EOC 2009 View
by Valcour on Jan 24, 2009 4:06 PM EST
9 comments
EOC stands for Eternal Optimist Club. I have only been a Royals fan for a few years (actually I have only been a baseball fan for a few years - late bloomer). I don't have anywhere near the baseball statistical expertise that most of you have, but I believe that if a few things go the Royals way this could be an exciting year.
1. Soria, Mahay, Meche and Greinke pitch as well as they did last year.
2. Davies last two months of the season weren't a fluke.
3. Hochevar continues to improve (say, dropping a half point off his ERA).
4. Bannister rebounds to close to his 2007 season.
5. McClure really did see something in Farnsworths mechanics that he can straighten out.
6. Alex Gorden hits left handers like he did after the All Star break and improves all his stats.
7. Coco Crisp is completely free of all his injuries and hits like he did late last year or like he did in Cleveland before being traded to the Red Sox.
8. David DeJesus is David DeJesus
9. Guillen feels the love of finally playing for the same team two years in a row and quits throwing gas on the fire. He also stays healthy all year and can run again.
10. Mark Teahen shows the second half of 2006 wasn't a fluke.
11. Billy Butler's lost weight gives him more range and speed on the bases and he hits to his ability
12. The Jacobs/Butler/Shealy/Whoever platoon at 1st base hits over 30 HR
13. Callaspo is the OBP hitter his minor league stats show he is and is not a liability at 2nd base.
14. Aviles plays close to what he played like last year.
15. Bloomquist can back up every position and sell tickets when the walk up lines get too long again.
I may be a cock-eyed optimist, but the Royals aren't in the AL East. I think with a few things going their way, they could contend.
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162-0, Baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111111111111111111111
I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.
I'm absolutely determined that
When the Royals and Teahen do part ways. It won’t take him more than 2 years to figure things out and be a productive player before getting too old.
by playingwithfire on Jan 24, 2009 10:21 PM EST up reply actions
my take, for what it's worth (taking bids)
1. Pretty good odds here. Mahay is the most likely to fall short just given his age.
2. Skeptical – but he’s got Buddy Biancalana and he’s young!
3. I do think Hoch will be better – just natural growth due to experience
4. Skeptical. I think Davies has better chance at improvement. But, Bannister is smart and I keep hoping he can become a Moyer type guy.
5. hmmmm. My guess is we’ll be holding our breath whenever Farns comes in. The most entertainment will come from fights.
6. Cautious (a bit better than skeptical). He doesn’t have Biancalana yet but he’s young and should improve. It sure seems like he strikes out a lot.
7. 50/50
8. Yes! I think he can play like he did in 07. He can improve by making less dumb base running errors. I hope he can stay injury free.
9. I think we’ll have a huge indicator in about 30 days. If he comes to ST in shape as promised, then perhaps he will perform. I think if he does well playing and stays healthy, he won’t have his tantrums. 50/50
10. 2006 was a major fluke. No change here.
11. Reports are that he’s gotten into shape. Hopefully that’s all we need for Gload to get the boot after ST. I think Billy remains a high potential and odds are high that he can “break out” soon – probably before Gordon does. Billy seems to me to be more a line drive hitter to all fields than Gordon and therefore has better hitting potential. They need to play him at first with Shealy. No Gload, no Jacobs.
12. I will be astonished (and appalled) if Gload is on the team after ST. I like that Jacobs has made clear he has no problem whatsoever with DH. Again, please play Shealy/Butler at 1B and let the chips fall where they will.
13. I like Callaspo a lot. I don’t see how he can lose 2B to Bloomy if the ST competition is fair. (I have my doubts about this. Callaspo isn’t seen as the right choir boy by Treton.)
14. I have a big man crush on Aviles. Expect him to slip some but hope for the same (or improvement!) I think the odds are high that we will be very pleased with him at season end, even with a bit of slippage.
15. I expect Bloomy will get far more playing time than any of us hope.
Overall, I think we may improve some. I’m hoping for that elusive 82 wins. But, we won’t contend, at least at end of year. The biggest improvement the Rs could make would be simply to be consistent. No huge ups and downs.
meat
16. I steal Tom Brady’s girlfriend, Giselle Bundchen.
17. I win the lottery without buying a ticket.
18. My dog decides to crap gold.
19. The Tigers, Twins, White Sox, and Indians all have a midair collision on the way to Spring Training, and they play AAA players all year. The Royals still only win the division by 1 game.
I’m usually very optimistic this time of year too, but that is a lot to ask. I’d say maybe 50% of that happens and it would be a very interesting year.
by AxDxMx on Jan 24, 2009 11:36 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
I think
the most important items on your list that could result in what we all want, are #2, #3, and #4.
I see the offense as being sorta mediocre, regardless of what combination of things might happen. Royals will have to do it with superior starting pitching. We know what to expect from 2/5ths of the rotation; it’s up to Davies/Hochevar/Bannister to improve enough for us to contend.
Mr Glass, this is a pro sports team, not a retail store - run it like one!
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