April 20, 2013; Boston, MA USA; Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Kelvin Herrera (40) pitches during the eighth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

The Royals can’t seem to score lately so the obvious fix is to … fix the bullpen.

Kelvin Herrera was optioned to Omaha on Thursday afternoon. To replace him on the roster, the Royals called up right-hander Louis Coleman from Omaha.

Herrera had struggled with command and the long ball in 2013 at the big league level. Entrusted with the setup role at the start of the year, he’s given up a gaudy eight homers in 20.1 innings pitched after giving up just four in 84.1 in 2012. He’s given up homers on 36.4% of his fly balls this year.

While his strikeouts are up (more batters are swinging and missing), he’s also walked more and at times his command has been off, especially with his fastball. Despite struggles, Herrera’s ERA sits at a not-good but not-catastrophic 4.87.

Yost said Herrera lost confidence: “In the back of his mind, that thought of giving up a homer every time he threw a fastball was there.”

— Bob Dutton (@Royals_Report) May 23, 2013

It should be better though, and Herrera may need a mental break to refine his control and make any adjustments. He’s given up more fly balls and less fly balls than he had in 2012 and early guesses by the Royals suggested he may have been tipping his pitches.

Mar 5, 2013; Surprise, AZ, USA; Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Louis Coleman (31) pitches against the Oakland Athletics during the seventh inning at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Taking his spot on the active roster is Louis Coleman. Despite 12.1 strong innings in spring training and a respectable major league resume, Coleman was a victim of roster logistics and sent to Omaha in favor of J.C. Gutierrez, who was out of options. In 26.1 innings for Omaha, Coleman had a 1.03 ERA and a 30/9 K/BB ratio. As a big leaguer, Coleman has a career 3.25 ERA in 110.2 innings pitched, all out of the bullpen.

Coleman is the 28th player used by the Royals in 2013 and the 14th pitcher. This is the first performance-based move the Royals have made after Will Smith came up as the 26th man for two double headers and David Lough was called up to replace Jarrod Dyson when he went on the disabled list.

Happy trails. Photo Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-US PRESSWIRE

That meant someone had to drop off the active roster and Mitch Maier was the odd man out.

Now the Royals could have optioned Jarrod Dyson or Jason Bourgeois back to Omaha, but instead, chose to designate Maier for assignment, meaning they have ten days to trade him, place him on waivers or release him. If he clears waivers he could be assigned to the minors, but may be able to decline it based on service time.

It’s really best for Maier at this point to head elsewhere. He hasn’t done well this year, but he’s also hardly seen action in 2012. He’s played five games start to finish since April, mostly being a late-inning replacement on defense or as a pinch-runner. That’s just been his role. The Royals want to see what they have in Dyson and Bourgeois has a track record against left-handed pitching that they feel can be leveraged, meanwhile Lorenzo Cain should return (at some point) and Wil Myers is tearing up Triple A.

There just wasn’t much use for Maier. Perhaps he ends up somewhere else where he can find some playing time. If so, his career Royals line will be .248/.327/.344 with 10 homers in 360 games.

That kind of line isn’t much to be upset about, but Maier filled in admirably in 2010 and 2011 when pressed into action and has always been accepting of his role. So while he’s somewhat of an internet cult hero for some Royals fans, it’s the logical move to make.

The 40 man roster now stands at 38.

May 21, 2012; Bronx, NY, USA; Kansas City Royals second baseman Chris Getz (17) singled to center during the fourth inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

Omaha beat Albuquerque, 8-7. After the Isotopes scored four runs in the top of the 4th inning to tie the game, Omaha scored a run in the bottom of the 5th inning and held on.

The Storm Chasers collected 14 hits, with five players having multi-hit nights. Chris Getz went 2-for-4, as he is rehabbing once again. Wil Myers went 2-for-4 as he continues to play centerfield.

Louis Coleman picked up the save, as he allowed just one hit over 3.1 innings of relief. He struck out six and threw 29 of his 39 pitches for strikes.

NW Arkansas was pounded 13-7 by Corpus Christi. Naturals starter Noel Arguelles lasted just 1.2 innings and allowed six runs (five earned).

The Naturals did collect 11 hits, with four players having multi-hit games. The newest members, Brian Fletcher and Alex McClure each had two hits. Fletcher picked up his first Double-A RBI. Michael Liberto made his Double-A debut and went 1-for-1 with two runs scored in replacing Rey Navarro (who was 2-for-2) in the 8th inning.

