Royals Rumblings

Royals Rumblings - News for November 4, 2022

The Royals have their new skipper.

By Max Rieper@maxrieper Nov 4, 2022, 8:00am EDT

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Kansas City Royals Introduce Matt Quatraro as Manager

Lynn Worthy writes that Matt Quatraro found a fit with the Royals as they found one with him.

“It was really clear how he connected with everybody he came in contact with, his humility, his ability to explain to us what his decision process — what that looks like — was very clear,” Royals executive vice president and general manager J.J. Picollo said.

“He was very composed throughout the entire process, which makes us feel very good about how somebody is going to react in the dugout. “But it was also pretty obvious that the people he has been around in his career have shaped his thoughts, his beliefs and how he will make decisions moving forward.”

He also writes about the approach Quatraro will take.

While Quatraro will have the ultimate responsibility for the day-to-day approach by players and staff, he made it clear multiple times that he does not intend to micromanage his staff. Quatraro said he’ll look for individuals who are curious, open-minded and able to both communicate and collaborate.

“Any one person sits here and tells you that they have the answer, that’s not the way,” Quatraro said. “There’s a collective group of minds here, the players, we all have to rely on each other and take information back and forth.”

Anne Rogers writes that Quatraro gives the Royals the clear communicator they were looking for.

That calm demeanor came through in Quatraro’s interviews with the Royals, giving Picollo and his assistants confidence he can not only handle in-game pressure but also a clubhouse filled with veterans, young players and differing opinions of the coaching and support staff.

“Everyone gets a voice,” Quatraro said. “There’s a ton of information to start, and it works its way to the field. Those processes to get that information and distill it down to the players is the process we’re going to work off of so it can be clearly communicated to them.”

Sam McDowell writes about how Quatraro fits in the new vision for the Royals.

The Royals see him as an ideal fit to bridge the gap between multiple departments, a collaborator and a communicator. It’s less my-way-or-the-highway, more we’re-all-in-this-together. Those within the organization have scoffed at the notion that they don’t seek and acquire the same data as the remainder of Major League Baseball, but it’s fair to question whether they implement the same data as the rest of Major League Baseball.

It’s evident the Royals believe they’ve found a guy to provide a bridge between that data and the players, to tip the scale more toward one when he sees fit.

The White Sox introduce former Royals bench coach Pedro Grifol as their new manager.

J.J. Picollo commented on Grifol being hired away.

“Really happy,” Royals executive vice president and general manager J.J. Picollo said of his reaction to the White Sox hiring Grifol. “I had a great discussion with Pedro on Sunday morning when I told him we were going in another direction, but I also had kind of a good indication that he was still in the running with the White Sox. … He’s in a great spot; now we’ve just got to beat him.”

Picollo praised the qualifications and strengths of all of the Royals’ internal candidates, including third base coach Vance Wilson, Triple-A manager Scott Thorman and Grifol, but said the search committee he headed ultimately felt the need to go outside of the organization.

The Athletic writes about the biggest off-season priority for each team.

The Royals need to shore up their pitching development infrastructure — at all levels — and hire a new major-league pitching coach. Quatraro’s background is on the hitting side — he was a minor-league hitting coordinator and assistant hitting coach in the big leagues — but his experiences in Tampa and Cleveland could offer a nice network to tap into as he looks to fill out his staff. Former first-round pick Brady Singer experienced a breakout 2022 season, but the Royals still have a number of young pitchers who have struggled at the major-league level. If a new pitching coach — and a new staff as a whole — is able to even marginally improve performances across the board, it could go a long way in helping the Royals’ rebuild turn the corner.

Dayton Moore may be headed for Texas.

Sources within the industry continue to link former Royals GM Dayton Moore to the Rangers. Texas GM Chris Young finished his pitching career with Moore’s Royals from 2015 to ‘17.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) November 3, 2022