KC Royals: A counter for the pessimism towards the future

“The Royals aren’t even close to competing again”

To start this one, we have to be on the same page of what we mean by “close.” In personal, real-life terms close refers to you being within reaching distance of something. According to Dictionary.com, one meaning they give is  “very near to”. But how do we measure that in baseball terms?

In the framework of which we are working within when it comes to a team’s future success, I’m rolling with “close” referring to two years. While two years can feel like a lifetime or seem like it’s no “very near to”, in baseball terms, it really doesn’t seem to be unrealistic.

Did he just say the Royals will be competing again in two years?!

Yes, I believe the Royals will be competing again in two years. Before you click away or start throwing things, let me explain.

The KC Royals built a championship team by doing something that was considered “non-traditional”. They build a team that was elite at base running, defense, and relief pitching. The joke was to just get to the seventh inning with the lead. If they had the lead, the game was over because the bullpen and defense shut everything down.

Look at what they are currently doing. Again.

They have a core of pitchers who are excelling at each level they’ve been in and have taken full advantage of Spring Training so far, position players who cause havoc on the basepaths and are above average defensively, and they have the Number 4 pick in this year’s draft where they can get another top-end pitcher or a position player that has the makings of rising through the system quickly.

The biggest difference between this wave and the last is this one seems to have both bullpen and starting rotation arms rolling with it. When you look at the current make-up of the team and the direction they are going, it is hard to believe they will continue to struggling and losing 90-100 games a year much longer.

“The Royals aren’t signing anyone in free agency”

While we know they have signed people in free agency, they haven’t signed a big named player. Nor should they just yet. Maybe even at all.

Signing a free agent just to sign one is the easiest way to get yourself into a bad situation. Due to the Royals historically not signing players to big contracts, Alex Gordon’s four years, $72 million is the franchise record, they haven’t really had the problem of inflated contracts on the books. Just because the Royals have new ownership doesn’t mean that should change either.

When looking in free agency, teams have to ask themselves two questions. One, do they “need” a player in a certain position? Two, can they obtain a better player via trade instead?

When looking at “needs” for the Royals this year, they really don’t need anything. Meaning, we are aware of how this year is most likely going to go, so why spend big money? We also don’t fully know what the Royals wave is going to look like. We can speculate and have a pretty good idea, but this year is going to be a lot of test trials to see who sticks, who doesn’t, and who could be used as potential trade bait.

Which leads to trade ideas. The KC Royals made this move in 2013 when they traded for James Shields and Wade Davis. They saw a “need” that would be better filled via trade, so they sold off some big named pieces to obtain the best player for what they needed.

Throughout the year, the Royals will hopefully find that spot on the team that they need improvement in and evaluate the best way to fill that need. That might actually be the one thing we should be watching throughout this year and offseason.

Ownership questions

This is probably the one that really hits the ears funny when you say it out loud. Especially since John Sherman hasn’t even been the team’s owner for one MLB Regular Season baseball game yet. How can we question someone’s intentions or what they’ve done when they have owned the team for less than six months?

We don’t know much of anything when it comes to how Sherman will operate the team, much less how much money he will deem to be “too much”. Therefore, we should hold off on speculations for right now. While the Gordon and Maikel Franco deals aren’t “flashy” or long-term, that doesn’t mean that this is now the KC Royals’ future when it comes to free agency.

Sherman seems like a person who has a good sense of where the Royals currently are, and this offseason shows that. He isn’t coming in and trying to be flashy, rather he is coming in and being realistic. As fans, that’s all we can ask for right now.

Final thoughts

The way the KC Royals are currently constructed, they have a lot of promise. We can simply look at the numbers and deem this team to be awful. Losing 100+ games should bring some criticism with it, especially in back-to-back years. However, we also have to be realistic with what the Royals actually have going for themselves before we claim the team to never be in contention again for a long time.

They have pitching knocking on the door, both bullpen and rotation. With Brady Singer, Jackson Kowar, Daniel Lynch, Kris Bubic, Jonathan Bowlan all pushing for a chance to start. Then Tyler Zuber, Josh Staumont, Richard Lovelady, Austin Cox, Jake Newberry, and actually many more pitchers seemingly destined to make a jump to the big leagues in the bullpen. When you look at what they have done and can potentially do, that has to provide you with some juice.

Then you look at the potential players in the field. You’ve got Khalil Lee, Nick Heath, Kyle Isbel, Bobby Witt Jr., MJ Melendez, Erick Pena on different levels within the system, but all difference makers. This doesn’t already include the havoc that Adalberto Mondesi, Nicky Lopez, and Whit Merrifield cause offensively and defensively, the power Jorge Soler has channeled, and the return of Salvador Perez.

Not to mention, the KC Royals have the Number 4 pick in the MLB Draft this year.

They could potentially get another front-of-the-line pitcher (Asa Lacy) or an overall difference-maker in Austin Martin, Spencer Torkelson, or Nick Gonzales, depending on how the draft plays out.

While the White Sox, Tigers, and Twins all seem to be close to peaking in potential, that shouldn’t dictate whether or not the Royals make a push too. Contending for the playoffs doesn’t mean they have to win the Central. With the potential new layout for the playoffs, that could benefit the Royals and other teams feeling like they are close to contending as well.

With the way the KC Royals are developing, they have a strong chance of being a solid all-around team for the next six years. The last three years of drafting has been pretty solid for the Royals, and a good chunk is developing on the same timeline.

So before we deem the KC Royals doomed for years to come, or that they don’t have a chance at competing, let’s be real with what they have coming in the near future. They have above-average pitching, above-average defense, above-average baserunning, and roughly average offense. Seems like we’ve heard this story before, don’t you think?