Royals Rumblings - News for January 11, 2018

Royals Rumblings - News for January 11, 2018

David Lesky at Baseball Prospectus Kansas City looks at the market for Mike Moustakas.

Moose could sign a one-year deal, too. It would put him on the market with the crazy free agent class next year, including against Machado and Josh Donaldson, but a guy’s gotta eat. The Yankees make the most sense to me if he’s going to do that. They could use a left-handed bat to slot in with their right-handed monsters, and Moose could approach 50 home runs in that park. The Braves could also try to get him for one year as they wait for Austin Riley to get to the big leagues. That’s another park that would be very good for him to call home. And I could even see him staying in the AL Central if the Indians see an opening to get a third baseman for a year and shift Jose Ramirez to second where he finished 2017. There’s a small part of me that wonders if the White Sox could also be in play, but that’d be an odd scenario.

David Schoenfield at ESPN looks at whether teams should prefer signing J.D. Martinez or Eric Hosmer.

In other words, maybe there’s a reason Hosmer and Martinez remain unsigned. We’ve heard more noise around Hosmer, with reports saying that the San Diego Padres offered $140 million over seven years and the Kansas City Royals $147 million over seven, with the St. Louis Cardinals also expressing interest. The Boston Red Sox still seem the favorites for Martinez, but if the price drops, maybe the Toronto Blue Jays, Texas Rangers or another team will end up as his surprise destination. Would you rather have a 28-year-old first baseman with inconsistent production or a 30-year-old corner outfielder with limited defensive value?

Beat writer Rustin Dodd has a personal blog and he wrote a bit about his job covering the Royals.

To work in sports, of course, is to have a fake job, an occupation born from an industry that was constructed around a child’s game. This is entertainment. This isn’t real. So, yes, there are nights in the press box when the whole exercise can feel like a lesson in fakery. You are writing about sports. You are writing about games that often come down to randomness and chance. You write about what happened on the third down. You wonder why the star player had a bad night. You search for the moment that people will remember. You write about the people too, of course, hoping to illuminate what it’s like to be caught in the middle of such an odd construction.

You are a sports reporter, a fake job dedicated to the ideal of covering another fake job. And it does not seem like this should be a real job. How is this making anything better?

This, of course, is a rather cynical way to look at it. It really can be so much more. There are stories to tell, and flights to catch, and a routine to master. There is an escape to offer. Maybe it’s not making anything better. But maybe we need it.

The Royals set game times for the 2018 season, and will open on March 29 at 3:15 against the White Sox.

ESPN’s Dan Szmyborski talked ZIPS and the Royals on 810 WHB.

Minor league pitcher Jacob Bodner talks about his experience in the Arizona Fall League.

Video of Bill Murray and Brian Doyle Murray taking a tour of the Negro League Baseball Museum.

The Legend of Balbino Fuenmayor lives on.

Jay Bruce returns to the Mets on a three-year, $39 million deal.

Yu Darvish has narrowed his potential suitors to five teams.

Starlin Castro wants out of Miami.

We were close to a Gerrit Cole deal to Houston, then we weren’t.

For the first time since 1968, all MLB teams will play on Opening Day, and every team will end the season at the same time.

Marc Normandin looks at the history of MLB owner collusion, including the time it cost the Royals a shot at Kirk Gibson in his prime.

Agent Jason Wood, who represented several local draftees, is being investigated for filming clients in the shower.

Fangraphs writer David Cameron joins the Padres front office.

Could neuroscience help on-base percentages?

The biggest snubs for the NHL All-Star Game.

Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz is battling his neighbors in court over road improvements.

The online retailers that never make or even touch products.

Warren Buffett has dire warnings for Bitcoin owners.

Amazon’s new sci-fi series shows why Phillip K. Dick was an extraordinary writer.

Your song of the day is Rush with Tom Sawyer.