KC Royals: Ned Yost Is Manager Of The Year Candidate

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May 17, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals third basemen Mike Moustakas (8) warms up during batting practice prior to the game against the New York Yankees at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

The KC Royals baseball craft doesn’t stop at defense. They play the entire game that way. Cleanup hitter Eric Hosmer has a sacrifice bunt. Former minor-league slugger Mike Moustakas has learned to bunt for hits against the shift. Overall, the team ranks 4th in major-league baseball in scoring runners from third base with less than two outs at a 50 percent rate.

Yost deserves some credit here as well. He chose to bat Mike Moustakas second in the batting order despite Moose’s career on base percentage (OBP) of .298. Armchair sabermetrics guys screamed, but they strangled on those objections as Moustakas has hit .342/.396/.503 as the team’s no. 2 hitter.

That’s not the only odd lineup decision Yost made this year. He installed Alcides Escobar as the leadoff hitter, despite a career OBP of .300, and made Lorenzo Cain the no. 3 hitter despite a career slugging percentage of .396.

Lo and behold, by asking his players to fit different roles, Yost closed holes in their games. Escobar’s OBP has improved to .331 this season, while Cain has shown more pop with three home runs and a .438 slugging percentage.

Ned Yost has his players performing at the high end of their potential. Further, the entire KC Royals team is playing selfless baseball. The credit for creating this atmosphere has to go to manager Ned Yost.

At the season’s quarter pole, Ned Yost has been the best manager in major league baseball.

Next: Royals Starting Rotation Joins the Party

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