2012 Omaha and NWA Rosters

by Sir_Kauffman on Feb 4, 2012 10:25 PM EST

New to posting on this site. Big Royals fan, enjoy picking up the latest information from here, thought it was about time I get in on the action.

Any way, I was just curious to see some predictions on the two upper level teams this year. I am really excited to follow both clubs and haven't heard much info in regards to who's going where this year (even guesses for that matter). If I have overlooked this topic already, I apologize. Let's hear your roster predictions for this upcoming season! Any opinions and guesses would be appreciated!

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Omaha Rotation of:

Monty
Mendoza
Crow
Odorizzi
Sisk

just a guess. i think they move Crow to SP and he starts in AAA to get into the starting groove again. then first SP to falter or get injured in KC, Crow gets the callup.

by DickHowser4ever on Feb 5, 2012 9:21 AM EST reply actions

unrelated: when Odorizzi finally makes it to the show, what's the over/under on Chris Berman calling him "Eggs"?

batter nine you sucky

by marbotty on Feb 5, 2012 9:23 AM EST up reply actions

That one is already covered

Berman would call him Jake “I Like My Eggs” Odorizzi.

by BeauJackson on Feb 5, 2012 11:32 AM EST up reply actions

Wil Myers

that is all

batter nine you sucky

by marbotty on Feb 5, 2012 9:21 AM EST reply actions

he will be the entire outfield at Omaha.

will spend spring training learning to harness and control the universe from Chuck Norris and will be allowed to roam the AAA outfield like a cheetah on the Sarangetti.

by DickHowser4ever on Feb 5, 2012 9:24 AM EST up reply actions 2 recs

'Like a cheetah on the sarangetti'

Excellent work DickHowser4Ever

talk to me, Johnny...

by johnny4 on Feb 5, 2012 10:46 AM EST up reply actions

Hello, Spell Check

Here; Serengeti. Otherwise, fantastic.

I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.

by philofthenorth on Feb 5, 2012 8:13 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs

As far as the pitching rotations go...

I’ve been thinking about this for a few days: I believe the Omaha rotation looks like this:
1) Mike Montgomery
2) Will Smith
3) Chris Dwyer
4) Nathan Adcock
5) Teaford/Mazzaro

I predict Aaron Crow will be back in the KC bullpen, where he belongs. Mendoza is out of options; if he doesn’t make KC as a long reliever then he probably gets picked up off waivers by another team based on his gaudy 2011 numbers. O’Sullivan probably clears waivers but I’m not sure KC will want him back.

NWA
1) Jake Odorizzi
2) Justin Marks
3) Noel Arguelles
4) Tim Melville
5) Mike Mariot / Elisaul Pimental
Odorizzi should be in AAA by July. Marks will be interesting to see if he can continue his late season success of 2011. Arguelles needs to have his velocity come back. Melville needs to distinguish himself this year before he finds himself in the bullpen.

Wilmington
1) Jason Adam
2) Yordano Ventura
3) Gregg Billo
4) Sugar Ray Marimon
5) Crawford Simmons / Leonel Santiago / Leondy Perez
Adam and Ventura are the most compelling stories here.

Kane County
1) Bryan Brickhouse
2) Kyle Smith
3) Robinson Yambati
4) Aaron Brooks
5) Matt Murray
These are nothing more than guesses right now.

Each of the four levels has at least one or two high upside guys this year. Should be interesting to follow.

by HoldenCornfield on Feb 5, 2012 11:35 AM EST reply actions

I think this is a good list

except, I doubt Kane County looks anything like that to start the season. It’d be a big surprise to me to see Yambati to have worked enough out to make the Low-A roster before late in the year, if at all.

Brickhouse and Smith will probably be held back initially to limit their innings as the Royals always seem to do with young players lacking experience. I bet Brian Peacock makes the rotation along with a number of names most aren’t very excited about.

by 9il on Feb 5, 2012 12:27 PM EST up reply actions

I wouldn't be surprised to see Adcock in NWA

with Crow starting in AAA.

Sporadically musing on the Royals at both Royals Review and Royalscentricity, pop culture at Inconsiderate Prick, SVU at Munch My Benson and on Twitter at Old Man Duggan

by Old Man Duggan on Feb 5, 2012 2:25 PM EST up reply actions

totally forgot about Teaford Adcock and Mazzarro

i wouldnt be surprised to see Adcock in AA, with Mazzaro in AAA and Teaford in the ML bullpen as a long relief spot start guy.

by DickHowser4ever on Feb 5, 2012 7:09 PM EST up reply actions

Three Lefties? Unpossible!

I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.

by philofthenorth on Feb 5, 2012 8:16 PM EST up reply actions

might see tiny tim in the AAA bullpen.

he needs to figure out how to throw strikes again anyway.

by DickHowser4ever on Feb 5, 2012 9:37 PM EST up reply actions

Maybe. They Seemed

Pretty determined to keep him in the majors in 2011.

