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Royals Rumblings - News for December 16, 2015

Crown. Town. Ale.

By Max Rieper

Royals Rumblings - News for December 16, 2015

David Lesky at Pine Tar Press thinks patience could pay off for the Royals.

Before I get really into it, I want to address the idea that the Royals aren’t planning on raising payroll. I’m not saying that payroll won’t be the same as it was in 2015, but (and I made this point on Twitter) the Royals say this every year. And each of the last four seasons has begun with a payroll of at least $10 million more than the previous season. I’m just saying to take that talk with a grain of salt before preparing to throw stones at the Glass house. So anyway, this year, the Royals have waited for the market to set.

As Sam Mellinger noted in his column, it might have been nice if the Royals had waited for the market to set on a couple of their previous free agents, Ervin Santana and James Shields. They still may have been out of the market for those two, but when good free agents are left hanging out with no dance partner late in the offseason, it might be kind of nice to be able to have a wad of cash to throw at them to help your team out.

Sam Mellinger thinks the Royals TV deal is well under market rate.

I believe they make around $20 million a year from their horrendous TV contract. The current trend is for teams to receive upwards of $100 million, plus ownership in the carriers, and a share in advertising revenue. The Royals play in one of baseball’s smallest markets, so their deal should be on the small side, but they are also delivering record ratings and have ignited enormous interest locally and regionally. There is no telling where the TV industry will be in four years, or even two when negotiations are likely to start. But right now, conservatively, the Royals are taking in $40 million less than market value, and the real answer may be double that.

Paul Casella and AJ Cassavel give organizational grade cards to all teams.

KANSAS CITY ROYALS

Spending per win: A

Playoff success: A

Smart acquisitions: C

Homegrown success: C

Young talent: C

Suffice it to say, the Royals would be ranked well above No. 6 if we weren't taking into account the eight seasons before their sudden rise to dominance. In the past two years, Kansas City has become a juggernaut. Until 2014, the Royals' young talent hadn't panned out, and their moves on the open market always seemed to fall flat. Then, everything clicked. The Royals won a World Series and went to another with homegrown stars Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Alex Gordon and Yordano Ventura. They also struck gold in a couple of deals, landing Lorenzo Cain and Alcides Escobar in a trade for Zack Greinke in 2010, and landing Wade Davis as a virtual throw-in in the Wil Myers-for-James Shields swap.

Former Royals catcher Brayan Pena reunited with family members in Cuba.

Hos went to the Dolphins game on Monday.

The Star is setting up a pop-up store to sell Royals stuff.

Crown Town Ale from Boulevard Brewery hits shelves this week.

Will Bryce Harper become MLB's first $500 million player?

Pete Rose had a press conference about his rejected reinstatement at a bar with cheerleaders.

Korean free agent picher Seung Hwan Oh is under investigation for gambling.

The Royals have had discussions about Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, but he will demand a large haul in return.

Grant Brisbee wonders where Justin Upton will end up.

When the long snapper gets hurt, everything falls apart for NFL teams.

The Dallas Cowboys impose new restrictive social media rules on reporters.

A study shows renovations for Kansas City International Airport would cost more than a new terminal.

Facebook is changing the way it enforces its real name policy.

How to win your "White Elephant" gift exchange using game theory.

The sad economics of making money as a social media celebrity.

Your song of the day is The Animals with "We Gotta Get Out of this Place."

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