Wilmington lost a heartbreaker, 1-0 to Lynchburg. The game was scoreless until the top of the 9th inning when Nick Rogers allowed two straight singles and a sac fly to drive in the game’s only run.

The loss ruined the solid start by Yordano Ventura, who struck out ten over 5.2 innings. He allowed just three hits.

Kane County lost the series finale to Burlington, 5-0. The Cougars collected just four hits, with Jack Lopez picking up two of them. He also stole two bases.

Bubba Watch: Bubba Starling went 1-for-2 with his first two professional RBIs in Burlington’s 6-4 loss. He also committed his first error in centerfield.

With how the Royals starting pitching has been at times this season we’ve seen multiple moves with pitchers going to and from Omaha. The Storm Chasers begin a homestand on today so at least Adcock won’t be playing planes, trains and automobiles like he did in getting to Arlington this week.

Nate Adcock was the tough luck loser last night and this morning was sent back to Omaha. Photo Credit: Denny Medley-US PRESSWIRE

After last night Adcock has a 2.51 ERA in four appearances and a 0-1 record with the Royals. Mazzaro, who picked up the game one win against Texas, had a 4.50 ERA in two games. Both had seen more regular work in the Omaha rotation.

As of this morning Teaford is 2-0 with a 1.06 ERA in 17 innings pitched with three starts with the PCL champions. Coleman only has nine innings of work in triple-A in 2012 in five appearances with one start but did sport a 2.89 earned run average.

For the bullpen, the move will add a long lefty while subtracting a right handed pitcher.

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And I guess, that is where the analysis of these moves should stop.

As Royals fans, we’re all lucky. Not lucky that we get to cheer on a winning team mind you, but lucky that we’re all part of what has to be the most engaged and impassioned fan base throughout baseball. (As Michael Engel wrote about here)

And because of that we often argue with one another over moves and decisions that are made for a baseball team that only amounts to being a really bad one. Maybe this year will be different, maybe next year will be different, but all along the way we’ll have each other to read, discuss, debate, argue, and get mad at. Sometimes it’s fun, sometimes it’s productive, but most of the time, it’s just all of our angst to get the damn season started already. And to see some wins, for a change.

So when I originally sat down to write this piece I wanted to snipe at the fact that yes, indeed, Chris Getz is going to get lots of playing time (still accomplished that, actually) and 12 freaking pitchers are being carried without Louis Coleman being one of them. But I just don’t have it in me tonight.

The move to send Coleman to Triple-A, while still inducing eye-rolls and head shakes, isn’t really as frustrating as some of the things we as fans have had to deal with in the past. It’s simply a “meh” move stuck at the end of a series of “whatever” moves. It’s been a long offseason. (#yuni’d)

The thing is, now, even though there are still plenty of reasons to believe this “Mission” won’t really take place for another year, at least we’ll get a full season to watch Eric Hosmer swing, Alcides Escobar play short, Alex Gordon wear a uniform, Billy Butler not be clutch while getting on-base a ton, and Jeff Francoeur smile. And for this night, and maybe this night only, I’m okay with that.

I want to get worked up over Louis Coleman and Johnny Giavotella being sent down and having Bruce Chen‘s 86 mph fastball start opening day – cause let’s be honest, that’s kind of my place here – but frankly I just don’t care.

I’m ready for the season to start. I’m sure most of you are too.

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Alcides Escobar is a focus for the Royals Front Office. (Photo Credit: Jake Roth-US PRESSWIRE)

With all this talk of extensions for young players, I really got to thinking hard about who comes first in this arrangement. Who’s the most important piece to sign? What positions are most necessary? Who has both the skill and the attitude that makes them an integral part of the puzzle going forward?

We already know the first answer. Salvador Perez was signed early last week to a nice 5-year, $7 million contract with a few option years tacked on. It’s the classic case of a low-cost, high-reward extension. It’s been covered extensively, so I don’t want to focus too much on that.

Instead, I just want to think about who comes next.

The young players in camp have made the fanbase put quite a bit of emphasis on signing some long-term. There are the obvious ones — Eric Hosmer — and the ones you think you want, though you want to see a bit more from them first — Mike Moustakas and Danny Duffy. But there are always some that you forget about before you realize they’re gone.

