As spring training continues, starting pitchers take their turns in the rotation and start-by-start add innings. As a result, some of the players that aren’t expected to break camp in the big leagues don’t have opportunity to get into games. In minor league camp they’ll get their regular work and stretch out to be ready to start the year in their regular roles.

Feb 21, 2013; Surprise, AZ, USA; Kansas City Royals starting pitcher John Lamb (38) poses for a picture during photo day at the Royals Spring Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Lamb had made it into two games, throwing an inning apiece. He gave up five hits and a walk, but only one run. It’s been noted that his velocity is down from his pre-surgery results. The Royals say they’re keeping him from pushing it, but he’s also approaching two years since his June 2011 Tommy John procedure. All arms are different, of course, but generally, players are getting back to full strength within 12-15 months. Lamb had some speed bumps when he was about to start throwing from a mound last year, but it’s going to be a focal point until his velocity returns to pre-surgery levels (or closer to it) or he shows he’s able to be successful in the new range. Before surgery, he was hitting 91-92 mph on his fastball. This spring, he’s been in a range of 85-89 mph. Maybe all he needs is more innings to get into rhythm, as J.J. Cooper had wondered earlier.

Dwyer walked three and gave up three runs (two earned) in 1.2 innings in one spring start and hasn’t done himself any favors. He’s struggled above A ball as a minor leaguer, running into back issues, a thyroid problem and bad command. His future is probably in the bullpen.

Marks parlayed a strong Arizona Fall League season into his 40 man spot. Otherwise, he may not have been protected when the Rule 5 draft came around. In three spring games, he’s completed four innings, walking three and striking out two, but only given up one run. The Royals see him as having enough promise to be protected, but he’s behind the other pitching prospects at the moment. He made one start in Triple A last year fare well at all (1.2 IP, seven hits, nine runs allowed), but his Double A numbers were fine.

Another note: the Royals released minor league infielder Luis Piterson, according to Bob Dutton. Piterson had 1022 plate appearances in the organization, finishing last season in High A Wilmington. He has a career .279/.331/.360 line. He’ll turn 23 in June.

That winter, the Royals were bestowed the titled of best minor league system on Planet Earth and landed nine prospects on Baseball America’s top 100 list. Montgomery and Lamb were both in the top 20. Duffy was #68, then-newly-acquired Jake Odorizzi was #69, and Chris Dwyer (who’d made four starts for the Naturals) was #83.

All five were tantalizingly close to the majors entering 2011. Montgomery gave up one run and struck out seven batters in nine innings that spring. He walked eight batters as well, but there was still he may have had a shot to open up the year on the big league roster or at least be a call-up in the first half. Danny Duffy opened the year in Omaha and struck out 48 batters in 42 innings and was in Kansas City in late May 2011. Odorizzi started the year striking everything out in the Carolina League and landed in Double A to finish the year. Lamb had a 3.09 ERA through eight starts. Dwyer, well, he came out struggling in 2011, but you can’t win them all, right?

Of course we know how this story ends. Lamb needed Tommy John surgery after those eight starts. Duffy would need it about a year after Lamb’s. Montgomery fell off the radar with control issues and Odorizzi made steady improvements but still didn’t make the majors until September of 2012 and even then was coddled by facing only the Indians (who still smacked him around a little in two starts). Dwyer is still struggling and has battled back issues and a thyroid problem last year. Montgomery and Odorizzi were traded. The Royals won’t see Duffy until June at the earliest. Lamb isn’t any closer to the big leagues.

Feb 21, 2013; Surprise, AZ, USA; Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Yordano Ventura (73) poses for a picture during photo day at the Royals Spring Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

But the system keeps churning and there’s depth rising through the ranks now. Once again, Northwest Arkansas could be the focus of the next great pitching hopes.

Earlier today, Paul Nielson of NWAOnline.com passed along news from Eric Edelstein, GM of the Naturals, that Lamb could be the opening day starter for the club and that 2012 first round pick Kyle Zimmer could start out in the NWA rotation as well in 2013. They would likely also be joined by Yordano Ventura, who’s pitching well in spring training, but only had six starts at Double A last season, and Jason Adam, who J.J. Picollo basically confirmed as headed to Double A in 2013 after Adam handled High A last year.

Here’s that potential rotation with ages on April 4, 2013:

• John Lamb (22)
• Yordano Ventura (21)
• Jason Adam (21)
• Kyle Zimmer (21)

Noel Arguelles (23 years old) may start out there as well. So far he’s throwing harder this spring, but his command is still off. Robinson Yambati (22 years old) is another possibility, though most of his success in 2012 was out of the bullpen.

Feb 21, 2013; Surprise, AZ, USA; Kansas City Royals starting pitcher John Lamb (38) poses for a picture during photo day at the Royals Spring Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Again, that group is tantalizingly close. If Lamb can get back on track, he’s very likely to be in Triple A before the All-Star break and has an outside shot of hitting Kansas City in September. Ventura’s name has popped up repeatedly all winter to the point that there’s suggestion that they want to see him in Kansas City by the end of the year as well. Zimmer would be skipping High A Wilmington entirely if Edelstein’s hunch is correct.

Zimmer had just six starts with Low A Kane County last year and the jump from High A to Double A is steep enough. If he shows the Royals what they want to see in minor league camp to where they feel confident in that sort of jump, that’s an aggressive move. Scouts love his stuff and delivery, but he’s only been pitching for a few years after converting in college. He doesn’t have a lot of experience on the mound. He doesn’t have long-term bad habits either.

But pushing Zimmer to Double A signals a message from the Royals that they expect these guys to be pushing for a spot in the rotation as early as 2014 (assuming everyone stays healthy and has the progression the Royals think they’ll have). Quite a lot has to go right for that to be the case, and luck hasn’t been on the Royals side. It’s seemed like they’ve been more conservative in the past in challenging their pitchers, so if this is a shift in philosophy on the developmental side, it’ll be interesting to see how other pitchers farther down are handled.

Picollo pointed out on the Kansas City Baseball Vault two weeks ago that the organization tries to base those decisions on the individual pitcher, so perhaps that speaks to how much more advanced they feel Zimmer and Ventura are relative to Montgomery et al in 2010. Entering that season, Duffy was promoted to Double A (after a spring hiatus) in late July at the age of 21. Dwyer was 22 when he made it to Double A in July 2010. Montgomery opened the year as a 21-year-old in Wilmington before jumping up after four starts. Lamb was just barely 20 years old  when he made it to Springdale. Maybe it’s just by a few months, but the second wave hitting Double A could be a few months ahead of the first if they all start the year in Northwest Arkansas rather than lower levels. Also, Lamb and Ventura have to be penciled in to Omaha’s late-season rotation.

Now they just have to perform better than the first wave had (Texas League Championship notwithstanding).

Photo credits for photo on homepage: Kyle Zimmer – US Presswire File Photo; Yordano Ventura – Jake Roth – USA Today Sports; Jason Adam – Jen Nevius – Kings of Kauffman/Aerys Sports.

John Lamb is working his way back. Photo: James Lamb

Lamb was on the fast track to the big leagues after dominating Class A ball in 2010. Then he strained his oblique during 2011′s spring training and lost velocity. However, when the velocity did not return when his oblique was healthy, he succumbed to TJS. He was the Royals top pitching prospect prior to the surgery.

Lamb commanded his fastball and changeup well before the surgery and because of his feel for his delivery, the Royals believe the command will return.

Unfortunately, it has been a bumpy road of recovery for Lamb. He hurt his ankle early in 2012 that set him back. He was FINALLY back on the mound in a game on August 14th for Surprise in the Arizona Rookie League. He made four starts there before finishing the season with rookie level Idaho Falls (two starts).

The kiddie gloves will still be on in 2013 for Lamb, as he will be hitting the two year removed from TJS mark, but since he has yet to take on much of a workload, they will have to be careful with him. The Royals could keep him in extended spring training to start the 2013 season and slowly move him up the ranks. I’m hopeful that Lamb makes a stop in Wilmington so I can see his progress.

Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star ranks Lamb as the Royals third best prospect. MLB.com has Lamb ranking ninth. He was added to the Royals 40 man roster on Tuesday.

John Lamb is working his way back. Photo: James Lamb

He’s been working in Arizona with the Royals AZL Rookie League team and getting his work in. In four appearances, he’s given up four runs in 5.2 innings. Three of those runs came in a start on August 22 when he gave up five hits in one inning. Overall, he’s only walked two and struck out six as he works to regain his command and collects innings as the season winds down. His next start, though, will be for Idaho Falls, the Royals highest level Rookie League team, probably as soon as September 1.

According to his father, Lamb has been working mostly to get his legs back. An ankle injury during conditioning prior to his return to a mound angered a tendon and he lost another month of recovery. His start on Monday may indicate that he’s starting to get them back though. James Lamb’s account mentioned that his fastball was in the upper 90s and he was throwing some changeups. Keith Law had similar observations, but said that Lamb looked “tentative”.

At any rate, Lamb had his best rehab outing. The boxscore shows that he went three innings, striking out three and getting six ground ball outs while giving up no hits and walking none.

Obviously, that’s a good sign.

