KC Royals: Dayton Moore will be judged on winter moves

How a new starter performs for the KC Royals will figure prominently in grading Dayton Moore.

For Dayton Moore and the Royals, much is riding on the left arm of Mike Minor. The 33-year old veteran of nine big league seasons, including one with the Royals, fits two of the club’s needs heading into 2021: he’s an accomplished southpaw who completes the rotation, and he’s been around long enough to guide the club’s young pitchers.

Minor’s acquisition is important to Moore’s continuing vitality as KC’s general manager. His career 71-66, 3.98 record is serviceable but doesn’t place him among the game’s elite hurlers, some of whom Moore didn’t pursue, or couldn’t land, this winter. If Minor pitches and mentors well, Moore will grade favorably; if Minor flops, many will blame Moore for not spending more to obtain an ace, although it’s improbable that Trevor Bauer had KC on his list.

The general manager won’t be on quite the same hook if Greg Holland doesn’t repeat last season’s rebound 3-0, 1.91 performance. Hopes were high, but expectations low, for the former Kansas City closer when he rejoined the club last winter; even coming off his resounding comeback campaign, it won’t shock anyone if inconsistency returns to plague the 35-year old Holland. If it does, the Royals have Josh Staumont and Scott Barlow, and talented newcomer Peyton Gray lurks at Omaha.

Nor should Moore be blamed if Brady Singer or Kris Bubic struggle. Both debuted in 2020 and, while their seasons weren’t stellar, each aptly demonstrated why they’re held in such high esteem throughout the game. And while Singer and Bubic now have a taste of major league pitching and life, the season was short and that taste just a morsel. Under the circumstances, pedestrian sophomore seasons can be excused.

How Moore answers outfield questions will be critical to his evaluation as KC Royals’ GM.

Dayton Moore continues, without success, to look for a new lefthanded power bat. The most logical destination for such a find, if he’s found, is the opening in left field. The Royals have plenty of internal candidates, led by Franchy Cordero, with Nick Heath and Khalil Lee as other lefty-hitting possibilities.

With the field of free agents narrowing, the best case scenario is Moore signing an established lefthanded bat (Eddie Rosario, Joc Pederson and Marwin Gonzalez—also a switch hitter—are still available); the second best is that Cordero, who possesses more power than Heath and Lee, succeeds.

The worst case, of course, is that Moore fails to land a suitable free agent, Cordero doesn’t pan out at all, and left field remains a sore spot. Moore will be criticized for an unsuccessful search, for obtaining Cordero in the first place, and for not finding an answer.

Moore’s biggest concern, however, may be Michael A. Taylor, the speedy but light-hitting outfielder he signed in late November. Taylor certainly seems by all accounts to be the KC brass’ first choice for center field, but expecting him to suddenly hit well may be expecting too much. Signing Taylor was a surprise, and promoting him as a top center field choice could backfire on Moore. If it does, the general manager will have to answer for it.

The KC Royals’ general manager will be judged in part on how two infield moves turn out.

Dayton Moore’s apparent solution to the first base problem that’s puzzled the Royals since Eric Hosmer left may be the best move of his winter spent trying to improve the club. The acquisition of Carlos Santana has more to do with his excellence at the position than any discomfort KC had with Hunter Dozier after he took over at first last year.

Bringing aboard Santana, whose power (240 career homers, including more than 20 in seven of his 11 seasons) and .366 OBP overshadow a .248 career average, is a move that simply must work. Many were called, but none permanently chosen, to replace Hosmer. Santana should succeed and hold down first for at least the duration of his two-season, $17.5 million deal; but if his effort turns out like those of Lucas Duda, Ryan O’Hearn and Ryan McBroom, many will, rightly or wrongly, blame Moore for the continuing inability to fill Hosmer’s sizeable shoes.

Signing Santana worked yet another displacement of Dozier, who the KC Royals called upon late last season to cover first when O’Hearn and McBroom both couldn’t hold the job. The switch followed Dozier’s move to the outfield, a position change occasioned by the preseason acquisition of Maikel Franco. Through it all, Dozier fared reasonably well with six home runs and a .344 OBP in a season shortened overall by the pandemic, and more so by his own encounter with COVID-19.

Now back at third base, Dozier merits playing every day (at least until Bobby Witt Jr. is ready for the majors). His occasional defensive shortcomings notwithstanding, he spent most of 2019 at third and tied for the major league lead in triples and hit 26 homers to go with a .279/.348/.522 slash. Dozier presents Moore with a classic general manager’s dilemma—find a spot he can settle into, or consider trading him to fulfill other needs.

General Manager Dayton Moore has made several moves to improve the KC Royals this winter. He’ll be judged on how they turn out.