Two Critical Truths For These Royals

I told myself not to watch last night’s game. The Royals were traveling back home after a dramatic and emotional win. The Royals were  starting 4A pitcher, Liam Hendriks, against the Red Sox best pitcher, Clay Buchholz.

I was right.  I should have taken the night off, because the Royals sure did. As bad as Liam’s start was, and as lame as their bats still are, the Royals could have won that game had they not kicked and thrown the ball all over the park. Of course, all is forgiven if they tally off 3 straight against the Red Sox. That quest starts tonight, and it’s weight lies on the slender shoulders of the team’s most critical player, Yordano Ventura.

Truth #1

Yordano Ventura is now the most important Royal.

Ventura and Duffy have been the two most critical players on this roster all year. The Royals decided not to get a power hitting right fielder last off-season, investing those dollars in their bull-pen, and Bruce Chen. They also were expecting either Ventura or Duffy, or both, to “arrive”.  Two out of three is not bad. The bull-pen is the team’s bed-rock, and these two young guns have allowed a punch-less team to compete for the American League Central.

* In no way are Ventura and Duffy better than James Shields. The point is that Shields was and is a known and expected commodity. It was critical they “get it right” on some risks.  Risks like these two, young  pitchers, like Bruce Chen, like the bullpen. Also to be noted.  In no way does the success of the bull-pen and of Ventura and Duffy excuse not getting a bat capable of hitting 30 home runs*

Well one gun, for now, is down. Duffy will return, but we don’t know when and we can’t even guess at what level.  The Royals need Ventura to not only hold steady, but step up and be worthy of a  3^rd slot in the rotation for the season’s close.  This is a huge start. Ventura’s performance tonight should establish expectations for his season’s final push, and, quite possibly, that of the Royals.

Truth #2.  Billy Butler need s chance to hit every day.

Billy Butler has become the designated elephant in the room. The Royals desperately need offense and their most accomplished hitter is now a bench player. The Royals went on a tear after Hosmer was injured, while Butler played first base. Butler cooled dramatically just before Hosmer returned, and booted a few plays in the field. This made it easy to re-insert Hosmer right back at first base. Since Hosmer has come back, Butler has been 2 for 25. That is real bad.

As bad as that was, I expected Butler would still get the majority of time back at DH, and play some first against left-handed pitching. That’s not what’s happening at all.

Butler is riding the pine. Hosmer is playing a very bad first base and not driving the ball. Josh Willingham puts together some nice at bats, but he’s batting .224 with a .766 OPS.  He’s an ok addition to the line-up, but not great.

I know defense is one of the team’s hallmarks, but can’t Willingham play right field almost as well as Nori Aoki a couple of times a week? Hosmer is not a good hitter right now. What’s Hosmer’s upside at the plate right now? He may hit some singles against right-handed pitchers?

Butler did himself and his team no favors by hitting poorly most of the season. During the small portion of the year when Butler was hitting, he squawked way too much about how playing in the field was so important to his hitting. Really Billy? You suddenly must play first base to hit at the level you always did as a DH? Making comments like that when you know the team’s regular first baseman is about to return is selfish.

My guess is that Butler was tired of playing by a different set of Ned Yost rules than everyone else.  My opinion is that Butler does play by a different set of rules, but has handled that fact very poorly.  The second he was playing well and had any leverage, he decided to put his manager in an awkward place, as well as his team nemesis, Eric Hosmer. Not the right thing to do, and I understand why Yost may not appreciate it. But you know what? I don’t give a f*ck.

Yost and Moore will have the off-season to clean up this passive soap opera.  I hope this soap opera’s finish excludes both Butler and Hosmer, but right now, it’s about this season.

This team, right now, desperately needs hitting. Butler is this team’s most established hitter. Butler needs a chance to hit tonight, and in every game the rest of the season. It shouldn’t have taken Josh Willingham‘s soar groin for Butler to start tonight, but it did.  The Royals need a hot Butler and Gordon to win this division.  That can not happen with one of them on the bench, even when Willignham’s feeling better.  If Yost’s pride, gut, or stubbornness gets in the way of this obvious tactical decision, Royals fans will lament that Moore didn’t jettison Yost like Milwaukee did in 2008. Let’s just hope Billy gets out of this dog-house, and we don’t even have to go there.