Well, yesterday I bluntly said (on Twitter) that I thought Alcides Escobar should be a focus. When some followers presented legitimate cases why that shouldn’t be so, I sat and thought about it a little more. And then I made up a list of the order I’d want guys signed in, which, oddly enough, follows the early part of the Royals’ desire for extensions (according to Buster Olney of ESPN):

Alex Gordon
Alcides Escobar
Eric Hosmer
Danny Duffy
Mike Moustakas
Greg Holland
Aaron Crow
Johnny Giavotella
Louis Coleman
Lorenzo Cain

We’ll see where that takes us. The first disclaimer is that 2012 performances will obviously juggle this list a bit. Should Cain be a rockstar in centerfield, he’ll vault up the list. Should Holland throw it in the dirt every time, he’ll go down. It’s all relative. Still, I think the first five are set in stone for me.

Gordon is obvious. I’m not going to belabor that point or say again what’s already been said.

The case for Alcides Escobar is much like that for Sal. He plays great defense at a premium defensive position. That alone gets guys long-term contracts. So far in his career, his bat (.252/.294/.339) has been less than stellar, not quite matching his production (.298/.353/.409) at AAA Nashville (Go Sounds!). I can’t really say that his production will shoot through the roof once he gets more time since he’s had two full seasons in the majors, but he did take a small step forward in 2011. Should he take another one, well, there won’t be any debate. And since we’ve given Sal a deal without knowing for sure if he’ll be a great batter or a subpar one, I’m not really sure why Escobar gets the shaft in that respect. He’s a great defensive player at a premium defensive position. A Sal-like contract wouldn’t be out of the question at all, if the Royals could get it.

So, given those three, the Royals would have two core pieces of their defense and a (hopefully) strong piece of their offensive locked up alongside Billy Butler.

I would think the Hosmer debate is obvious, though some may question why he’s not higher. To be frank, I believe the Royals will look for that perfect opportunity to sign him, whenever that is. With Boras in tow, he’ll probably wait until he’s garnered MVP votes or become an All-Star or whatever the case is. So, again, it just comes down to when the Royals find the right time to get him. And they’ll likely have an easier job with Escobar than with Hosmer.

For Duffy and Moustakas, they need to produce. Reports out of camp are good for both of them, from what I’ve seen, and we’ll see if that translates to the regular season. I love both of these guys, but if they don’t take a step forward over a full season, it’ll be hard to justify the contract extensions right now. In Moustakas’ case, Cheslor Cuthbert looks like he could be the incumbent should Moustakas fall, and that provides some insurance that might make it more difficult to go for that extension. Just depends on how the Royals feel about it. And Duffy’s case is that he could be a great pitcher for the Royals for many years and seems to want to be a Royal for many, many years, but he still has to produce. With some issues with other lefties in the organization right now, he’s got the limelight, but should they jump forward and pass him, it gets tougher.

The rest of the list is sort of all over the place. I feel like we need to anchor down the bullpen, a la the Joakim Soria contract years ago, if these guys can stay strong. Holland, Crow, and Coleman all have legitimate cases to stick around for years, and if they throw out another good season, they may end up doing just that.

As for Giavotella and Cain, both are guys that need to hit to stay. In Cain’s case, his defense can save him a bit. In Gio’s case, he needs to hit since his defense isn’t quite as strong. Cain will reach arbitration sooner, but locking up that center fielder for years, should he play well, could be as strong an interest to the Royals as Sal and Escobar are. Like with Gio, we just have to wait and see what he does this year. For a lot of these guys, a lot rides on their ability to stay in the game and play well in 2012.

Well, that’s what I think about it. Like I say, that list can get juggled depending on performance. When Wil Myers hits, he’ll slot in somewhere, but I don’t think that’ll be extremely soon.

Feel free to tell me why I’m crazy or how you’d rank them in the comments below.

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July 18, 2011; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals pitcher Louis Coleman (46) delivers a pitch against the Chicago White Sox during the seventh inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-US PRESSWIRE

These numbers just aren’t working out. It’s frustrating me because no matter how bad some of the Royals pitching staff has been, I’d like to keep the ones who have potential. So many of them have potential, but there’s simply not enough room.

Ned Yost has indicated that he would like to carry 12 pitchers and four bench players into the season. That means five starters and seven relievers, but however I slice it, a potentially valuable commodity gets left out. Actually, more than one.

It’s an unusual feeling for Royals fans, to feel like we have too much talent for one roster. I made a comment the other day on Twitter that the 2012 Omaha Storm Chaser bullpen might be the second best bullpen in baseball.

