Royals Rumblings - News for January 21, 2021

Royals Rumblings - News for January 21, 2021

Anne Rogers writes that Dayton Moore hasn’t seen Wade Davis throw in person, but he is confident in him.

“He’s a remarkable competitor, a true pro,” Moore said. “I know the last couple seasons haven’t necessarily went the way he would like or expected, but I think some of this time off will do him well. I know he’s extremely motivated. He’s a remarkable talent and terrific competitor, and any time you can add that type of experience potentially to your bullpen is really important.

“We trust Wade. Wade tells us that he feels good and is ready to go, and I trust his input as well.”

Craig Brown at Into the Fountains looks at the possibility of a Carlos Santana rebound.

Finally, one other thing to consider. When we talk about luck in hitting, people generally default to Batting Average on Balls In Play (BABIP). Conventional wisdom holds the average hitter has a .300 BABIP. That’s not exactly the case. For Santana, his career BABIP is .266. He had a .293 BABIP in 2019. Last year, his BABIP cratered to .212.

The key rates for Santana in 2020 were just so…off. Sure, it could be a sign of a precipitous decline. But I’m of the belief that it’s more a product of a season cut short by a virus.

Jim Callis ranks Asa Lacy and Daniel Lynch among the top left-handed pitching prospects in baseball.

Lacy’s changeup was his best weapon in high school, featuring fade and sink and deception, and can become even better if he uses it more often.

Baseball America ranks the loudest tools among the top prospects.

Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. is the only other player in the Top 100 with 60s or better across the board. Beyond Pache, Dominguez and Witt, five more players in the Top 100 have average tool scores of 60 or better: outfielders Jo Adell (Angels), Garrett Mitchell (Brewers), Julio Rodriguez (Mariners), C.J. Abrams (Padres) and Adley Rutschman (Orioles)

Shaun Bauman at Kings of Kauffman is still waiting for the Royals to sign an outfielder.

The Astros bring back outfielder Michael Brantley on a two-year, $32 million deal.

The Angels sign pitcher Jose Quintana to a one-year deal.

Left-handed pitcher J.A. Happ signs a one-year deal with the Twins.

The Dodgers are keeping tabs on Trevor Bauer.

Have the White Sox separated themselves in the division?

MLB is investigating Jared Porter and could suspend him.

Just what are the Cubs up to this off-season?

The Padres are trading their way to a championship rotation.

How good would an all-free agent team be?

Why the Baseball Hall of Fame could have an empty class.

The 1976 Athletics stole nearly a mile worth of bases against one team.

Alex Rodriguez had a day at the presidential inauguration.

Patrick Mahomes took all the snaps in a light practice.

The NBA has a no-hug rule in place.

So when can we stop wearing masks?

Microsoft killed the Zune, but there are still Zune-heads.

An oral history of Donnie Darko.

Your song of the day is The Beatles with Come Together.