If Lamb’s typical velocity were usually higher pre-injury, there might be lingering concern, but his fastball stayed around the low 90s before surgery but he had good command of it and his secondary stuff complemented it well. He may still be working his arm back to full strength. He also told Mark Schremmer of the Topeka Capital-Journal that he didn’t train as much as he should have in prior to the 2011 season. After being shut down all of last summer and through spring this year, he’s still working his way back into shape.

Lamb could get two more starts if the September 1 date holds true. Idaho Falls season doesn’t end until September 6.

It’s no surprise that Lamb’s recovery is important to the Royals future. Lamb was the 18th overall prospect in the minors entering 2011 according to Baseball America. After Tommy John surgery to Danny Duffy and disappointing seasons by Mike Montgomery and Chris Dwyer, the Royals crop of lefties, which looked to be key elements of a future starting rotation, are all on the shelf, trying to figure it out or just working back to health. Prior to the injury, Lamb could have been in Omaha by now with the potential of a September callup or a shot at a job next spring.

Instead, he’s going to the Pioneer League and continuing to work. He’s only 22 years old, and if all goes well this offseason (Lamb should be involved in offseason workouts), he could restart in Northwest Arkansas, where he’d left off in 2011 with a 3.09 ERA in 35 innings in 2011. That might get him into Omaha in midseason or late 2013 and then 2014 could be the target for him. If the Royals are lucky, that could coincide with Jake Odorizzi‘s second season in the big leagues, Danny Duffy’s first full year back in the majors and Felipe Paulino back for a full year after his own TJS.

That’s the hope. If the Royals sign or trade for someone this year, they’d be a part of that group and ideally leading the group towards some winning seasons.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. There’s still a lot of work for Lamb to do, and he has to avoid setbacks to his arm and his ankle. So far so good.

The Nationals were 69-93 in 2010. They were 80-81 last year. Today, they have the best record in the big leagues and, not coincidentally, their starting pitching has given up the least amount of runs in the league. Similarly, Tampa Bay, Oakland and Pittsburgh are all in the top ten among starting rotations in runs allowed per game and are in the playoff hunt.

The Royals scored more runs in 2000 than any other Royals team in franchise history. Their 879 runs scored eclipsed the old record of 856 runs set in – wouldn’t you know it?  - 1999. In those two seasons, they scored 1735 runs. They won 141 games and lost 192. The offense was around the top third in all of baseball, but the pitching staffs gave up the second most runs in the majors in 1999 and the third most in 2000. A strong offense can’t erase awful pitching.

Now, the Royals find themselves with a lineup that feels like it should be able to produce runs over the long-term (or at least, that’s what the scouts say), but the key to success will be pitching, specifically starting pitching.

That’s as true today as it was on the last day of the season in 2011 as it was on the first day that pitchers and catchers reported. The Royals entered 2012 needing pitching and in the middle of August, they still need starting pitching. Injuries have hurt. If all goes well with recovery, they should see Danny Duffy and Felipe Paulino return next July or so, but their contributions may only have an impact if he Royals can manage to piece together some winning months prior to the duo’s return.

The team’s relative inactivity in the offseason to add significant depth to a potential rotation gives me pause about hoping for significant upgrades in the rotation, although some may be on the Royals radar this winter. The Royals ideal situation is to develop pitching via the farm system as the Rays have done with James Shields, David Price, Jeremy Hellickson et al; like the Nationals have done with Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmerman and Ross Detwiler. Hopefully, the Royals go after some of the arms available in free agency or through trade because, in the meantime, while there are a number of strong performances in the minor leagues by pitchers who compose what could be the next wave of talent, most aren’t ready to make the jump yet.

Jake Odorizzi has a rotation spot waiting for him in KC. (Photo Credit: Minda Haas)

Jake Odorizzi has performed well since his promotion to Omaha, allaying concerns that he might struggle early in a tougher league. Last year, he’d racked up 108 strikeouts in 78.1 innings for Wilmington, but became homer-prone in the Texas League and ended his 12 start stint in Northwest Arkansas with a 4.72 ERA. He started his 2012 season back in Double A, put in seven good starts and earned a promotion.

Since then, he’s been putting up good numbers in Omaha, capped off by an outing on Tuesday where he went 6.2 innings before allowing a hit. In 89.1 innings in Triple A, he’s got a 2.92 ERA (though his walk rate is up and he’s giving up more hits, so there could be some good fortune in that ERA). He’s a flyball pitcher, so it will likely make him home run prone once he gets to the big leagues, but he can miss enough bats and should have pretty good control to allow him to limit damage. He projects as a number three starter with some upside and should get to Kansas City in September for a couple appearances.

Another prospect to dream on is John Lamb, who has finally made it back to the mound. He underwent Tommy John surgery last June and in the process of maintaining his conditioning, aggravated a tendon in his ankle and had to hold off on game action.

On Tuesday, he started for the Arizona Royals in Surprise, throwing a scoreless inning and striking out two. A batter reached on an error, but Lamb gave up no hits or walks.

The Royals will probably be very patient with him for the rest of this season, just getting him worked back into game speed. I think we’d all like to see him make a start at each level until he got back to Double A, but I think he’ll work within the rookie levels, then into instructional leagues. J.J. Picollo said on a recent Royals TV broadcast that they’re looking for Lamb to start in Double A next year and be on the fast track. Lamb’s got a good shot to make that happen – he’s been touted for his temperament before even being drafted, and has come back from significant injury before. He might see Kansas City late in 2013, possibly on a similar path as Odorizzi has been on this year of a few starts for the Naturals, a long stint in Omaha and then Kansas City in late August or as a September callup.

Yordano Ventura

Yordano Ventura is another guy to keep an eye on. He’s possibly got the most upside of any starter in the system, but those types usually have some risk. In his case, the Royals are probably going to have to resist the urge to turn him into a reliever if he encounters any bumps in the road. He’s small (listed at 5’11″ 140 pounds, though he looks like he’s filled out since) and the perception is that smaller pitchers are fragile or can’t hold up to the rigors of 200 inning seasons.

That being the case, he has the potential to be a high strikeout pitcher if he starts, has shown decent control, and has the type of stuff that misses bats. He can hurl a fastball into the triple digits, his curveball is developing into a solid secondary pitch and his changeup could be more than adequate. He’s currently on the disabled list in Double A with carpal tunnel symptoms in his wrist, but should finish the year there, start back there next year and hit Omaha in the summer months.

Of course, Kyle Zimmer should be in this discussion. The Royals first rounder in 2012 is only 20 years old coming out of college and has already started to shine in Low A Kane County’s rotation. He’s made eight pro starts, building up 33.2 innings, striking out 39 batters and walking just seven. He’s also been getting a decent amount of grounders in his short pro career. Strikeouts plus low walk totals plus groundball tendencies are great components for a future star to have. He’s had one rough start of those eight, but all of his others have been dominant. He’ll start next year at High A Wilmington and might be up in mid-2014 if he keeps rolling.

One pitcher who needs a new challenge is Sam Selman. The lefty from Vanderbilt has been destroying the Pioneer League and will hopefully get a shot at a higher level to see how his dominance continues. He’s striking out 13.9 batters per nine innings at Idaho Falls.

Kyle Smith struck out 11 batters in five innings in his first pro start for Idaho Falls and was moved to Kane Country afterwards. He’s continued to perform well there, making nine starts and striking out 58 batters in 45.2 innings. He has nearly a 5/1 K/BB ratio as a pro. He’ll turn 20 next month and isn’t the big, tall pitcher the Royals usually go for as a starter, but he deserves a look as he moves up the minor league ladder. His best start came two weeks ago when he went seven scoreless innings, gave up just three hits and struck out 12 while walking none against Cedar Rapids. More of that, please.

Jason Adam

Another good arm in the system is Jason Adam. He started the season off well for Wilmington, hit some rough patches in May and June, but has righted the ship and is pitching well. His 5-11 record is deceiving, as he’s hardly gotten any run support in most of his starts, best demonstrated by a May 19 start when he went six innings, struck out seven and gave up two runs, and the Blue Rocks got no-hit. He’s surpassed seven innings in six starts to lead Wilmington and has a good share of 6+ IP starts as well.

As a result, he’s probably thrown too many innings to get anything more than a courtesy start in Double A. At 141 innings this year, he might be shut down soon. He’s a strong candidate to start the year in Double A next year after demonstrating enough ability to miss bats (7 K/9) and prevent walks (2 BB/9) this year while also inducing his share of ground balls. He has good stuff, but it’s not dominating, though he’s been adding velocity recently. He’s hit the mid-90s with his fastball before, and if he can build up to that level, it gives him more upside. He’s another guy who scouts suggest could be a #3 starter down the line.

Unfortunately, for the moment, this is all just dreaming on these guys, because Odorizzi’s the closest to the big leagues and won’t have much time in the big leagues if at all by next spring and it may keep him from making the team out of Surprise. Lamb and Ventura will probably hit Triple A next year, but among Zimmer, Adam, Selman and Smith, there’s not a single pitch at the Double A level yet. That puts them some ways away from the big leagues.

