Royals Rumblings - News for January 10, 2023

Anne Rogers catches up with Royals slugger Vinnie Pasquantino.

MLB.com: Have you talked to new Royals manager Matt Quatraro? What are your impressions?

Pasquantino: I’ve probably talked to him about four or five times, just about the job. I talked to him about once or twice before he got the job, too, because I knew he was being interviewed. Brian Sweeney, our pitching coach, was actually Team Italy’s pitching coach, so he and I met before he interviewed for the job.

Both of them are definitely more on the progressive side when it comes to baseball. Both are very smart, forward-thinking guys, and hopefully they’ll put us in a good position to be successful this year.

Royals catcher Freddy Fermín was named Rookie of the Year in the Venezuelan Winter League after winning the batting title with a .404 average.

Kevin O’Brien at Royals Reporter wonders if people are sleeping on Fermín.

If the Royals simply believed in him as organizational catching depth, they would have continued to leave him off the 40-man roster, and simply continued to give him Spring Training invite after Spring Training invite until someone else emerged from the Royals’ farm system. Fermin has long been unprotected in the Rule 5 Draft and gone unselected, so it’s not like there has been a tremendous interest in his services from opposing MLB squads.

But there’s an intriguing profile to Fermin’s game, and his gains with the bat could hint that he could handle himself at the MLB level, even if it may only be 100 or so plate appearances next season.

Royals pitcher Ronald Bolaños will play for Team Cuba in the World Baseball Classic.

Alex Duvall joins Royals Weekly to discuss the off-season.

Toronto signs first baseman Brandon Belt to a one-year, $9.3 million deal.

The Angels sign former Royals outfielder Brett Phillips to a one-year, $1.2 million deal.

Reliever Luke Jackson signs a two-year, $11 million deal with San Francisco.

The Giants trade former Royals reliever Yunior Marte to the Phillies for Erik Miller.

How this winter has shaped the race for Shohei Ohtani’s services next year.

How did the Fangraphs contract predictions fare?

Which teams could sign Trevor Bauer?

MLB reinstates former Braves GM John Coppolella after he was once given a lifetime ban.

Who do executives think will win Rookie of the Year this year?

How Scott Rolen could make Hall of Fame history.

The Houston Texans are a mess of their own making.

The NWSL bans four coaches for life after a sexual harassment investigation.

How to measure ripples in space-time.

Can the Golden Globes become relevant again?

The most anticipated horror movies of the year.

Your song of the day is Public Enemy with Give It Up.