Here’s how it breaks down. I believe the five holdovers from last year’s starting rotation will win their jobs back; that leaves seven spots in the bullpen. Joakim Soria, Jonathan Broxton, Greg Holland, and Jose Mijares are all pretty much locked in. That leaves three spots for Aaron Crow (who Yost has indicated will stay in the bullpen if he can’t make the rotation), Tim Collins, Louis Coleman, Luis Mendoza, Blake Wood, and Kelvin Herrera. The other candidates seemingly have no shot—and frankly, I don’t think Wood’s got much of a shot either.

Aaron Crow. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-US PRESSWIRE

Six guys for three spots. Each guy brings something a little different to the table. Collins is another lefty. Crow has great strike out potential. Coleman’s a steady hand with good deception. Mendoza’s got versatility to throw multiple innings and start occasionally. Wood has the power sinker to get ground balls. And Herrera might have the best stuff of all of them. So, who gets left out? And more importantly, what are the ramifications of those decisions.

We have to assume at this point that Crow will get one of the remaining spots. Yost has essentially said as much. He was an All Star in the bullpen, and I think Yost doesn’t want to play with Crow’s confidence by sending him to AAA to work as a starter, which is what I think they should do. At some point, they will have to decide what they have in Crow and give him a chance to be that, whatever it is. If it’s a starter, they have to let him try to be a starter instead of shuffling him back and forth between roles.

Anyway, despite what one lowly, rotund blogger thinks, it looks like the Royals will give one of those bullpen spots to Crow. That leaves two. I’m pretty certain that Yost will want to carry more than one lefty in the pen. That means that as long as Collins isn’t terrible in the spring, he’ll get one of the spots. He was supposedly very effective in the intrasquad matchup, and people are raving about a mechanical adjustment that helped improved his command. We’ll see.

That leaves one spot for three talented pitchers … and Blake Wood (ZING!). Some are not as high on Mendoza as I am (if thinking a guy can excel in a swingman role is being “high” on him). I find value in a pitcher who can move between bullpen and rotation, throw some strikes, keep a team in a game, and who the team doesn’t have to worry about in terms of his future. The Royals can use Mendoza however they want. And he’s out of options, which along with his versatility, is the greatest point in his favor.

I have no answer for who gets the last spot. I don’t think it will be Wood or Herrera because Wood isn’t good enough and both have options. It comes down to Coleman or Mendoza. Coleman pitched very well last year. I like him a lot as a pitcher. But he can’t make a start if the Royals need him to, and he probably can’t take over in the third inning and bridge the gap to the rest of the bullpen with three or four innings of work.

On the flip side, Mendoza isn’t as proven as Coleman. Michael Engel wrote a very scathing critique of Mendoza that pointed out his greatest flaw: he doesn’t strike out many hitters. Consequently, his numbers from AAA look a little deceiving. Coleman, on the other hand does strike guys out.

Ultimately, performance in the spring might decide this conundrum. But if all considered pitch well enough, the Royals have to ask themselves some tough questions. If they choose Coleman over Mendoza, who fills the long relief role? It could be no one, but that might wear out the bullpen quickly. It could be Crow. But he’s never filled that role before, and they have his future to consider.  Also, he spent the last half-season being pretty ineffective. If they choose Coleman over Mendoza, they probably lose Mendoza to the waiver wire.

If they choose Mendoza, they will gamble that he can sustain his performance from last season without the benefit of high strike out numbers.* It’s a pretty risky gamble, made slightly better by the Royals’ good defense. Note please that one of the criticisms of Mendoza is that he won’t be able to maintain his low BABIP from 2011, .268. By contrast, Coleman’s was .246. In fact, looking a little closer at the numbers makes Coleman’s season from last year look a little less shiny (4.30 FIP, 3.92 BB/9, 1.36 HR/9), just like Mendoza.

*I wrote this before Sunday’s game in which Mendoza and Herrera pitched very well.

I’m so torn about this decision, and I don’t even have to make it. Luckily, spring performance should help decide. But I’m going to do the ballsy thing and give my thoughts right now, before seeing a pitch.* If I had the choice to make, and I had to make it right now, I’m taking Mendoza. I think having someone to fill the swingman role is important with such a suspect rotation, and keeping Mendoza gives the Royals the chance to have both pitchers if they need them moving forward—say if Broxton gets traded midseason or someone gets hurt. If Mendoza is ineffective, they can cut him and bring Coleman up without too much damage being done.

*Again, I wrote this before Sunday’s game. Though it wasn’t on television so technically I still haven’t seen a pitch.