Ideally, the Royals will be able to add these arms to the mix in the future. They won’t have much impact next season so if the Royals are to build up their rotation (which they need to do), they’ll have to go after those free agent targets. They may have to put one of these arms into a trade to get a better return on a starter with another team. The Royals want to bring their star starters up from the minor leagues and have a homegrown staff, and that’s commendable, but for the moment, unless Mike Montgomery (5.71 ERA in 41 innings after his demotion to Double A) or Chris Dwyer (6.21 ERA in Omaha) figure things out – sooner rather than later – the homegrown pipeline of pitching talent will remain a pipe dream.

Many of the challenges the Royals have faced this year can be attributed to the multitude of injuries that have plagued the team.  The Royals experienced more serious injuries in Spring Training than during all of 2011, and we are only now beginning to see a sliver of light at the end of the tunnel.

The 2012 injury story began with a backup catcher in a noncompetitive situation.  While Manuel Pina wasn’t expected to contribute much to the Royals in 2012 (little did they know they could have used him to open the season after Salvador Perez went down), but on February 22 he torn his meniscus and this injury was the beginning of a long line of devastating setbacks the team has suffered to its roster.

Joakim Soria spoiled Royals fans for several years. (Credit: Jesse Johnson-US PRESSWIRE)

On March 13, Salvador Perez twisted his knee resulting in an almost identical injury to Manuel Pina, causing the Royals to lose 2 of their top 3 catchers for the first half of the season.  This roster hole forced the team to pick up Humberto Quintero, Mr. “Catch and Throw,” in a trade with Houston.  “Q” as he was frequently called by teammates was heralded as a great defensive player, although I never personally witnessed any evidence of this, and at bat he performed as you would expect a veteran bench player to perform.  (Lousy.)  So the Royals endured the first half of the season with little to no production from behind the plate.  Fortunately, Salvador returned to the lineup in June, and all is right with the world again.  Well, at least in the catching world.

I was sitting in the stands in Surprise, Arizona on March 18 when Joakim Soria was on the mound and felt a “tug” in his elbow.  He hadn’t pitched well that day and there was an uneasiness in the stands among Royals fans that something was definitely wrong.  We later learned that tug was a warning bell that Soria was going to require Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career, and forced the Royals to use Jonathan “roller coaster” Broxton as their closer.  As many people have accurately said, for the most part Broxton is getting the job done, but few players have caused fans (including me) more angst than he has.  Soria definitely spoiled us.

But Joakim isn’t the only Royals pitcher to go under the knife.  Not that any of us would have been excited to see Blake Wood in Kansas City this year, but he is out for the season with a case of the Tommy John illness.  As is Felipe Paulino – just as he was beginning to prove that possibly all of his potential and “stuff” might translate into solid performances and wins.  It’s sad when your rotation is so weak that you miss Felipe Paulino.  But I miss him, I really really do.

The Royals anxiously await Danny Duffy's recovery from Tommy John surgery (Credit: Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE)

It brings a tear to my eye as I remember Danny Duffy exiting the game after throwing only 13 pitches on Mother’s Day.  I think every educated baseball fan immediately knew this meant another key contributor was lost for this season, and possibly beyond.  If you’re wondering, yes, Tommy John strikes again.  Is it contagious?

Not that I’m thrilled to see Yuniesky Betancourt in the lineup, and I’m not enamored with Chris Getz either, but when the team is thin at a few positions like second base, you don’t want to see anyone on your roster sitting in the trainer’s room.  Escobar has experienced nagging ankle problems, and Getz has been working through a variety of ailments including bruised ribs and a lower leg lateral strain that have sent both of them up and down so many times that it’s been a guessing game about who will play second base each day.

The Royals started the year strong, winning 2 out of 3 from the heavily favored Angels.  Then on April 10, while winning the 3^rd of their first 5 games of the year, Lorenzo Cain bumped into the Centerfield wall while chasing down a fly ball and suffered what was initially called a “slight pull of the left groin.”  This slight pull turned into a torn hip flexor and an on-again, off-again stay on the disabled list that has kept him out of the Royals lineup ever since.

Salvador Perez blocks the plate, and all is right with the world again. (Credit: John Rieger-US PRESSWIRE)

The good news is the Royals appear to be healing up.  As mentioned earlier, Salvador Perez has already made an impact in the short time he’s been back on the team, and most Lorenzo Cain is on the verge of making his first appearance in KC this year.

Unfortunately, the team’s pitching woes won’t be corrected anytime soon, but if Danny Duffy, Felipe Paulino, Joakim Soria, and John Lamb (a Top 20 prospect who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2011) needed to sit out a year, it’s much better that it happen this year rather than next.  (Although, I suppose we don’t know for certain when any of them will return.)  In 2013 we expect Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi to be in KC, Eric Hosmer’s sophomore slump to be in the rear view mirror, we’ll have Salvador and Lorenzo for the entire season, and the Royals front office will be laser focused on adding a prime arm or two to the rotation through trades or free agency.  Let’s keep our fingers crossed that the serious injury bug doesn’t visit the Royals again next year.

We were honored to be a part of the Baseball Prospectus event on Sunday afternoon.

The Royalman Report came to you from the historic Gem Theater in the Jazz district at 18th and Vine in a panel format. Included with us was Craig Brown from Royals Review and took questions from attendees related to the ideal pitching staff, David Glass, Jake Odorizzi, Mike Montgomery and more.

It was a very special moment and we’re appreciative of the Joe Hamrahi and the Baseball Prospectus guys for inviting us to take part and also want to thank Bob Kendrick from the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum for taking time out of his busy schedule to help us set it up at the Gem, as well.

Don’t forget the Royalman Report is on every Sunday at 7 and catch our new show, The Kansas City Baseball Vault on ESPN 1510 AM Thursday’s at 6.

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The Royalman Report is hosted by Troy “Royalman” Olsen with co-host Michael Engel and features Chris “Fake Ned Yost” Kamler and 610 Sports blogger Jeff Herr and airs  live Sundays at 7 p.m. central time at RoyalmanReport.com as well as on Livestream.com/RoyalmanReport.

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Going into 2011, the Royals had a slew of high-profile arms in their system. Baseball America placed five pitchers within their top 100 rankings.

Danny Duffy reached the majors and mostly struggled, came out in 2012 and looked impressive. Then a UCL tear ended his season. He just underwent successful Tommy John surgery himself. Mike Montgomery, lauded as the top prospect in the system before 2012 by Baseball America, has had a handful of exciting starts, but mostly has had the same command and control issues that plagued him last season. Jake Odorizzi has made an impression in Triple A and has jumped in front of the group as the best pitching prospect anywhere near the majors. Chris Dwyer has struggled since reaching Double A and is running out of time.

All four, along with Lamb, were top 100 prospects. Lamb, at #18, was considered the best.

There hasn’t been any indication of what level Lamb may end up at to start his rehab pitching, but he’ll probably toil in lower levels to get back to game speed with a shot at a couple of Double A starts at the end of the year. Perhaps if things go well enough, he might see a stop in Triple A, which would set him up nicely to return to that level next spring with an opportunity to make his way to Kansas City in mid-season.

It all depends on his elbow and how he’s able to regain his strength.

Lamb never relied on high velocity to be effective, though he can work in the low-90s with his fastball. His best weapon is hitting spots with his fastball. He’s a tough, smart pitcher who had control of his secondary pitches early in 2011 and looked like he might reach Omaha by season’s end.

So if he arm strength is there and the stuff returns, it’s not out of the question to see him in Triple A. It’s just unlikely.

Often, a pitcher still needs a lot of time to get back to full speed, though rehab programs and recovery times are making that regrouping window smaller and smaller in many cases. Every injury is different, so it’s not fair to hold Lamb to the standard of Stephen Strasburg, who returned to the big leagues just over a year after having Tommy John surgery. The Royals also had enough cause to hold Lamb back since he wasn’t automatic for Triple A and the Royals weren’t looking for him to contribute at the major league level this soon either.

Lamb was a trainee with Jaeger Sports, and I’m sure he’s adopted much of their long toss teachings to get back in shape. The additional arm strength may even add some zip to his fastball and help his endurance as he returns. We’ll have to see as he makes his way back and gets into games.

We have to wait on Duffy. Dwyer may never be more than a reliever, if that. Montgomery will still probably be up this year, but who knows how well he’ll be able to do. Odorizzi is the best of the bunch (thankfully). But Odorizzi alone won’t be enough when the organization ends up sniffing contention again. John Lamb would be a fine complement – so hopefully all goes well starting next month.

At the top of the list is Kyle Zimmer, their first round pick out of San Francisco. The 20-year-old is said to be fairly close to coming to a deal with the Royals on a signing bonus and could be assigned to a minor league affiliate soon, according to Bob Dutton.

The Royals have already signed a few picks from day two: Colin Rodgers, Fred Ford, Alfredo Escalana-Maldonado, Parker Morin and Dylan Sons. Three of those came out of the Royals top ten picks so their bonus amounts will count towards the draft pool allotment established by Major League Baseball.