I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.

by philofthenorth on Feb 6, 2012 12:46 AM EST up reply actions

I think Teaford will be the long relief/spot starter

In KC.

by Yodazilla on Feb 6, 2012 6:26 AM EST up reply actions

Where does Lamb go when he comes back?

And where will he end up at the end of the year? Will he be in AAA at all do you think?

by Yodazilla on Feb 5, 2012 6:32 PM EST up reply actions

Presumably back to AA after a few lower level rehab starts to polish things up.

I sort of doubt he makes it to AAA, as he probably won’t start pitching in games until July or so.

Sporadically musing on the Royals at both Royals Review and Royalscentricity, pop culture at Inconsiderate Prick, SVU at Munch My Benson and on Twitter at Old Man Duggan

by Old Man Duggan on Feb 5, 2012 7:04 PM EST up reply actions

yeah...i think they'll probably look to get him 40-50 innings in AA this year

and if all goes well i think they’d like him to start 2013 in AAA

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Feb 7, 2012 12:22 AM EST up reply actions

Wilmington guesses

C – David, Jones
1B – Kuebler
2B – Franco, Espinal
SS – McClure,
3B – Cuthbert, Stovall (1B)
OF – Fletcher (1B), Eibner, Beltre, Llanos, and the new Cuban guy

SP – Billo, Ventura, Adam, Sample, and Perez
RP – Santiago, Marimon, Pounders, Carl, Cruz, Caldwell, Byrne

Lots of depth in the pitching staff – I could see at least a dozen guys who could make it from the 2011 Kane County staff.

by daveyork on Feb 8, 2012 12:44 AM EST up reply actions

But the new Cuban guy (Roman Hernandez) is 24 and presumably more polished.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in NWA. This is merely a guess, but he seems old to start the year in high-A.

Sporadically musing on the Royals at both Royals Review and Royalscentricity, pop culture at Inconsiderate Prick, SVU at Munch My Benson and on Twitter at Old Man Duggan

by Old Man Duggan on Feb 8, 2012 1:01 AM EST up reply actions

Predicting the Low-A roster is always the most interesting

I’ll say the lineup for Kane County is
C Gallagher
1B Espy
2B Mateo
SS Trapp
3B Antonio (I think Mateo/Trapp/Antonio will move around a fair amount in the infield)
OF Starling, Bonifacio, Gore (either Gore or Toney. I think they’ll hold one back so they won’t be sitting on a regular basis.)

by 9il on Feb 5, 2012 12:42 PM EST reply actions

That Kane County outfield

Is going to be really fun to watch. I wonder if Elier Hernandez might be there as well.

by HoldenCornfield on Feb 5, 2012 1:43 PM EST up reply actions

he's certainly too young

I’d assume he’ll go to AZL

by 9il on Feb 5, 2012 1:45 PM EST up reply actions

Or possibly Dominican Summer League

Sporadically musing on the Royals at both Royals Review and Royalscentricity, pop culture at Inconsiderate Prick, SVU at Munch My Benson and on Twitter at Old Man Duggan

by Old Man Duggan on Feb 5, 2012 2:23 PM EST up reply actions

Given his age, that'd be the normal place for him to go

but given the amount of money they paid for him, the Royals probably think he’s advanced enough for the stateside baseball. I don’t think the Royals have had even a high-six-figure player in the DSL. But that using my memory as I’m pre-gaming the Super Bowl.

by 9il on Feb 5, 2012 4:22 PM EST up reply actions

I know Bonifacio was there a couple years back

although I’m not sure how big his signing bonus was.

Sporadically musing on the Royals at both Royals Review and Royalscentricity, pop culture at Inconsiderate Prick, SVU at Munch My Benson and on Twitter at Old Man Duggan

by Old Man Duggan on Feb 5, 2012 4:48 PM EST up reply actions

there's no way they keep him in the dominican....

acclimation to life in the states is a big part of development for alot of these guys…putting him in DSL pushes that clock back a year

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Feb 7, 2012 12:24 AM EST up reply actions

With Bonifacio,

he got promoted to AZL towards the end of the ’10 season.

Sporadically musing on the Royals at both Royals Review and Royalscentricity, pop culture at Inconsiderate Prick, SVU at Munch My Benson and on Twitter at Old Man Duggan

by Old Man Duggan on Feb 7, 2012 3:47 AM EST up reply actions

Kane County guesses

C – Gallagher (1B), Jenkins, Escobar
1B – Moreno or Espy
2B – Trapp, Mateo (3B)
SS – Calixte
3B – Antonio (SS), Threlkeld
OF – Bonafacio, R. Davis, L. Adams, Starling

I agree that the younger pitchers like Brickhouse, K. Smith, Binford, Junis will stay in ExST until midseason. KC has lots of college guys that are ready to go from Burlington and Idaho Falls.

by daveyork on Feb 8, 2012 12:34 AM EST up reply actions

I would like to say that the AAA rotation is far from set in stone

Nate Adcock is a lock. Vin Mazarro is also probably a lock. However, the other three pitchers could be any number of people. Luis Mendoza will likely start in AAA, but there’s a chance he wins a spot of some capacity in the majors.