Feel free to openly criticize that decision and let me know who you would keep and why.

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Expect to keep seeing this quite a bit in 2012. (Photo Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE)

I’m going to repeat this once more (and for the last time), so if you’ve seen it before, skip ahead. Dayton Moore and the Royals have been busy this offseason. Not busy looking for starting pitchers and not busy looking for new bats. They’ve been busy finding the pieces to finish up their killer bullpen.

But really, there weren’t a lot of moves to be made. The Royals bullpen only increased by two members, as Jonathan Broxton became the new, well, whatever role he’ll supposedly fill and Jose Mijares became lefty insurance. There were lots of rumors about using the Broxton addition to move Joakim Soria and leave Greg Holland to closing, but that’s all in the past. Right now, we’re barely different than last year’s team. Let’s just get a quick recap of where that team stood in several categories with regards to the rest of the American League:

Runs Allowed Per Game: 11th (4.70)
Wins in Relief: 3rd (26)
Losses in Relief: 13th (26)
Save Percentage: 10th (63%)
Holds: 10th (58)
Inherited Runners Scored Percentage: 2nd (25%)
Games Pitched on Zero Days Rest: 2nd lowest (56)
Average Outs Recorded Per Outing: 1st (3.6)

If you have any questions about those rankings, throw them out in the comments. All I know is this paints a very muddled picture. Was the bullpen good or bad? Was it good or bad as a result of how rough the rotation was? Can we really blame the bullpen when they had quite a bit of work over the course of the year due to that rotation?

What it seems like to me is that they did a respectable job with the hand they were dealt. Manager Ned Yost didn’t overwork them too badly, though the consecutive days stat could be biased a bit toward one or two pitchers. I had no idea that they had done so well with inherited runners, but the fact that they allowed that many runs, compiled that many losses, and blew that many saves makes me reconsider my acclaim at their success. Of course, as the season wore on, young arms got tired and handing the ball to the bullpen became less of a sure thing. Nonetheless, how can we think about this bullpen going into 2012? Are they truly killers?

Well, I pulled out three projection systems for 10 pitchers that could (or should) be a part of the 2012 bullpen. I’ll use ZiPS, Bill James, and RotoChamp to get three different perspectives. And I’ll try to show them in a way that’s not totally confusing, using their 2010 and 2011 lines alongside their projections to get an idea of what we’re seeing.

Let’s start with Joakim Soria because, well, who else do you start with when you think of the Royals’ bullpen?

For the most part, projections show a return to form from 2011 and more of what we expect from Soria. And I see no reason to debate that, as he’s shown us he can stick in there when healthy, so let’s leave it at that. Soria is a stable player for the bullpen.

We’ll turn to Jonathan Broxton next.

Broxton’s going to be an interesting one to watch. After being nails for the Dodgers earlier in his career, he started to falter the last couple, including a bruised elbow that sidelined him for most of 2011. Between that and the move to the AL, it’s hard to get a read on how he’ll perform. All signs point to him being healthy for 2012 and ready to pitch for the Royals, however. And all three projection systems show that in their analysis. While they’re more bullish on Broxton than I am (or than I expected them to be), I think we can expect solid numbers from Broxton. And if he can pitch consistently throughout the season, he could be a crucial piece for close games in late innings.

Greg Holland

Everyone expects a little regression from Holland’s ridiculously good 2011 campaign. His BABIP last season was .250, which is plenty low and offsets the 3.77 he found himself with in 2010. Settling at a midpoint seems like a good idea, and that’s what the projections have done. I expect Holland to sit closer to the RotoChamp projection than the others, however, even though their hits/9 is a little low. Holland will still be a crucial piece of the bullpen, but maybe not quite as amazing as he was last season. The battle between him, Coleman, and Broxton for the “set-up role” will be one that could go all season if Holland doesn’t end up replacing Soria as the closer should Soria get injured.*

*Knock on wood. Every piece of wood. Even Blake Wood.

Blake Wood

I’ll be honest and say that I have no idea what to expect from Wood. He was extremely frustrating to see pitch at times, but surprisingly productive at other times. And I guess that just means we should expect something similar to last year. Every projection system shows some amount of regression, but I’d expect Wood to sit around an ERA of 4 and to be neither great nor horrible, providing solid relief when you least expect it and poor relief when you need outs. This all leans on him making the roster, of course, but he should be a likely candidate unless he spoils it for himself in Spring Training.