Here’s the breakdown of the Royals 40 selections:

• Left-handed pitchers: 10
• Right-handed pitchers: 14
• Catchers: 3
• First basemen: 2
• Second basemen: 1
• Shortstops: 1 (though Kenny Diekroeger is likely to move to second base rather than stay at shortstop)
• Third basemen: 0
• Outfielders: 9
• High school players: 17
• College/Junior College: 23
• College seniors: 2

I specify the college seniors because a trend started to develop yesterday where many teams were taking college seniors (who don’t have as much leverage in bonus negotiations) earlier than some prospects who were projected to go higher as a way to manipulate some of the bonuses handed out. The Royals didn’t get on that train, it seems, though they did lean college-heavy overall.

One particular selection is interesting in what it symbolizes. Austin Fairchild was the 16th round pick by the Royals. He’s a left-hander out of St. Thomas High School in Texas and stands six feet tall and weighs about 170 pounds. What’s so special about that? Fairchild is a long-toss pitcher, meaning a large part of his training in the offseason and between starts involves playing catch at distances up to 300 feet. Many training programs established by teams limit that distance to 120 feet or so. In the past, the Royals have been resistant to these types of programs despite drafting adherents like Mike Montgomery and John Lamb.

With the hiring of Rick Knapp as their minor league pitching coordinator and the drafting of Fairchild, it seems that the Royals are opening up to the idea of utilizing long-toss as part of their development or at the very least, embracing the idea that one size doesn’t fit all when it comes to pitching development. (You can hear more about such long-toss programs in our interview with Alan Jaeger of Jaeger Sports on the Royalman Report.)

Now that the draft is over, it’s time to sign the picks. The Royals have five out of the way now, and with an earlier deadline than in years past, they’re working quickly on locking up Zimmer and the rest. The sooner they get a signature, the sooner these players can be assigned to minor league teams or start work in Surprise at the Royals training facility.

All picks from the 2012 draft are tracked on MLB.com and can be filtered by team.

The Royals also picked Hayden Edwards, a 6’7″ right-handed pitcher out of Blue Valley High School in Stillwell, Kansas (31st round) and Ashton Goudeau a 6’6″ righty from Maple Woods Community College (27th round).

In our third episode of the Kansas City Baseball Vault, we had the pleasure to speak with legendary groundskeeper George Toma. Toma shared stories of working the grounds at Municipal Stadium when the A’s were in Kansas City, working with Charlie Finley and an incident with monkeys let loose in the ballpark. No, really.

We also got to talk with John Sadak (@johnsadak) the voice of the Wilmington Blue Rocks. Sadak discussed the progress of Jason Adam, Yordano Ventura, Cheslor Cuthbert and gave us his insight into the Royals High A minor league affiliate.

This episode also featured a rant from Troy Olsen regarding the reaction to the Will Smith start on Wednesday in Yankee Stadium. Chris Kamler, of course, egged him on. We also covered the plight of Johnny Giavotella, Eric Hosmer‘s continuing slump and other Royals-related topics.

We’ll be back next week with more discussion of Kansas City baseball, past, present and future on ESPN 1510 Thursday at 6 p.m. CST.

You can catch up on old episodes of the Kansas City Baseball Vault here on Kings of Kauffman. Episodes of the Royalman Report are available on the site as well.

Follow the Kansas City Baseball Vault on Twitter and Facebook for future programming updates. Also follow Kings of Kauffman for article updates, discussion and other information.

That puts him out of action for all of 2012 and most of 2013 (though recovery times are shortening).

It turns out that Blake Wood needs the procedure as well. He was shut down in spring training with irritation in his throwing elbow and the first return date was said to be late April. Now, it’s been determined that  he has a tear as well and will go under the knife as well. While Wood wasn’t as vital a part of the pitching staff as Duffy, he has been an average reliever so far as a big leaguer and was showing signs of improvement.

In the last twelve months, the Royals have had four pitchers from the top of their prospect lists or from the big leagues require Tommy John surgery: Duffy, Wood, John Lamb last June and Joakim Soria at the end of spring training.

The Royals have the bullpen arms to sustain the losses of Wood and Soria, but Lamb and Duffy have been two of the top pitching prospects since they signed their bonuses. Lamb is throwing in Arizona now but no timetable for rehab starts has been set.

Meanwhile, Duffy is staying in good spirits and cheering on his team every night. Really, you should follow him on Twitter (@dduffkc23) to witness it.

The Royals have a number of pitching prospects, but how likely are they to pan out? Other teams, like the Rangers, Rays and Braves, see a surplus of major league ready arms, but the Royals are still waiting on the likes of Mike Montgomery, Chris Dwyer and Danny Duffy to sort it out.

Jeff Herr led a discussion with Alan Jaeger about the methods the Rangers have used and the programs available to developing pitchers. He covered a lot of the long toss philosophy and outlined its importance to a pitcher’s development. Overall it was very interesting. After talking with Alan, we discussed how the Royals fit into the equation.

Then we made a big announcement. Listeners of the podcast get an early leak of the information. In the meantime, before an official announcement, you can stop by this Facebook page and follow this new Twitter account. (And you can also follow Kings of Kauffman in both places as well for the main site information.)

You can listen below or download the mp3 directly.

The Royalman Report is hosted by Troy “Royalman” Olsen with co-host Michael Engel and features Chris “Fake Ned Yost” Kamler and 610 Sports blogger Jeff Herr and airs  live Sundays at 7 p.m. central time at RoyalmanReport.com as well as on Livestream.com/RoyalmanReport.

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The Royalman Report - logo by @AHairOffSquare

Tonight, we’re going to catch up on some of the latest about the Royals and their merciful ending of The Streak. That’s a given.

The focus of tonight’s show, though, is on pitching, specifically on the Royals and their track record of developing pitching. Our guest for this discussion is Alan Jaeger, the founder of Jaeger Sports and whose program has benefited such pitchers as NL Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw and Diamondbacks prospect Trevor Bauer. Jaeger has worked with Mike Montgomery before, as well.

It should be an interesting discussion about pitching and training philosophies. We’re hoping to get an idea of where the Royals stand as far as their approach to taking prospects and turning them into the real deal at the big league level.

The chat room and livestream broadcast will be below for you to chime in and interact with us in the studio as well as fellow listeners:

The Royalman Report is brought to you by Kelly’s Westport Inn at 500 Westport Road in Kansas City, Missouri.  Tell them the Royalman Report sent you.

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The wacky Puffy Taco mascot of the San Antonio Missions AA Baseball team

The first thing you need to know about the Naturals’ road trip to San Antonio is that they were confronted with possibly the wackiest mascot in baseball.  Nuttier than the Flying Squirrel in Richmond, VA; loonier than the Lansing, MI Big Lug Lugnut; much cuter than Gnate the Sand Gnat of Savannah; and equally as crazy as the Sushi Rolls of Vancouver, Canada.  You’ll almost never see him on a list of the most off-the-wall minor league characters, but I’m smitten with the mascot of the San Antonio Mission’s (the AA affiliate of the San Diego Padres), the Puffy Taco and his trusty companion, Ballapeño.  And don’t forget their best friend H.E.Buddy, the grocery bag mascot (yes, grocery bag) from the dominant local grocery store chain H.E.B.

Once you get past the kitschy trappings of minor league baseball, they actually play some fun games that are meaningful – at least to the players and the fans of players with high potential that we expect to eventually see in the majors.   And that’s the reason you’re reading this story right now.

I wish I could give you a sunshine and roses report of the Naturals performance, but that wouldn’t be the truth.  So, what I’m going to do is offer you is my list of “takeaways” from the game, both good and bad.

Here’s my first takeaway, and you aren’t going to like it.  Will Myers was not impressive.  Not at all.  I only saw him play one game, but he looked completely lost at the plate and nothing like the guy who tore up the Arizona Fall League a few months ago.  In the first inning he struck out swinging on 3 pitches (and looked bad doing it) immediately after the first two batters of the game hit solid singles up the middle and we needed him to move the runners.  In his second at bat he popped straight up to the catcher.  He struck out again in another at bat.  The only hit he received in 5 at bats was against a pitcher who was on the ropes, following a long delay and a coach’s visit to the mound, he squirted a broken bat single over the second baseman’s head.  Not an impressive day’s work for Mr. Myers.

The Naturals Christian Colon waits for a pitch while Wil Myers looks on from the on deck circle. April 9, 2012 CREDIT: Alan Barrington

On the other hand, on this particular day Christian Colon looked every bit the player and leader the Royals selected him to be.  He was 4 for 4 at the plate, and every hit was a ringing line drive.  He turned two nearly identical outstanding defensive plays in the field, running hard to his right, backhanding a ground ball before it could escape into left field, and throwing back across his body to force a fast runner at second base.  When Tim Melville, the Naturals starting pitcher, threw five straight balls to begin the game, Colon didn’t wait to act.  He showed leadership on the field, called time out and went to the mound alone to calm Melville down.  It must have worked, Melville didn’t give up a run and only allowed 3 hits, 1 walk (the first batter of the game), and 6 strikeouts in 5 innings pitched.

Colon stole second, only his first stolen base of the season, but when I describe the play I think you’ll agree he needs to make more attempts.  After he stole second base, he stood up and I probably could have counted three Mississippi’s before the ball arrived from the catcher.  Colon got an absurd jump on the pitch and made the Mission’s battery look like they were chasing shadows.