Most interestingly is the trio of Mike Montgomery/Danny Duffy/Aaron Crow. Up to two of them could be in the Royals rotation, and Aaron Crow could be in the Royals bullpen. This is not even considering Sean O’Sullivan, who could be anywhere except the Royals rotation.

So, in conclusion, your Omaha rotation looks like this:

Mazzarro
Adcock
Mendoza
O’Sullivan/Crow/Montgomery/Duffy for the final two spots.

If I were to choose, I think Crow will start in KC. So Monty and Duffy make up the final two spots. This forces O’Suillivan somewhere else, but no one really cares about where he pitches as long as it’s not KC.

by Yodazilla on Feb 5, 2012 6:26 PM EST reply actions

I thought the conventional wisdom was that Adcock was going down to AA to stretch him out.

Obviously, I don’t think he’ll have to be there long, but I thought there was something said at some point about how they were going to limit his exposure, keep him on the 25-man for 2011, and likely put him in Springdale to start 2012. I could be mistaken, of course.

Sporadically musing on the Royals at both Royals Review and Royalscentricity, pop culture at Inconsiderate Prick, SVU at Munch My Benson and on Twitter at Old Man Duggan

by Old Man Duggan on Feb 5, 2012 7:08 PM EST up reply actions

Well, I just think there are conflicting reports about him

Which is what makes predicting the AAA rotation difficult. You essentially have to try to predict the Royals rotation and aspects of the AA rotation, in addition to question marks like Adcock.

by Yodazilla on Feb 5, 2012 7:33 PM EST up reply actions

Stretching Out Adcock

Should always come first

I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.

by philofthenorth on Feb 5, 2012 8:21 PM EST up reply actions

I'm most curious about what they do with Teaford.

It wouldn’t shock me if they start him out in the MLB bullpen, though I more expect him to anchor the Omaha rotation.

"There is nothing shrewd about running a red light and later finding out it kept you from being hit by an asteroid." - philofthenorth

by KeepItCopacetic on Feb 6, 2012 9:53 AM EST reply actions

The Royals tend to keep their high draft picks at Arizona extended spring for a while.

So it wouldn’t Surprise (see what I did there?) me to see Starling, Gallagher, Brickhouse, Smith, Leonard, and Ogando all in Arizona. I could see them moving Starling quicker but with the work they think he needs I think he’ll stay there. Brickhouse and Smith for sure will be extended. I bet Elier Hernandez spends some time in Arizona as well. Mondesi also.

PineTarPress

by 306008 on Feb 6, 2012 11:58 AM EST reply actions

i highly doubt starling starts anywhere but Low A in april

they’ve shown me nothing that makes me think that they wont be very aggressive with starling as they have been with every other 1st round pick

Fire Everyone

by billybeingbilly on Feb 7, 2012 12:29 AM EST up reply actions

But none of their first round picks have been anywhere near as raw as Starling.

It doesn’t seem like the Royals have any idea as to where he’s going to start the season. Until they give an intimation one way or the other, I am not going to assume anything.

Sporadically musing on the Royals at both Royals Review and Royalscentricity, pop culture at Inconsiderate Prick, SVU at Munch My Benson and on Twitter at Old Man Duggan

by Old Man Duggan on Feb 7, 2012 3:49 AM EST up reply actions

I'll take a shot at the Omaha and NWA rosters

Omaha
C – Pina and Max Ramirez
1B – C. Robinson
2B – Getz and T. Abreu
SS – Falu
3B – Kouzmanoff, Romak (1B)
OF – D. Robinson, Orlando, Golson, and Lough

SP – Montgomery, W. Smith, Dwyer, Adcock, and Mazzaro
RP – Jeffress, Herrera, Verdugo, Sisk, Hottovy, Z. Miner

NWA
C – Rodriguez, Theriot
1B – Whittleman
2B – Navarro, Mertins (3B)
SS – Colon, Schoop
3B – Duncan
OF – Myers, Prades, Merrifield, Testa

SP – Odorizzi, Arguelles, Melville, Marks, Pimental (I’ll be interested to see when Lamb comes back).
RP – Hollandsworth, Chapman, Keating, Baumann, B. Hardy, Volz, Mariot, Paukovits

Injuries always play a part. Omaha staff is always subject to who doesn’t make the KC staff – I could see anyone with options left sent down to AAA. I don’t always keep track of minor league FAs. One other reliever I could see going to Omaha is Tim Collins. KC might keep Teaford and Mijires as their LHs in the bullpen. Crow could be starter at Omaha – he is a wild card for 2012.

by daveyork on Feb 8, 2012 12:19 AM EST reply actions

Thanks daveyork, I was looking for a lay out like that.

I had pretty similar thoughts as you. I think it’s a coin flip between Dyson and Golson for that pinch run, defensive replacement role in KC. Couple names I noticed you left off. Maybe in your mind they’re releases or spring training trades, but Lisson, Seratelli, T. Smith, Eigsti, and Van Stratten might also be in the mix as well.

by Sir_Kauffman on Feb 8, 2012 2:53 AM EST reply actions