Louis Coleman

Coleman was the guy that always made me think he was right there the whole time, just about ready to break free, but restrained by his high home run numbers. He still had an amazing season considering he missed almost a month of the season and will be another important piece of the bullpen in 2012. I would guess he can take a step forward on those home runs numbers while staying roughly constant in every other way. Bill James’ projection seems to be the closest for me, showing exactly that. With a step forward in the home run area for Coleman, the back four righties of the bullpen (Soria, Broxton, Holland, and Coleman) should be a formidable set for opposing lineups to face as they try to rally.

Aaron Crow

For whatever reason, Bill James didn’t project Crow, but it doesn’t matter. I see Crow regressing a bit, sticking closer to his late-season numbers than his initial ones, but he can still be an important part of the bullpen. We have some projection issues here, as RotoChamp saw Crow as a starter, but the numbers are similar nonetheless. I think the ZiPS projection is a bit bearish, but Crow should maintain his strikeouts and potentially his walks as well, staying roughly in the same point as he was last year. Like Coleman, if Crow can cut his home run numbers a bit, he’ll make it into that upper tier of relievers. But he’ll still be a useful arm nonetheless. And if they’re thinking about trying him as a starter, he could become a middle relief sort of guy, as Wood might be the only other useful righty candidate for such a role. The prognosis? Still useful, but maybe less of the early Crow and more of the later Crow.

Kelvin Herrera

I’m really intrigued by Herrera’s chances, as he could either go the Jeremy Jeffress route or he could stick as another strong righty reliever. If you’re counting at home, that would mean the Royals would have seven average-to-great righty relievers in their bullpen, so I don’t know if we can count on them all making it. But Herrera has shown strong numbers in the minors, flashing a 1.60 ERA in 2011 across high-A, AA, and AAA before getting a September call-up to Kansas City. He usually strikes out about 9/9 IP, and while that should continue this year, I expect closer to 8/9 IP. Like Wood, Herrera’s case probably hinges on his Spring Training performance, but his existence alone exhibits why the Royals have a good reason to rely on their deep, deep bullpen.

And on to the lefties.

Tim Collins

Collins will be another interesting one, as he seemed to be fatigued by the time the season ended. He pitched in 68 games, eight more than Soria and 11 more than Crow, which likely contributed to that fatigue. And Yost seemed to be content with (over)using Collins no matter his fatigue. Collins has some legitimate competition in Jose Mijares this Spring Training, with Everett Teaford also available, so the team won’t have to rely on him quite as much. Still, more competition is better than less, and Collins will at least have to perform or be sent down, hopefully keeping the bullpen stocked with a capable left-handed reliever.

Jose Mijares

Mijares is a guy that I vouched for when the Royals signed him. It’s definitely good to try many options, and, as I said above, it gives a bit of insurance and competition for Collins. Mijares was a great reliever for the Twins a few years back, but his weight and other issues led to less use and less productivity as the seasons wore on until Minnesota dropped him this offseason. It’s a good flyer to take on a guy that could be a huge boost should he return to form. And if he doesn’t do that, no harm, no foul. Collins and Teaford, plus Mike Montgomery or other lefty prospects, could fill that role.

Everett Teaford

Teaford’s another guy that got some partial projections as a starter, but he should only exist as a spot starter and mostly as a lefty reliever option. He’ll also have to fight his way onto the roster, and he’s probably less likely to make the roster than Collins and maybe Mijares. I think Teaford was a bit lucky last season, but he’s got the ability to put in about what Bill James’ projection shows when the Royals need him. It’s just another sign of the depth this season.

What we can really take from this, as I’ve said before, is that the Royals have considerably more depth and insurance in their bullpen for 2012 than they did going into 2011. There are more players than can ably contribute when needed, and that should make it easier to keep the bullpen performing all year. As some prospects move forward, there should only be more options, allowing for extreme selectivity going forward. Even though Broxton’s contract is only a year, this all points to the team being prepared for a great bullpen for many, many years as they approach the start of their window of competition.

So, while the bullpen was a great point of strength in 2011, it should be as strong or stronger in 2012 given the number of options and the players’ performance in previous seasons. The projection systems are understandably mixed, but even with some of their lower projections, the bullpen will be solid for this season. Considering how they ranked in some categories last season, there’s room for improvement. And there should be improvement.

Of course, the wild card in all of this is new pitching coach Dave Eiland. He may change the pitching strategies of some younger players, and we’ll have to keep track of any changes in performance or style from 2011 to 2012. Just another thing to keep in mind.