One other thing about Christian Colon – Baseball Reference says he’s 6’ 1” tall.  I didn’t take a measuring tape onto the field, but he doesn’t look anything close to that in my opinion.  But if you think his size might indicate he isn’t tough, consider this – He was hit by a pitch, and I don’t think he made any attempt to move out of the way.  Christian ended the night reaching base five times in five at bats.  I love the toughness and the willingness to do anything necessary to get on base and give his team a chance to win.

The Naturals starting pitcher Tim Melville warms up prior to the game. April 9, 2012. CREDIT: Alan Barrington

Tim Melville started the game on the mound for the Naturals and I didn’t know much about him before the game.  But this week I learned he knows how to mix his pitches and can make the opposing hitters chase balls in the dirt.  Unfortunately, I didn’t find the radar gun readout in the stadium until late in the game (it was lost in the sea of advertising signs on the outfield wall), so I don’t know how fast he was throwing, but he was definitely fooling people and pulling the string on occassion.

I was very impressed with the defensive play of light hitting second baseman Sharlon Schoop.  He made a fantastic play moving hard toward the right field line, throwing himself into a headlong dive, and came up firing a bullet to nail the runner at first.  It was “Frank Whitesque” and the best defensive play of the night.  However, I wish I had positive comments about the rest of his game.  He wandered two far off second and was nearly picked off by a snap throw from the catcher.  (How embarrassing would that be to get picked off second by the catcher?)  He struck out on a ball that was nearly over his head which got the crowd excited and a few of the drunk Missions fans sitting near me taunted him with a few choice words on his walk back to the dugout.  I considered joining them.

A few more miscellaneous notes:

• Melville was replaced on the mound by Elisaul Pimentel.  Pimentel got rocked and only lasted 2/3 of an inning.
• Catcher Ryan Jenkins did a good job of going with a tough pitch and poking it up the middle for a base hit to drive in 2 runs.
• Third Baseman Kurt Mertins laid down a picture perfect sacrifice bunt to move two runners, then hustled down the line and beat the throw to first on an error to load the bases.
• Edinson Rincon let a ball play him in left field.  He ran in to field a ball that was about to land in front of him, thought of diving for it (I think he could have gotten to it if he had committed rather than hesitating), changed his mind and backed off.  The ball bounced past him, but he was able to get it back to the infield before the runner could advance to second.
• Some of the guys I really wanted to see didn’t make it into the game: Promising pitchers Chris Dwyer, Noel Arguelles, Jake Odorizzi, and catcher Ben Theriot.  And of course, pitcher John Lamb is still recovering from surgery so it will be a couple more months before anyone has a chance to see him play.

Noel Arguelles, the only Naturals player on the Royals 40 man major league roster. April 9, 2012 CREDIT: Alan Barrington

This team doesn’t appear to be full of superstars in-waiting as the Naturals of the past two years have been.  But there is talent here that the fans of Northwest Arkansas will enjoy watching this Summer, and in particular a pitching staff that has the ability to completely shut down the opposing team on any given night.  Maybe I’ll get lucky and see some of those guys take the mound the next time I get to see the Naturals play.

Thanks for visiting Kings of Kauffman. You can stay current on all the Kings of Kauffman content and news by following us on Twitter, Facebook, or by way of our RSS feed.  You can also send your questions to our mailbag at KoKMailbag@gmail.com and follow Alan Barrington on Twitter to be notified each time he posts a story and receive his incredibly insightful sports commentary.

Sep 11, 2011; Seattle, WA, USA; Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Joakim Soria (48) pitches to the Seattle Mariners. It may have been his last appearance as a Royal. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-US PRESSWIRE

On September 11, 2011, Joakim Soria threw a 2-2 pitch to Miguel Olivo. The ball went into left field for the third out of the game, securing a 2-1 victory for the Royals.

The significance of that event is that it may be the last pitch Soria throws in the regular season as a Royal.

Yesterday, Soria left a game against the Indians with pain in his right elbow. Today he went in for an MRI and the results aren’t good. According to Bob Dutton, the MRI showed damage to Soria’s ulnar collateral ligament (UCL). The UCL is the ligament replaced by Tommy John surgery. Soria will visit Dr. Lewis Yocum to determine if surgery is necessary. Yocum is the same doctor who performed Tommy John surgery on Stephen Strasburg and Royals prospect John Lamb. Soria has already undergone the procedure in 2003.

After 2012, the Royals hold an $8 million option on Joakim Soria. He’ll miss some time this year, even if surgery isn’t necessary, and after last year’s struggles and this spring’s bad numbers, the Royals have to be prepared to put someone else in his place at the back of the bullpen. Because of that, it’s difficult to justify paying $8 million for a player who may not be healthy or effective or pitch in the role that commands such salary.

If Soria misses 2012, the only way he’ll stay a Royal is if both sides can restructure his deal.

The Royals are deep in the bullpen, with Greg Holland and Jonathan Broxton as the early favorites to take over the closer’s role if Soria is out. Louis Coleman is a lock to make it and Tim Collins and Jose Mijares are probably the left-handed options. Aaron Crow was a long shot to make the rotation anyway and I think he works as an all purpose reliever and Kelvin Herrera is a popular option to make the team as well. If Soria’s out, the bullpen may have a spot for a swingman, which could end up being whichever of Luis Mendoza or Felipe Paulino doesn’t crack the rotation.

Unlike the loss of Salvador Perez, there isn’t much panic or dread about this injury. No, it’s not good, but the Royals have the depth to fill in, where they’re currently scrambling to find options to replace Perez. A two-time All-Star on the shelf doesn’t help any hope of contention, though.

Results of Soria’s visit should be available tomorrow. Once those are known, the picture will become clearer.

Stay current on all the Kings of Kauffman content and news by following us on Twitter, Facebook, or by way of our RSS feed.

Despite Tommy John surgery in 2011, Kevin Goldstein named John Lamb as one of his top 101 prospects in baseball. Photo: James Lamb

As you may know, Kevin Goldstein is one of the bigger names in online baseball commentary. In the wee small hours of the morning, he released his Top 101 overall prospects in baseball, listing five players from the Royals system:

• 19. Wil Myers
• 27. Bubba Starling
• 47. Jake Odorizzi
• 82. John Lamb
• 83. Cheslor Cuthbert

Conspicuously absent is Mike Montgomery.

When we talked to Goldstein on the Royalman Report in November, he’d listed Montgomery as a three star prospect and sixth among Royals prospects. At the time, it was a simple matter that Montgomery hadn’t pitched very well for his lowered ranking, but Goldstein conceded that the upside was still there, but the likelihood of Montgomery’s reaching that ceiling had lessened. (And it’s notable that Eric Hosmer wasn’t on Goldstein’s top 101 going into 2010, so it’s never a perfect list.)

This afternoon, Goldstein was on 610 Sports with Nick Wright and pointed out that Montgomery hasn’t been a great pitcher since the middle of 2010. The lefty had run over minor league batters to that point, but arm soreness put him on the disabled list twice. Then he struggled in 2011.

Even after a rough 2011 in Double A, Goldstein is big on Wil Myers, and despite Tommy John surgery, he likes John Lamb too. On 610, he also mentioned that Chris Dwyer is a prospect who could still be good.

Other mentions:

• Goldstein is a Lorenzo Cain fan and thinks his combination of speed, defense and decent offensive production could result in a season that could come close to what Melky Cabrera accomplished overall in 2011.
• Eric Hosmer could be even better this year than we expect. Goldstein mentioned he expects multiple All-Star appearances and MVP opportunities. He said .300 and 25+ homers is an annual possibility.
• For Goldstein, Mike Moustakas is the most interesting player coming into 2012. Last year, Moose made adjustments to hit better but the power wasn’t there. This year, the goal is to continue to hit with those adjustments in mind while adding the power back into his approach.

Follow Goldstein on Twitter – he has great information, and if you’re not 100% baseball-minded, he tosses in some pop culture commentary as well.

You can stay current on all the Kings of Kauffman content and news by following us on Twitter, Facebook, or by way of our RSS feed.

The Royals are no longer the consensus No. 1 minor league system in baseball. According to Law, that honor now belongs to the San Diego Padres. The Royals, however, remained in his top five at No. 5, just behind the Tampa Bay Rays, Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals.

In the interest of transparency, in my opinion Keith Law is the best there is in terms of ranking minor league talent in baseball. He is a former Toronto Blue Jays front office member and to the sheer joy and pleasure of baseball geeks everywhere, he turned down a similar position offered by the Houston Astros this past December. Baseball America—who actually has the Royals’ system ranked higher at No. 3—is very good and Baseball Prospectus also does good analysis, but for my money, Law is the best in the business.

Anyway, what does all this say in terms of the Royals? After graduating four infielders, a starter and almost an entire bullpen from the minors this past season, the Royals still have a top five farm system. Sink your teeth into that impressive factoid.

Dayton Moore has built a system that is not only front loaded, but an overall deep talent pool that doesn’t appear to be relenting anytime soon.

Many felt the Royals’ farm system would drop off because of top prospects like Eric Hosmer, Danny Duffy, Sal Perez and Mike Moustakas all being called up. And it did, but to fall only four spots with the amount of talent that found its way to Kauffman is quite an achievement.

This wasn’t always the case with loaded Royals farm systems in the past. The organization would usually have a few elite gems that created the cachet of being the best system, but the talent overall was lacking. It had no depth.

