Weekend Rumblings - News for June 9, 2018

Weekend Rumblings - News for June 9, 2018

Craig Brown at Baseball Prospectus Kansas City looks at the impact of the Jon Jay trade.

The absence of Jay from the top of the order will impact Moustakas more than any other Royal. It shouldn’t hurt his value going forward as one of the more attractive bats on the trade market, but given what we saw transpire over the winter with his free agency, who knows what to believe anymore.

So who fills the gap in the short term with Jay departed? The idea the Royals would like to get a look at Paulo Orlando and/or Abraham Almonte is laughable and I don’t buy that for a second. I can’t buy that. Not if the Royals are asking me to trust The Process again.

Rustin Dodd at The Athletic looks at the baserunning of Whit Merrifield.

“It’s starts pregame, the night before,” Merrifield said. “On the iPad. That’s really one of the first things I check.”

Merrifield’s studiousness surfaced last season when he led the American League with 34 stolen bases despite lacking top-of-the-line speed. One season later, his data-drive routine has helped him become one of the most complete baserunners in the game.

He entered Thursday ranked 15th in the majors in BsR, a stat compiled at FanGraphs that takes into account all aspects of baserunning.

Keith Law at ESPN wraps up each team’s draft class.

The Royals’ system is pretty light on pitching -- or was, at least, before Monday, when Kansas City led off its draft with five straight college starters. Brady Singer (1) and Jackson Kowar (1A) were both in Florida’s rotation. Singer went first, although I like Kowar a little more as a long-term starter. Singer is a low-slot guy who has hit 95 mph but often pitches at 90-92 and can get some good tilt on his slider, but he lacks a good pitch for left-handed batters. He throws strikes and competes his tail off with a great track record in the SEC. Kowar looks more like a starter, even with some funk in the arm swing, and when he’s right, he’ll touch 96 mph with a 70 changeup but a fringy breaking ball. His stuff started to slip later in the spring, however, while Singer’s didn’t.

Pete Grathoff wraps up how Royals draft picks reacted to being selected.

Blair Kerkhoff writes about the local athletes that grew up in the area rooting for the team they now play on, like Royals reliever Jason Adam.

“I was always dreaming as a kid, picturing myself in the bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, all that stuff,” Adam said. “I was doing it with the Royals.”

Blair also writes about Alex George, the 16-year old who went straight from Rockhurst High school to playing for the Athletics.

The Royals will likely have a top five pick next year, so here is Baseball America’s 2019 mock draft.

There has been a scoring change! From three weeks ago.

Uh oh, Shohei Ohtani has a sprained UCL.

Padres pitcher Jose Torres is suspended 100 games for a domestic violence arrest.

Buster Olney wants to limit games to no more than four pitchers.

Let’s stop pretending pitchers can hit.

Would you rather play outfielder for the A’s or quarterback for the Sooners?

So are the Mariners.....good?

Anthony Bourdain was a big baseball fan.

NBA players are already recruiting Lebron James.

New Jersey legalized sports betting but added an esports betting ban, and no one knows why.

American diplomats in China are hearing a strange noise, then coming down with a mysterious illness.

David Simon, creator of The Wire, has some thoughts on why he’s banned from Twitter.

HBO ordered a pilot for a Game of Thrones prequel.

Your song of the day is Thelonious Monk with Let’s Cool One.