Royals Rumblings - News for March 23, 2021
The Royals sent down Bobby Witt, Jr., Kyle Isbel, Jackson Kowar, and Daniel Lynch, but Mike Matheny likes what he saw from them, writes Anne Rogers.
“Now, the task is to get ready,” Matheny said. “We don’t know how this plays out, but [they’ve] shown us some things that allow us to keep [them] to this point in camp for a reason. And we’ve enjoyed watching all four of them. It’s been a fun spring to see some of these [guys] take that next really big step. Now it’s just going to be continuing improvement, plus the opportunity to present itself for them to come up.”
She also writes about what Matheny expects out of Mike Minor.
“We’re going to need him to lead by taking the ball, going out and competing,” Matheny said. “And just like the rest of our players, and if our best players are committed to helping others out, it makes all of us better.
“That’s part of the requirement we’re putting on Mike Minor from the day that we began conversations with him.”
Lynn Worthy writes about Dayton Moore’s decision to demote Witt.
“I just didn’t think it was fair to him to try to break him into the Major Leagues at a position he’s only been working at on a continuous basis for two weeks or so,” Royals general manager Dayton Moore said Monday on KCSP (610 AM).
“It was probably one of the more challenging decisions that we’ve had to make here. At the same time, it’s not that challenging.”
Dayton did say that Bobby Witt Jr would still focus on 3B and SS in the minors but that they already checked with Dozier if he is willing to move to the outfield if and when that would need to happen this season
— Cody Tapp (@codybtapp) March 22, 2021
Craig Brown at Into the Fountains chimes in on the Witt demotion.
This isn’t about the manipulation of service time. It’s just not. Because as I said above, nobody knows for sure if Witt is ready. No matter how good he looks he cannot escape the fact he lacks professional experience. This is not even remotely similar to what the Cubs did with Kris Bryant who played three years at the University of San Diego and hit .295/.418/.619 in 297 Triple-A plate appearances his second year in the organization. This is, as I wrote previously, more in line with the Juan Soto’s and the Ken Griffey Jr.’s of the baseball world. Both players are generational talents who had 500 plate appearances before arriving at The Show. Both flashed extreme prospect pedigree in their brief stops along the organizational ladder. It’s not that Witt needs some seasoning. It’s that he really hasn’t had any seasoning.
David Lesky at Inside the Crown breaks down Whit Merrifield’s performance.
The point here is that Merrifield is a bit of a throwback player. He doesn’t try to play a different game than the one he can succeed in, and that’s been to his benefit. It actually reminds me a bit of what we’ve heard from Andrew Benintendi almost from the minute the Royals acquired him. He tried to hit the ball in the air and put it over the wall more than he had before and what happened was him struggling. If Merrifield tried to do that, I would bet he’d struggle too.
Jon Heyman corroborates an earlier report that the Royals are looking to sign Adalberto Mondesi to a long-term deal.
Royals have had a big winter and they wanted to make sure they locked up Salvy, who they love professionally and personally — understandably so. They’ve done a lot already but the main other one they’ve tried to extend is Mondesi. Been working on it awhile.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 22, 2021
Kiley McDaniel at ESPN ranks the top 100 players in baseball, and in the first half, he has Whit Merrifield at #70.
It has been a long road for pitching prospect Stetson Allie, but at age 30 he may finally make the big leagues.
Joey Votto returns to the Reds after a bout with COVID-19.
Blue Jays closer Kirby Yates will miss several weeks with a flexor strain.
Is Dodgers/Padres the big rivalry in baseball now?
Ken Rosenthal at The Athletic takes a close look at the dysfunctional Rockies front office.
The Orioles may be cutting costs in anticipation of a team sale.
How players use iPad dugout video.
Will the Reds manipulate the service time of third base prospect Jonathan India?
Could Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker become the first college teammates ever to be selected with the first two picks in the draft?
What the heck are the Houston Texans doing in free agency?
Basketball Hall of Famer Elgin Baylor dies at age 86.
Jack Dorsey’s first tweet sells as an NFT for $2.9 million.
The cicadas are coming soon, and they’re ready to get it on.
The Oscars frequently gets the “Best Original Song” category wrong.
Your song of the day is The Mighty Mighty Bosstones with Someday I Suppose.