The Royals system last year featured nine players in Baseball America’s top 100 prospect list. Which was a record since it had been doing the rankings. ESPN and Law, had six in the top 100, but had the other three featured in Baseball America’s list in the top 150.

You also have to take into consideration that LHP John Lamb, who was rated No. 41 by Law last season, is also not figured into this year’s ranking due to his Tommy John Surgery that he is still rehabbing from. But he most certainly figures into the organization’s future plans.

The article by Law is Insider, so if you don’t have a subscription to the magazine or an account with ESPN, you won’t be able to view or read his top 100 list or farm system rankings.

I will go ahead and give you the list of Royals who he has ranked in this year’s top 100 prospects.

Law’s ranks: OF Wil Myers as the Royals best prospect and No. 13 overall, OF Bubba Starling No. 15, 3B Cheslor Cuthbert No. 43, LHP Mike Montgomery No. 52, RHP Jake Odorizzi No. 71. 

Myers and Starling are the gems of the organization, but you would figure in terms of this season that Montgomery and Odorizzi are the two that have a realistic chance of figuring into either the bullpen or the starting rotation at some point this season. Honestly, I value Odorizzi more than I do Montgomery for the simple reason that the organization as a whole, lacks elite righty starters.

Don’t get me wrong, I am a Luke Hochevar fan, but when he’s all you have in terms of right-handed starting pitchers, that’s a problem. Lefties are great to have, but you don’t want your starting rotation to tout four of them. You would prefer a mixture of three lefties and two righties. Odorizzi can be the long-term solution as a second right-handed starting pitcher that the rotation has lacked for the past two seasons. As I don’t see Roy Oswalt to the Royals ever surfacing.

2011 was deemed the best farm system in the history of farm systems. It is no more. Which for Royals fans, is a very good thing. But don’t be so naive as to short change the talent that still remains in the system.

I’m looking forward to focusing more on the Royals major league product for the years to come, but it is important not to forget what made that viewing experience much more palatable. Keep an eye on this years crop of youngsters in the minors, I have a feeling it my yield just as good as results as the group that preceded it.

Can you picture Zack Greinke in a Royals uniform again? (Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE)

Every family has a weird cousin that doesn’t fit in with the other relatives.  No one wants to sit next to him at the kids’ table during Thanksgiving dinner or get stuck alone with him after everyone else has gone home.  We make fun of him behind his back, but as soon as he’s gone, we sorta miss him.

Zack Greinke was the weird cousin, a square-peg-in-a-round-hole, the guy that never quite fit in for the Royals after they drafted him with the 6^th overall pick of the 2002 draft.  Zack was a pitcher, the best pitcher in the majors (said Sports Illustrated in May 2009), but his career was unsatisfying to him because he longed to hit and play shortstop, and due to his love/hate relationship with the game of baseball.

Many would say Zack has led a charmed life.  He was the Gatorade National High School Baseball Player of the Year, he married his high school sweetheart / Miss Daytona Beach beauty queen / Dallas Cowboy cheerleader, he won a Cy Young award, and he’s a multi-millionaire with the prospect of life changing riches in his future when he reaches free agency at the end of the coming season.  But if you think all this makes Greinke happy, then you don’t know Zack.

I won’t rehash the details here again, but it’s well known that Zack has suffered from severe bouts of anxiety and depression.  This illness has interfered with his life so dramatically that he once considered giving up baseball and mowing lawns for a living.  We’re talking about an individual so socially withdrawn that when he was in school he hated to sit with other kids at lunchtime because he didn’t want to feel forced to fit in, who has grown up to work in a profession that requires him to stand on a pitcher’s mound in front of 35,000 screaming fans.  Imagine the angst you would suffer if you were asked to speak in front of a business group, in your underwear and forgot what you planned to say, multiplied by 100 – that’s the fear and dread Greinke experiences every time he delivers a pitch.  Zack doesn’t play baseball because he wants to, he does it because the expectations of his God-given talent demand it.

Yogi Berra once said that 90% of the game is half mental, and this statement has never been more true than when referring to Zack Greinke.  Among fans I’ve spoken with he’s been called an enigma, a clubhouse cancer, a prima donna whose talent doesn’t make up for his poor attitude, and much worse.  He pinch hits while wearing the wrong uniform.  He tells other pitchers they have a phony attitude.  He argued with his coach over which side of the rubber to pitch from.  Even Greinke apologists must admit that Zack is a strange guy.  There are thousands of fans who believe Zack’s gifts could take their team to the next level, and an equal number who are certain his addition to the clubhouse would destroy their team’s chemistry.

There is also strong disagreement about Zack’s value on the field.  On the one hand, ESPN’s fantasy baseball rankings has Zack listed as the 14^th best starting pitcher in the major leagues (above players such as Gio Gonzalez, Josh Beckett, Mat Latos, Stephen Strasburg, Jeremy Hellickson, C. J. Wilson, Chris Carpenter, and many more coveted names), and on the other hand there is a vocal group of naysayers who observe that Zack is only as good as he wants to be and no one really knows how to motivate him to reach his full potential.

Zack will become a free agent at the end of the 2012 season and regardless of his baggage, there will be a bidding war for his services.  Our sister site “Reviewing the Brew” has already contemplated what it would cost to sign Greinke after next season.   They estimate about $18-20 million per year (I expect possibly for 5 years), unless the market changes significantly in the next few months.

Greinke recently dumped his agent (second time in the past couple years) and Brewer fans are hopeful they can use this opportunity to approach Zack directly and ask for a hometown discount at a more club-friendly $16 million per year.  The Brewers were one step away from the World Series last year and they know Zack would like to continue playing for a winner.  A couple problems with this plan for Milwaukee fans – the Brewers aren’t his home team and their future doesn’t look bright.

The Brewers could still potentially reach the playoffs next year in a weakened division that saw the Cardinals lose Albert Pujols this offseason, but they won’t be the same team without Prince Fielder.  In addition, the suspension of reigning MVP Ryan Braun for performance enhancing drugs doesn’t leave fans with lots of feel good optimism for the future of the franchise.  The Brewers traded away much of their high potential minor league talent to the Royals to obtain Greinke in a big push to make the Series last season.  Now that several of their key pieces are either gone or in limbo, and their future mortgaged for a present that didn’t materialize, I don’t see Greinke returning to Milwaukee at the end of his current contract.

Brewer fans were all a twitter this week when it was reported by the MLB Brew Beat blog (and then repeated by several more) that Greinke was asked about the possibility of an extension with Milwaukee.  Greinke’s polite response was, “I’ll talk to them about it.”  If I was a Brew Crew fan, I wouldn’t hang my hat on that comment and assume Zack was going to return in 2013.

Greinke has played all or part of eight major league seasons.  Seven of those seasons have been with the Royals, the team that drafted him, the team that was patient with him both before and after he was diagnosed, the team he won a Cy Young with, the team whose fans showed up in force just to cheer for him on nights when he was pitching.  At a time when the Royals desperately needed him and their pitching ranks were in shambles (can you say Runelvys Hernandez?), the Royals allowed Greinke to take time away from baseball, to put his life back together.  If anyone has a question about this, let me answer it – the Royals are Zack’s home town team.

You may remember Jim Eisenreich who played with the Twins, Royals, Phillies, Marlins, and Dodgers in the 80’s and 90’s.  Jim suffered from Tourette Syndrome (TS) and was forced to take about three years away from baseball to receive treatment for his disease.  TS is misunderstood by many, and often misinterpreted as an attitude problem which can result in the victim becoming isolated and outcast.  You may also recall it was the Royals who welcomed Eisenreich back into the major league family following his treatment and I clearly remember fans embracing him and rooting for him to succeed.  Jim was so accepted by the community that he made Kansas City his permanent home.  I see similarities between his story and Zack’s.

Zack’s gorgeous and outspoken wife Emily enjoyed her time in Kansas City, and the Greinke’s still own a home in town.  They both grew up in a suburb of Orlando (Apoka = Overland Park), which aside from the palm trees and gigantic amusement parks, and the fact Orlando doesn’t have a professional baseball team, it isn’t really all that different from Kansas City.  There is little doubt the couple feel at home in KC.

Based on what we know about Zack and his condition, it seems reasonable to assume that his family and advisors would encourage him to stay away from the bright lights of the major markets when determining where he’ll play next.  It doesn’t fit with Zack’s personality to be the center of attention, and he’d be constantly hounded in New York, Boston, LA, or even Chicago and Atlanta.

My guess is that Zack has enjoyed playing in the National League which gives him an opportunity to hit and run the bases, so I could see him signing with a “smaller market” team on the senior circuit like St. Louis or the Miami Marlins.  Hopefully, his .143 batting average last season helped to put his dream of being the next Miguel Cabrera to bed, forcing him to focus on the one thing he does better than almost anyone else – pitch.  If so, then an American League team should be on equal footing with a National League team in any bidding war.

You’ve probably figured out by now that I’d like to see Zack wearing a Royals uniform again in 2013.  I realize that many people disagree with my perspective, including some of my fellow writers here at Kings of Kauffman and many of the people who comment below our stories who think it would be a mistake to pursue Zack next year.

