Mark Grudzielanek? Still around. Dougie? Still around, and yes players on the DL can be traded. Reggie Sanders? You got it. Mark Redman? Still our proud All-Star.
I was happy to see that Dayton Moore made some moves yesterday as the deadline approached. For about an hour it looked like only the Stairs deal was final, but the last minute appearance of the Shealy trade really really turned things around.
Denny Bautista, we hardly knew ye. You were one of the sweeter moments of the Allard-era, at least thats what we thought at the time. Maybe the Orioles weren't so silly after all.
Matt Stairs, thanks for the memories. You seemed like a nice pickup in 2004, when we all felt the Royals were so close to winning the Central. You declined to a not-so-useful bit player by the end of your Royals tenure, But I've concocted a fantasy in which you've helped teach Mark Teahen to be patient and take his walks, so it hasn't been all medicore.
Jeremy Affeldt, things coulda been so much better between us, and we both know that. I know this organization isn't the safest place for a young pitcher to be around, and you know that between the injuries and meltdowns, something got lost in your translation. Your 18 starts and 4 saves in 2003 were a major part of the team's run at glory (7-6, 3.93 ERA).
I love the Shealy pickup, if only because I never expected it. While we've all shed crocodile tears over Justin Huber's exile, he's more of a John Olerud/Minky type of hitter in the making, while Shealy could be that mid-lineup behemoth that the Royals haven't had since Sweeney's peak or possibly one of Dye's early season hot spells years back. So far, he's the only bat Moore's picked up...
This scares me a little bit though, although its probably just GM-speak,
"You never know when a circumstance is going to present itself that's going to allow their leadership to rub off on a young player. So you hate to part with those types of character individuals. That's one of the reasons (left-hander) Mark Redman is still here."The Redman non-trade was just part of a larger story, the lack of starting pitching that actually got moved. I don't know if Redman was a fallback move for teams looking to deal someone else (Zito in Oakland) or if the individual deals just didn't muster merit for Moore. Hey, in an environment where Soriano doesn't get shipped, anything is possible.
Still, a part of me can't help but be letdown that arguably the team's two most valuable commodoties (Grudz and Redman) didn't get cashed in. I wasn't expecting anything valuable in return, but hell, Moore did find a taker for Tony Graffanino. Still, the trade market is a dynamic system, and without the White Sox, Red Sox, Oakland and Anaheim really doing anything as buyers, a ripple effect of nothingness spread across the land...
The KC Star has created a nice webpage listing all the new Royals. No bells and whistles, but nice to keep around.