Royals Rumblings - News for August 15, 2017

Royals Rumblings - News for August 15, 2017

Bradford Doolittle at ESPN writes that because of guys like Whit Merrifield, the Royals may not be doomed in the future.

The point is that even if the Royals lose their free agents, there is a solid base of talent still on hand and the notion that they needed to tear down completely earlier this season, when they started 10-20, might have been wrong-headed. (I have to admit to being one who called for such a thing.) Any core talent lost will need to be a core talent replaced, and if Kansas City does indeed lose all their free agents, it will be tough for them to be replaced via free agency.

But the reason it might be wrongheaded to assume the Royals are headed for a dark age isn’t because they might actually end up winning the bidding wars for one or more of their free agents -- and they might -- but also because of what the emergence of players like Merrifield, Bonafacio and Cuthbert conveys.

Clint Scoles at Baseball Prospectus Kansas City writes the Royals farm system could improve quickly.

In addition to other possible players, the Royals should have an abundance of draft picks and international money coming. First off, the Royals having been penalized the past two years for international spending in ’15, will land in one of the two larger international pools going forward. In ’17 the Royals were in the $5.75m pool, which was the top spending amount allotted to any team and the only thing that kept them from competing for the top international players was their max budget penalty. This will change going forward and the Royals are likely to compete for the top international prospects again in 2018 and on into the future as teams aren’t likely to exceed pool amounts and incur penalties.

Your Salvador Perez update.

Alex Gordon is still contributing to the Royals.

Lee Judge writes that the best way to win a championship is to win games.

Ben Zobrist wants an electronic strike zone.

The Astros get Tyler Clippard from the White Sox.

The Mariners are trying to acquire old friend Ervin Santana from the Twins.

Rafael Devers vs. Aroldis Chapman was one of the best at-bats of the year.

Bryce Harper was injured in a game that probably shouldn’t have been played.

Each Major League team will make $50 million from the Disney purchase of BAMTech.

Derek Jeter may be getting rid of the Marlins home run machine.

A week after they were ranked last in food safety, the Rays change vendors.

Why do so many baseball players - particularly Royals - get stricken with brain cancer?

Should SB Nation be (ahem) paying its writers more?

Wrestler Ric Flair is in a medically-induced coma related to a heart condition.

Scientists can’t agree if it is unhealthy to be overweight.

Shonda Rimes is leaving ABC for Netflix.

Your song of the day is Spoon with Do You.