If you believe it might be farfetched for the underfunded Royals to afford Greinke, or that he wouldn’t want to return, it might interest you to know that the hosts of the MLB Networks’ Hot Stove Live don’t think it’s a stretch.  On their January 20, 2012 program, they boldly predicted Greinke would return to KC in 2013.  Their reasoning was that Zack and the Glass family have a strong relationship, he and his wife enjoy Kansas City, and the Royals will be poised to field a competitive team in 2013, which would make them attractive to Zack.

I’d like to re-sign Greinke, partially because I like his story.  I almost always root for the guy who overcomes adversity, in whatever form, to succeed.  I’ve personally known people who suffer from the same afflictions as Zack and I discovered that you can’t take this ailment lightly.  It’s real, it impacts lives, and it causes outsiders to question the victim’s judgment and sanity.  But when treated properly and supported by patient friends, family, and coworkers, this sickness can be overcome.

I also know the Royals are two front-line starting pitchers away from having the talent to compete with the best teams in the American League.  With a stable of young and strong pitching arms like Mike Montgomery, Jake Odorizzi, John Lamb, Noel Arguelles, Aaron Crow, and others, I’m relatively confident the Royals can develop one of these starters in-house.  My best guess is that the other will need to come from a trade or free agency.  Who better to fill this gap than with the one that got away, our crazy cousin Zack.

Thanks for visiting Kings of Kauffman. You can stay current on all the Kings of Kauffman content and news by following us on Twitter, Facebook, or by way of our RSS feed.  You can also send your questions to our mailbag at KoKMailbag@gmail.com and follow Alan Barrington on Twitter to be notified each time he posts a story.

-Since it’s hot stove season, one of the offseason radio broadcasts comes from 810 where Joel Goldberg and Jeff Montgomery have been talking Royals baseball. Tonight’s guests were Kevin Goldstein, who discussed Mike Montgomery, Cheslor Cuthbert and others in the Royals system. One choice quote pertained to John Lamb, who Goldstein said could be a “left-handed version of Jeremy Hellickson“. Jeff Francoeur was also on the show and discussed clubhouse comradery and why he won’t join Twitter.

-Jonah Keri wrote a piece on Grantland about the Royals, profiling a handful of previous comeback stories and the different methods and decisions that led to eventual playoff appearances. In light of other teams’ past success, the Royals seem to be closer to the Reds “wait for the kids” plan.

-Finally, Sam Mellinger of the Star weighed in on the Alex Gordon extension speculation, making the clever suggestion that the Royals front-load his contract to provide more roster flexibility for the potential for extensions for other prospects in a few years. He’s also got some additional points on his blog about the Alex Gordon topic.

Before you go, also check out Alan Barrington’s article on the factors that will go into the Royals becoming a playoff team again as well as Paul Thompson’s ranking of the players on the Royals 40 man roster from earlier today.

Thanks for visiting Kings of Kauffman. You can stay current on all the Kings of Kauffman content and news by following us on Twitter, Facebook, or by way of our RSS feed.  You can also send your questions to our mailbag at KoKMailbag@gmail.com.

There’s been a lot of focus on starting pitching improvements for the Royals going into 2012, but the team is seemingly staying pat for the offseason. I haven’t seen any rumors involving any free agent or trade targets lately, so we may well be where the front office wants to start the season. Of course, given that the team tends to make moves without much warning, an acquisition could happen at any point. Still, I feel like we’re at our stopping point.

That being said, I wanted to take a look at how this rotation stacks up to the one we started 2011 with and take some glances at where we could find ourselves following the season.

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Following a dynamic 2010 performance, Lamb opened up in Double A at the ripe old age of 20 years old. A brief stint at Northwest Arkansas in 2010 resulted in seven starts and a 5.45 ERA, but considering that Lamb opened the year at Low A Burlington as a 19-year-old, his struggles in Double A aren’t surprising.

He performed much better in 2011, achieving a 3.09 ERA in 35 innings.

It’s a small sample size because, as you probably knew, the lefty was shut down in June with elbow problems that eventually ended up resulting in Tommy John surgery.

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The Royalman Report, LIVE Sunday at 7 p.m. CST

After a couple of weeks with Troy Olsen out and about, we have a full house again in the Royalman Report studio. Joining myself, Troy, Chris Kamler and Jeff Herr will be Nathaniel Stoltz from FanSided‘s minor league baseball site Seedlings to Stars.

Nathaniel has been doing a top 100 prospects countdown, and many of them have been from the Royals organization. Check out his reports below:

• #90: John Lamb
• #84: Mike Montgomery
• #68: Cheslor Cuthbert
• #57: Yordano Ventura
• #52: Bubba Starling
• #32: Jake Odorizzi

We’ll also cover the winter meetings, trade rumors and other Royals news.

As always, we’ll have our chat room up during the broadcast for any questions and comments and whatever discussion arises. You can also call 1-816-394-9578 and leave a voicemail or join in during the broadcast

The Royalman Report is brought to you by Kelly’s Westport Inn at 500 Westport Road in Kansas City, Missouri.  Tell them the Royalman Report sent you.

Live video feed is after the jump:

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The responses have been varied. Wil Myers is the usual choice, but Bubba Starling is right behind him. Some have suggested Mike Montgomery or John Lamb, while Cheslor Cuthbert has gotten mentions as well. Christian Colon and Clint Robinson have gotten mentions too.

That’s what I was hoping for, actually. The question isn’t intended as a poll to see who most thought was the most talented or best Royals prospect, but more about who was the most vital for starting a franchise. There are so many ways to build a team, so there are many choices for the player to build around.

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Rany looks at age and draft pick success.

The meat of Rany Jazyerli’s article is based on something he wrote on Baseball Prospectus about the  age of high school players when they were drafted. In a Gladwell-ian study, he deduces that those players who are drafted at a younger age out of high school are more likely to turn into stars.

I find it interesting because it raises the concept of diminishing improvement as most players age. That is, a player who is 18 years old will make more improvements (generally) on his way to 19 than he will in the year between 21 and 22.

Rany uses his research to compare Bubba Starling with eighth overall pick in 2011, Francisco Lindor of the Indians. Lindor was 17 when he was drafted and, under the Indians tutelage in instructionals, is drawing rave reviews. Starling is recovering from a quad strain.

Of course, there is more out there:

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Moustakas is a piece of the Royals' young talent. (photo by Gage Matthews)

I hate comparisons in sports. Not all comparisons, mind you, as it’s fun to compare players across eras and such. I just don’t like comparing teams. It always suggests to me that a team can’t be their own selves and have their own identity. Of course, every team is unique and you can’t say one team is the same as another. Making such comparisons always seems to restrain a team to being like another team. I just don’t like it.

So, logically, I’m going to make a loose comparison between teams.

There have been seemingly infinite mentions of the Royals average age this season. According to Baseball-Reference, their average age was 26.04 years in 2011, which incorporates every player that’s been with the team this season. The next closest team was the Cleveland Indians, who checked in at 27.28 years of age. If it wasn’t clear by the players on the field, this is a team full of youth. And those young players gained their experience in preparation for their next season as Kansas City fans hope to see an extreme change in results.

But what does that really mean? Is youth an indicator of the right direction? What does history tell us about the progress of young teams? As you might have guessed, I’m about to give it a look.

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One year and two days ago, his ulnar collateral ligament was replaced – Tommy John surgery.  On Tuesday, he makes his return to the mound in the major leagues.

My immediate thoughts shift to Royals prospect John Lamb, who underwent the same procedure in June.

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When the Royals acquired Felipe Paulino from the Rockies for cash way back in May, my response was this: meh. I didn’t really know much about him and wasn’t too impressed by what I saw statistically. For me, I didn’t see a reason to be upset or excited because, well, he was just another stripped cog in a busted gear system. Of course, he then had to prove me wrong.

After Paulino found himself with a bloated 7.36 ERA as a late-innings reliever after 18 games in 2011, it was fair for the Rockies to designate him for assignment. Perhaps trading Clint Barmes for Paulino was a bad idea for the Rockies, as their second basemen have subsequently been, well, Chris Getz or worse. But their heart was in the right place, as Paulino came to the Royals and has started 14 games, relieved in one, and has arguably been the best starter on the staff.

How is he pitching to accomplish this and what could he mean for the Royals down the line? Well, that’s what I wanted to know.

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Here on FanSided, the central hub of minor league updates is located at Seedlings to Stars and this week they were kind enough to feature Kings of Kauffman in their feature “Harvesting Opinion”.

Specifically, this week, they’re discussing the Royals pitching prospects in light of the following question:

The Royals have had less than stellar starting pitching at the big league level in 2011 and prospect Mike Montgomery has struggled, John Lamb had Tommy John surgery and Chris Dwyer is only now starting to turn it around.  Panic?

The dynamic duo of Nathaniel Stoltz and our own Wally Fish tackle that idea and you can see their responses linked below.

Clipped from: seedlingstostars.com (share this clip)

Stay current on all the Kings of Kauffman content and news by following us on Twitter, Facebook, or by way of our RSS feed.