Has Moore built a “killer bullpen” for 2012? Well, yes and no. He didn’t add much to build that bullpen. But it also didn’t need a ton of additions to become a killer. Broxton and Mijares should only add depth in two areas where competition and number of options will only help the team to stay in it throughout 2012. And with a rotation that’s questionable and difficult to project, having a strong bullpen with many potential members can only be a good thing.

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Now, I think that’s a fine choice. Chen was arguably the best starter for the Royals this season. What made me think was a post on Twitter from someone this morning, whose Twitter handle and name I don’t recall, that argued for Greg Holland over Chen. And it made my brain start cranking about whether that’s a good argument or not. I’m not sure there’s an easy answer.

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• Royals vs. the Word (Series) – Ryan Wood
• Youth in Revolt: The 2011 Kansas City Royals (June) - Ethan Evans
• Speaking to the Old School Folks - Gage Matthews
• Free Agent Watch: Roy Oswalt - Kevin Scobee
• Five reasons towards 2012 Royal failure - Mitch Hall
• Making a Pitch: Part II (James Shields Edition) - Brett Christie
• So It Goes: Another Baseball Season Passes - Michael Engel
• Negative Space - Ryan Wood
• Ryan Lefebvre – Gone - Michael Engel
• Youth in Revolt: The 2011 Kansas City Royals (July) - Ethan Evans

After a consistent rise through the Royals farm system after signing as a 5th round pick in 2009 out of LSU, Coleman took his 2.16 career minor league ERA to Kansas City with him and produced a successful rookie season.

In 59.2 innings in the big leagues, Coleman’s efforts resulted in a 2.76 ERA and 9.65 K/9. If not for Greg Holland, he may have been the most consistent arm out of the Royals bullpen in 2011.

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It’s just the way life works. It’s the same with religion or politics or science or whatever you want. There are always certain folks that either can’t wrap their minds around a new concept or don’t want to accept that what they’ve believed all this time has been wrong. So, they reject the new information.

I’m not one to tell people what to think. Or, at least I try not to do so. Instead, I want to talk about how to discuss the current Royals with these folks. How do you get across the improvements the team is making and the abilities of some of the players on the field without using newer stats? Well, I gave it a shot…

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Four and a half hours after first pitch, the Royals had won 4-3 in 11 innings.

The key factor in the game was the play of the team’s rookies and some timely outs.

Honestly, the Royals shouldn’t have been in this game.  And yet…

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After giving up eight homers to the Rangers in Arlington, the first game at Progressive Field featured more longballs.  The Indians hit five on Tuesday.  The first three were solo shots and didn’t do much damage, but they were also from the last two spots in the order.

Still, going into the seventh, the Royals were down just 4-3.

Then Luke Hochevar came back out for one more inning.

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For the first seven innings tonight, the Royals seemed resigned to let this one settled into the “50 losses” column.  Then, as has been the case over and over in 2011, they came back to win, scoring the tying and winning runs on a Melky Cabrera hit in the bottom of the ninth.

The win demonstrates the importance of the so-called “little things.”

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The Royals announced today that RHP Louis Coleman (#16 in the Kings of Kauffman Prospect Rankings) will be promoted from Omaha to Kansas City, where he’ll wear 46 on his jersey. He’ll take the place of RHP Kanekoa Texeira, who has been optioned to Omaha.

While it was seemingly a sudden move, the demotion of Texeira makes some sense. Even with an ERA of 2.84, Texeira has given up 13 hits in 6.1 innings so far while compiling a ripe WHIP of 2.526. While he has potential as a solid middle reliever, he has had a rough start to 2011. It’s been considerably worse than his 2010 campaign, so this move makes sense.

Now, about Coleman.

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As expected, Luke Hochevar will be the opening day starter.  Whether or not he’s an ace, he gets the nod on March 31st against the Angels.  Jeff Francis, Bruce Chen and Kyle Davies round out the rotation for the first couple weeks of the season and Vin Mazzaro will be the fifth starter once the Royals need one.

That puts Sean O’Sullivan into a long-relief role to start the season.  With Joakim Soria and Robinson Tejeda as the only true locks in the bullpen, the Royals are going with a 12 man staff (according to Bob Dutton).  That leaves four spots remaining.

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Duffy had made five appearances during spring training, giving up 8 earned runs in 8 innings.  He struggled with his control, walking eight batters but gave up just five hits (though two were homers).  He was discussed as a potential bullpen candidate but should get more seasoning in Triple A.

