3 New Year's resolutions for the KC Royals

Don't lose late-season momentum.

Outside of the free-agent signings, the Royals' successes following the trade deadline have fuelled optimism amongst fans.

Well, momentum may be a strong word, but it was a large improvement by Royals standards. Kansas City played .500 baseball in their final 30 games while ranking 10th in runs scored and keeping things even with a -2 run differential in that span. Like I said, not amazing, but a big improvement from how the Royals looked earlier in 2023.

Fans stopped caring about the win-loss column early in the season, so more of the improvement was from individual players. Ragans was inarguably the biggest success story since making his Royals debut on July 15. Since then, his 2.4 fWAR was fifth-best in MLB while hovering near the league's best in ERA, K/9.

The biggest improvement from the first to the second half was at the plate. Players like MJ Melendez, Dairon Blanco, and even Witt made notable improvements in that split. Blanco, especially, was underrated in the season's second half, with a 143 wRC+ in 50 games.

As a whole, the Royals offense jumped from 29th to 14th in its value, according to FanGraphs. That is a huge jump, and the sustained nature of Kansas City's improvement offered optimism that they could do it again in 2024, possibly for an entire season. That is likely one reason Kansas City has not added many position players, content to retain their young and controllable players, hoping they run it back.

The lineup gets Vinnie Pasquantino back, likely Kansas City's biggest off-season "acquisitions." From top to bottom, the 2024 Royals look like an improved team in all facets. Take the lessons from last year, move on, and improve. Sounds simple, right?

Take advantage of a weak AL Central.

If you took a poll of MLB analysts, the majority of responses would pick the AL Central as the weakest division in all of baseball. After transactional regression from other teams, the Royals need to be aggressive in going from worst to first.

The division was the worst in baseball last year, with only the Minnesota Twins having a winning record. The Royals and White Sox had more than 100 losses, while no other division had more than one 100-loss team. It was a season where 80 wins would have kept a team in contention for the division, with both Detroit (78 wins) and Cleveland (76 wins) being in the mix late into the season. The division has not been great in recent years, but this was a new low for the AL Central.

Believe it or not, things could get worse in 2024. The Twins have largely been quiet this offseason while losing ace Sonny Gray to free agency. Minnesota, despite winning its first postseason series since 2002, seems content to maintain the status quo. Chicago seems far away from contention. Cleveland is a seller in trade rumors rather than a buyer. Detroit is losing more production than it can replace.

Meanwhile, the Royals are looking, dare I say it, aggressive this offseason. General manager J.J. Picollo made several impactful additions this offseason, spending record money in free agency. MLB Network analyst Anthony Recker named them an early favorite to win the AL Central, and that was before they added Michael Wacha and Hunter Renfroe.

How do the Royals take advantage of a weak division? Avoid trailing off as the season goes along. There is some help waiting in the minors, but Kansas City needs to stay close to .500, and then be buyers at the trade deadline. If they do both of those things and no other team breaks out, the Royals will at least be in contention for the divisional crown.

Keep Bobby Witt Jr. happy, extension or not.

Most of the fanbase rightfully wants a lengthy extension for Witt, securing a generational talent in Kansas City for the first time in a very long time. But, whether an extension happens or not, the Royals need to keep the man happy if they want him to be here and the fans to invest.

Do I know what would make Witt happy? No, I am not going to claim that I know for sure. After all, Witt is a person, and every person is different. But there are some reasonable measures that Kansas City can take that could have affected their offseason plans already.

First and foremost, keep the core that Witt came up with through the minor leagues. The last winning Royals teams developed the chemistry that they developed by winning in the minor leagues and then transitioning together to The Show. Witt, drafted in 2019, likely has some players with whom he has developed real relationships and made the losses over the past two seasons bearable. Witt did not have years to develop those relationships, playing only 123 minor-league games in 2021. He still shared the field on the farm with several current Royals.

Secondly, the front office and ownership need to show Witt they are willing to commit resources to improving the team. They have unequivocally done that this offseason, raising the team's floor considerably. Some franchises will lock up a special talent long-term, then expect them to carry a squad on their own. The best superstars have a quality cast, but team leadership needs to show they can do that with results on the field.

I wonder if the excessive player options in recent free-agent deals have something to do with that. The Royals are bringing in a big influx of talent, all addressing issues from the previous season. If they do not gel well, immediately or later on down the line, the players have the option to move on. But extending a special player like Witt would likely help entice those players, and more, to don a Royals uniform.

Lastly, keeping the organization's vibe positive can go a long way. There is a way to hold players accountable and push them to be their best without doing it toxically. Witt is a competitor. Fans see that in his actions, hidden behind a reserved voice in locker interviews. This rolls in with the previous point a bit, but treating players like adults and expecting them to perform to the MLB level can go a long way in keeping the higher-echelon players happy.

I am sure there are some minute things the team can do to keep Witt and other players happy. But even if they do not want to make him happy with a new contract, there are some things they can control.