So let’s catch up a bit and see some solid work by other folks out there:

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5.13

Through 519.1 innings, that’s the cumulative ERA of Royals starters this season.  That includes such immaculate performances as Kyle Davies‘s 7.74 ERA, Sean O’Sullivan‘s 6.57 ERA and a steaming pile of Luke Hochevar Blowup Innings (patent pending).

With hitting prospects rising up the professional ladder, the Royals have hope for the future, but as a pitching staff goes, so goes the team.  A pitching staff may not need to be the Braves of the early ’90s, but they have to be at least competent.

This group is not that – and it has to change for that hope to be realized.

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That means I saw a lot of Roy Williams.  He seemed to have a pattern of pulling in one big recruiting class then taking the next season off, getting roleplayers into the program instead.  Then he’d be right back to getting stars.  Bill Self took over in 2003 and since has brought in strong classes every year.  Maybe the results aren’t there every season, but Self has lost players to the NBA and kept a strong team year after year.  Roy had a few down seasons after strong classes would graduate.

Turning to the Royals, if you’ve followed the franchise for any length of time – and I’ve been a fan since kindergarten – you know that the Royals have been in a rebuilding mode since about 1995.  Blame what you want: bad draft strategy, penny-pinching, plain old bad luck.  The Royals have been bad and for a very long time.

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Now, just over a year removed from Low-A, Lamb faces potential Tommy John surgery.

This setback slows what has been a meteoric rise through the ranks of the Royals farm system, but what could it mean for the player many considered the top Royals pitching prospect heading into 2011?

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For the most part, that’s been the case.  Eric Hosmer is riding a six game hitting streak after an early call-up to the majors.  Aaron Crow, Tim Collins and Louis Coleman are strong arms out of the Royals bullpen after impressing in spring training and, in Coleman’s case, in Omaha.

Danny Duffy has pitched well enough to force the Royals hand and Mike Moustakas has had a great May after a mild April and should be in line for the June promotion everyone expected.

For the most part, the guys who are supposed to be in the spotlight are performing up to that expectation.  Early injuries down the line have hampered the continuing development of other major prospects.  In that light, the Royals biggest asset isn’t just having talent.  It’s having LOTS of talent.

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royalsblog.com

It’s that time again.  Your weekly minor league update has arrived and it has been a very good week for the affiliates.  Wilmington continues to dominate, Kane County is turning things around winning 6 of their last 9, and NWA and Omaha continue to do what they do.  After the Hosmer move the flood gates have opened and we have started to see alot more movement in the minor leagues between all the affiliates.  Another few weeks and we are in June, Super 2 status is no longer a concern and things will really start moving.  Should be an exciting time to be  a Royals fan, hopefully their recent slide gets turned around so they are still in contention when bringing these young ones up.

Where the affiliates stand:

Kane County Cougars (Low A): 15-26 (7th place)

Wilmington Blue Rocks (High A): 23-16 (T-1st place)

Northwest Arkansas Naturals (Double A): 20-16 (2nd place)

Omaha Storm Chasers (Triple A): 23-16 (1st place)

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royalsblog.com

Here it is, your weekly update on how the Royals minor league affiliates are doing.  It was a decent week for the affiliates as Burlington and Northwest Arkansas continue to be top teams in their leagues and Kane County and Omaha have been righting the ship, Omaha especially as their bats are starting to wake up and they are now 8-7.  They have lost a couple of key relievers this week with the promotions of Blake Wood and Louis Coleman but make no mistake, this team still has a lot of pitching talent and will be fine.  Here is where the affiliates stand as of today:

Kane County Cougars – 6-9 (7th place)

Wilmington Blue Rocks – 9-4 (1st place)

Northwest Arkansas Naturals – 7-5 (1st place)

Omaha Storm Chasers – 8-7  (2nd place)

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John Lamb (19) and Tim Smith (24) during pre-game warmups.

As most of you are probably aware, Saturday marked a special event when, following the Royals victory over the Angels, the field became populated with prospects from Double A Northwest Arkansas and Triple A Omaha.

For the crowd who stuck around, the game itself wasn’t quite the epic battle some may have hoped for, but that’s not to overlook the significance of that afternoon.  Somewhere between five and seven thousand fans (that’s a, pardon the pun, ballpark guess) got to see Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Wil Myers, John Lamb, Mike Montgomery and others take the field at Kauffman Stadium.

The stands were abuzz before the game with those lingering being invited to come down into the field levels to find seats.  Fans pointed out Myers and Christian Colon.  Mario Lisson came over to say hello to some fans.

As for the game itself:

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With starters starting to go deeper into games and numerous candidates vying for bullpen roles, players like Dwyer, Lamb and Smith are shifting to get more innings in minor league camp.

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Primarily, these decisions are how to continue to build an already impressive farm system, but as time goes on, his decisions will shift to include when to bring these prospects into the big leagues.

Because of baseball’s arbitration system, there’s a delicate balance between bringing up a player who is probably ready to contribute as a major leaguer and managing their service time.  You probably hear that referenced a lot, but what does it mean?

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I set out with the goal of covering our full list of 25 prospects here at Kings of Kauffman this month and ended up finishing with our number one prospect Eric Hosmer on Sunday.

You can view the entire list of 25 (with an honorable mention) along with profiles on our 2011 Prospect Rankings page.

I also wanted to look at the way our rankings break down.  As I compiled the list and wrote about each player, I noticed a few trends that I found interesting and also thought it’d be a good idea to look at the balance of the rankings.

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Rankings:
~ Baseball America: #4
~ Royals Review #5
~ Kevin Goldstein: #2
~ John Sickels: #6 B+
~ Royals Prospects: #5
~ 2010 Kings of Kauffman Rankings: #8

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The Royals crop of minor league players may be the most talented in recent history.  That’s according to Baseball America’s annual prospect rankings, which place nine Royals in their top 100.

Nine prospects from one organization is a record in the 22 years that BA has been doing the top 100.

Who made the cut?  You probably won’t be surprised.

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Rankings:
~ Baseball America: #8
~ Royals Review #6
~ Kevin Goldstein: #6
~ John Sickels: #9 B
~ Royals Prospects: #6
~ 2010 Kings of Kauffman Rankings: #11
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Chris Dwyer destroys some high-A batters.

And that’s just what happened. Something big. The Royals’ farm system was ranked number one overall by Baseball America and Keith Law. It was widely expected to happen, but it’s sort of a surreal feeling that it actually came to pass. When you start reading about what that ranking has meant for past teams, it starts to hit you that it could be something huge.

And it should be. Every team with the best farm system (as ranked by Baseball America) from 2001-2010 went to the playoffs, League Championship Series, or World Series within five years. That means that by January of 2016, the Royals should have at least one playoff appearance. That means a winning record (this isn’t the NFL, come on) and at least a second place finish in the division. That means success like I’ve barely known in my lifetime. That might even mean that Rob Neyer becomes a fan again.

That’s all well and good, but isn’t there the slightest bit of concern that this isn’t as locked-in as the past would suggest? With Dayton Moore’s track history of questionable major league signings in mind, I started looking into what acquisitions those successful teams had to make in order to get where they were. This is what I found.
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Kansas City has the top farm system in baseball.  That’s according to Baseball America.

“Okay, fine,” you say.  ”But we had a hunch about that in June, hoped it was true in July and knew it would be that way by August.”

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that’s all true, but the fun part is a little bit of bonus prospect love.

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It didn’t disappoint.

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Luke Hochevar, doin' his thing

By now its fairly well known that our starting rotation next year isn’t going to be very good.

We’re staring down a rotation where Luke Hochevar, Kyle Davies, Sean O’Sullivan and Vin Mazzaro are locks and the fifth starter is still up in the air.

As for our set in stone guys, Hochevar’s likely the best out of all of them and our Opening Day starter. “The Hoch” like many Royals, is big on potential. He was, of course, a star at Tennesee and the number one pick in the 2006 draft and he’s been bred for a high rotation spot since then. However, his career is pockmarked with injuries and underachievement. Hochevar only mustered 17 starts last year while dealing with an injury in his throwing shoulder. Otherwise, his performance and numbers have been shaky at best. In four years, he’s averaged a beyond mediocre 5.60 ERA and a far below average 78 ERA+, but not all of his stats are terrible.

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That being said, and after a long day of helping Christmas shoppers, I’m going to share the things I found interesting out in the Royals world over the past couple of days. But first, a fun story.
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It’s not a surprise why the Naturals were selected. Led by Mike Moustakas until July and then by Eric Hosmer (not to mention Texas League Triple Crown winner Clint Robinson), the Naturals were the most loaded minor league team in the most loaded system in the game today. Up and coming prospects Johnny Giavotella, Salvador Perez and pitchers Danny Duffy, Everett Teaford, Mike Montgomery and John Lamb were among the featured prospects in Arvest Ballpark this season.

Congratulations to the Naturals and if you’re on Twitter, send a congrats to Naturals GM Eric Edelstein (@EricBaseball).

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Crediting a “willingness to spend large amounts of money in the draft and a solid player-development system” the Royals enjoy the deepest and most talented minor league system in baseball.  This distinction was one that Royals fans who follow the minors has been expecting since somewhere around May or June, but the validation feels good, doesn’t it?

In what must have been a difficult decision, Eric Hosmer was selected as the top prospect in the Royals system.
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