Chavez gave up two runs in four innings over four appearances, giving up eight hits but walking just one.

The cuts leave 40 players in camp, with 32 of those on the 40 man roster.

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The moves signify the Royals focusing their attention towards opening day after getting a look at prospects and players who might contribute at the big league level in 2011.  They have 42 players in major league camp competing for spots.

The seven non-roster invitees who were sent to minor league camp today were Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, Salvador Perez, Joaquin Arias, Blaine Hardy, Cody Clark and Brett Carroll.

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Nobody has been reported to be in the best shape of their life yet, but I’m sure that’s coming.  My hunch is that Brayan Pena is the first such reference when it happens (and it always happens).

But that’s not important.  Onto the news:

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Rankings:
~ Baseball America: #19
~ Royals Prospects: #17
~ Royals Review #22
~ Kevin Goldstein: 17
~ John Sickels: #13 B-

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The Royals annual FanFest took place Friday and Saturday (with a special preview for season ticket holders on Thursday) in Overland Park, Kansas, featuring games, memorabilia, autograph lines, Q&A sessions and a lot of other exhibits.  I’d never been, so the appeal to me was to first, see what the fuss was about, and second to see if there might be some interesting information passed along.

My verdict: I had a blast hanging around talking baseball with some fellow Royals bloggers and putting faces to some Twitter handles.  I stood around a TV watching the Kansas Jayhawks take on Texas in the first half (before they forgot it was a basketball game) alongside Mike Swanson, a fellow Jayhawk and the Royals VP of Communications and Broadcasting.  Denny Matthews made fun of me.

That’s a pretty excellent day as a fan.  But as for information, there were a few interesting tidbits to pick up throughout the weekend.

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Blake Wood, doin' his thing. (Minda Haas)

Well, it’s that time again. In the final installment, I want to just briefly touch on the major competitors for bullpen spots in Kansas City this year and who to watch for in Spring Training. The new signing of Jeff Francis has cleared up the starting corps picture a bit, so it’s easier to get a look at potential relievers with the rotation filled out.

As you might guess, there are a ton of reliever candidates that will make appearances in the Royals’ Spring Training camp. Just from a passing glance, here’s the total list:

Does that give you enough options? I’ll note that Blaine Hardy has been a partial starter with Omaha, so he might get a pass on relieving. Miner has been both a starter and a reliever with the Tigers and could be in line for a chance at a starting spot if injuries or down performances occur. Guys like Henry Barrerra, Kevin Pucetas, Danny Duffy and Gaby Hernandez might get some looks as potential relievers, at least for a short time. Nonetheless, there are a bunch of options for the bullpen. It’s nice to see so many young guys in the running for spots.
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A look at the pitching staff is here.

The hitters are examined here.

Today, we’ll look at who should fill those vacant spots and why.
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Mike Moustakas earned the top rank in the list after leading the minor leagues in homers over two levels (despite missing the first two weeks of the season, even).  Eric Hosmer came in right behind him at #2 after ripping apart Carolina League pitchers and continuing the dominance in the Texas League.  Mike Montgomery finished the trifecta and was joined by Aaron Crow who came in at #6 (despite a demotion in midseason – BA likes his long-term potential).

Reliever Louis Coleman was ranked #16, so the Royals have a quarter of the rankings in their possession.  Additionally, Baseball America noted that Danny Duffy and John Lamb would have made the list as well, but they hadn’t thrown enough innings to qualify.  Clint Robinson, who won the Triple Crown in the Texas League, was omitted with the note that he’s not viewed so much as a prospect but more of an extra bat.  I’ll add that he’s also old for his level and could benefit from a new challenge in Triple A.

Still, looking over the level of talent at the Double A level this year, it reinforces the idea that while the Royals are close to contending, it’s still about two years from really starting to take shape.  It also means that next year’s Pacific Coast League rankings may be littered with Royals as well.

I hope that’s the case.

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So in 2010, what players will we see in KC?  Let’s take a look:
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We’re just past two weeks past his 20th birthday, and John Lamb has been promoted from High A Wilmington to Double A Northwest Arkansas.  This follows an earlier midseason promotion, as he was advanced from Low A Burlington to Wilmington back in May.
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Clearly, he’s rebounding in a big way which presents the question – is he ready for Double A? Moreover, even if he is ready, should he be promoted?
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In honor of the signing deadline, I thought it would be a good time to check in on how some of the other Royals 2009 draft picks are faring in the minors.   (more…)