.

In the late nineties, the Twins promoted a ton of players of varying prospect ranking prestige, skill level, and MLB readiness. Kila would have moved up to AAA this season in that system (getting rid of whomever was analagous to Brian Buchanan after whomever was analagous to BB was called up again), and a September callup wouldn’t seem so impossible or crazy. Many Rays’ prospects were called up early since their inception, also. Ryan Zimmerman was promoted quickly. It’s not just a Baird thing.

by Stat Ninja on Jul 28, 2008 2:14 PM EDT up 1 recs

I agree with you on Kila, except I think that his (or any prospect’s) performance outweighs whether said prospect was expected to be a star or mediocre or what.

One year of success in AA doesn’t completely overrule scouting opinions and every other year of minor league performance he’s had. And it certainly doesn’t warrant a call up to the majors. It does warrant a call up to the next level.

I wasn’t comparing Kila to Butler/Gordon/Hoch, I was point out that rushing players to the majors wasn’t uniquely "Bairdesque".

And I was pointing out that Butler and Gordon weren’t rushed. Moving a prospect up through the system quickly is not necessarily “rushing” him. Moving a prospect up too fast is rushing him. For great prospects dominating their levels, I don’t think it was too fast. Kila is dominating AA, but isn’t a great prospect. He isn’t even a good prospect. If he dominates AAA next year, maybe we can give him an Aviles-like shot.

Ryan Zimmerman was promoted quickly. It’s not just a Baird thing.

Promoting too many guys who have no business being called up so early in their careers is a very Baird thing (although he’s certainly not the only GM who has stupidly rushed prospects who clearly weren’t ready). Pointing out that this is Baird-like goes to show that it is something that Baird might have done and that it is stupid, not that it is entirely unique to Baird.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 2:31 PM EDT up 0 recs

Kila

is blocked for the ML roster in September. IF KC was smart they would bring up Shealy in August and give him an extended look to decide if he needs to remain on the 40 man roster or not.

Every fight is a food fight when you’re a cannibal.
-- Demetri Martin

by kcscoliny on Jul 28, 2008 2:53 PM EDT up 0 recs

If nothing else, Shealy could get called up in September when the rosters expand and he can get his look then

But I don’t think Shealy would or should be the guy potentially be bumped off of the 40-man roster to make room for Kila. There are less worthy men on the 40-man than Shealy. Jeff Fulchino, Josh Newman and Matt Tupman come to mind.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 2:57 PM EDT up 0 recs

Gordon, Hochevar, Zimmerman?

You keep naming top-five picks. Kila is not such a prospect.

by I need more Esteban on Jul 28, 2008 3:35 PM EDT up 0 recs

Are you sure he is still only a mediocre prospect?

These lists change significantly from year to year. Where do you think this guy will rank in the organization’s top 10 prospects going in to next season?

I think he will move into the top 5 Royals prospects for sure. Most likely the only hitting prospect that will be listed above him will be Moustakas.

by loyal2sdad on Jul 28, 2008 5:45 PM EDT up 0 recs

Prospect evaluations always take age and level into account. They think it is very important. Hell, BA was talking down Rosa's prospect status a bit this year because he's 23 in AAA

If we’re talking about prospect rankings from BP and BA, he likely won’t even be in the top 10. When a 24 year old guy finally succeeds in his third season at AA, you have to take that success with several grains of salt, particularly when it is the only good hitting season of his minor league career (outside of ultra hitter friendly High Desert). That is how prospect analysts look at these things.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 5:52 PM EDT up 0 recs

His arbitration clock

wouldn’t have started ticking until they called him up this year. Just because he was up last september doesn’t affect his clock. It’s all about days of service. He should have stayed down about 3 more weeks and then we could have pushed his free agency back a year.

by djk royal on Jul 28, 2008 2:05 PM EDT 0 recs

He certainly belongs in AAA, and right NOW,

doesn’t he?

If calling him up is rushing him, I can see that argument. But promoting him to AAA? That would seem PRUDENT to me. Seriously, he has proven beyond a doubt that he has nothing left to learn at the AA level. Let’s start challenging him – if not ML, then AAA for sure.

Looks like he is a lock to be MVP of that league, and a lock to be Royals minor league player of the year.

Anybody remember who was last year’s minor league player of the year? How did that guy turn out this year? Definitely a prospect (albeit old prospect).

by loyal2sdad on Jul 28, 2008 5:40 PM EDT 0 recs

I think just about everyone agrees that he should be in AAA right now

He’s earned it and he’s much too good for AA. As far as what his future holds, let’s not imply that Aviles-like success is the norm. For prospects like him and Kila, MLB success is very much the exception to the rule.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 5:45 PM EDT up 0 recs

I understand completely that Aviles is not the norm; however,

this guy is 3 years younger than Aviles, and is posting numbers better than Aviles was this season, and plays a position the Royals are desperately in need of an upgrade.

by loyal2sdad on Jul 28, 2008 5:47 PM EDT up 0 recs

We'll see how he does in AAA

It took him three seasons in AA to finally have a good hitting year. Hopefully he’s figured something out and he’ll quickly succeed in AAA. Or maybe it will take 3 years there too. Or maybe he’ll never do well in AAA. And if he does, will he beat the odds to succeed in the majors as Aviles did? The odds are against him. Hell, the odds are still against Aviles unfortunately.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 5:54 PM EDT up 0 recs

It happens. Dan Uggla spent parts of three seasons at A-ball (up to age 24) before having a breakout season. Of course it’s not the norm, but as a small market team mostly dependent on a farm system which hasn’t produced the way it should, the Royals don’t have the luxury to brush aside any glimmers of potential, however unorthodox. The Royals have an obligation to look outside the box of conventional wisdom in an effort to turn things around. Otherwise you can recycle the same garbage and same ideas and get the same results.

Moving him to Triple-A this season would give the Royals a better idea of just what they have. Is it a fluke season or a breakout worthy of a 40-man roster spot? Apparently the Royals are either not in any rush to find out or have no interest in finding out, which is completely perplexing given they have absolutely nothing to lose by pursuing this opportunity further.

by RATW on Jul 28, 2008 7:34 PM EDT up 0 recs

Yes, it happens. And people win the lottery too.

That doesn’t mean that when you buy a lottery ticket you should think that you have a pretty good chance of winning.

d, the Royals don’t have the luxury to brush aside any glimmers of potential, however unorthodox.

This winter they should have on their 40-man roster their best 40 players and prospects (for the prospects, they need to have the best ones on there who need to be there either because they are Rule 5 eligible or because they are minor league FA eligible). Kila is likely in that top 40, so they should protect him.

The Royals have an obligation to look outside the box of conventional wisdom in an effort to turn things around. Otherwise you can recycle the same garbage and same ideas and get the same results.

I think they should keep him in the organization and put him on the 40-man roster (or sign him to a minor league contract), but let’s not pretend that honestly and accurately evaluating prospects shouldn’t include a recognition of what the player has done throughout his minor league career, what his age is and how many years it took at the AA level before he finally succeeded there. Failing to do that is not “thinking outside the box.” It’s not thinking at all.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 28, 2008 7:44 PM EDT up 0 recs

Kila's swing

He’s got a real good flat swing. His bat stays in the zone a long time. I’ve heard comparisions to Will Clark from announcers around the Texas League. I’ve seen him play in person twice this year and he’s done great. He’s a presence on the field too.

by 306008 on Jul 28, 2008 6:58 PM EDT 0 recs