Daily Clips
July 13, 2018
LOCAL
The State of the Royals, Part 1 of 2: How did they get here?
July 12, 2018By Sam Mellinger/KC Star
Royals’ TV ratings drop but remain among baseball’s best
July 12, 2018By Blair Kerkhoff/KC Star
Royals have suspended their Papa John’s promotional deal
July 12, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
MINORS
Coming Home: Former PHCC standout Bradshaw suits up for Royals
July 13, 2018By Chris Doherty/Martinsville Bulletin
Schwindel, Oaks Shine In Triple-A All-Star Game
Schwindel collects 2 hits, Oaks fires scoreless frame
July 12, 2018By Andrew Green/Omaha Storm Chasers
Naturals overpowered by Drillers
Tulsa pounds out 16 hits and homers four times in the 14-3 win over Northwest Arkansas
July 13, 2018By NW Arkansas Naturals
Early Offense Enough as Rocks Take Series Over Keys
Wilmington Wins Third Straight and Earns Winning Road Trip
July 12, 2018By Wilmington Blue Rocks
Davila Records Career High Strikeouts, But Legends Still Fall in Game Two to GreenJackets
July 12, 2018By Lex18.com
Royals Drop Fourth Straight
Late rally gives D-Braves Victory
July 13, 2018By Justin Gallanty/Burlington Royals
Great Pitching + Timely Hitting = Chukars Win 6-4
July 13, 2018By Tyson Whiting/Idaho Falls Chukars
NATIONAL
Denny Matthews: Hall Of Fame ‘Voice Of Royals’ Started With Expansion Kansas City Franchise In 1969
July 13, 2018By David J. Halberstam/Sports Broadcast Journal
How the AL Central is looking as Deadline nears
Breaking it down for the Indians, Royals, Tigers, Twins, White Sox
July 12, 2018By Jordan Bastian/MLB.com
Morrison (hip) goes on DL, expects quick return
Twins designated hitter hopes to be back in 10 days
The Useless Info Dept., Who’s Pitching Now Edition
July 13, 2018By Jayson Stark/The Athletic
MLB TRANSACTIONS
July 13, 2018 •.CBSSports.com
LOCAL
The State of the Royals, Part 1 of 2: How did they get here?
July 12, 2018By Sam Mellinger/KC Star
Nine-Hundred eighty-five days after they popped champagne in Queens, 829 days after their ring ceremony in Kansas City, and — perhaps most astonishingly — just 346 days after they owned a playoff spot as the most recent non-waiver trade deadline passed the 2018 Royals are an abomination.
They are on pace for 116 losses, which would be the second most of any team in the last 50 years. Their rotation is a mess, the bullpen spotty, the hitting anemic.
To be fair, it is not unusual for World Series champions to fall. The Giants lost 98 games three years after their 2014 title. The Red Sox finished last twice in a row after their 2013 championship.
But no world champion has ever lost quite like this, quite so soon, in at least 50 years.
Two precedents are close. The Diamondbacks won the 2001 World Series on Luis Gonzalez’s wrister off Mariano Rivera, and three years later lost 111 games. The Marlins won the 1997 World Series, and lost 108 the year after.
But the Diamondbacks followed their championship with 98 wins, and the Marlins intentionally put a horrible team together in 1998.
The Royals are on new ground, in that way, so two unavoidable questions have emerged:
How did they get here?
And how do they get out?
This is the first in a two-part project that attempts to answer those questions, guided by conversations with Royals officials, rival executives and coverage of the organization from the start of the rise in 2006.
This list is incomplete, and by definition subjective, but here are the 10 most important factors in the Royals’ path from champions to non-competitive.
10. Ned Yost’s lost fire.
Cultivating a swagger that was alternately fun and angry was Yost’s greatest managerial success. The genesis of that vibe came from a core group of players that arrived in the big leagues with real friendships and deep ambitions, but Yost’s touch helped turn it into magic that saved the franchise at its darkest moments — the Our Time disaster, being below .500 in July 2014, the sixth inning of the 2014 Wild Card game, the fourth game of the 2015 ALDS, and more.
The Royals have largely lacked that since the parade. Some of that is human nature, some of it is different players in different points of their lives. But it’s been noticed both inside and outside the organization, and whatever extent Yost was given credit for establishing a productive vibe, it’s fair to criticize him for it being lost.
9. Trades ahead of last year’s deadline.
This is heavy on hindsight, because at the time the Royals owned a playoff spot and were supremely motivated to make the most of their last season with Lorenzo Cain, Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas together. Also, the trade with the Padres seemed to bring back the pitching help the Royals needed, and a trade with the White Sox provided a veteran, well-liked and reliable hitter to fill an outfield spot.
But the pitchers (Ryan Buchter, Trevor Cahill and Brandon Maurer) provided essentially nothing, and the outfielder (Melky Cabrera) didn’t make enough of a difference.
The Royals would clearly be in better shape today without those trades. Matt Strahm is a left-handed reliever with upside and long-term club control for the Padres, while Esteury Ruiz is the No. 11 prospect in baseball’s best system. A.J. Puckett is rehabbing an elbow injury but remains a back-of-the-rotation prospect for the White Sox.
8. Trades that prioritized money over talent.
The Royals have done this a few times, first by packaging Scott Alexander’s value to make up for Joakim Soria’s contract and most recently by trading Kelvin Herrera so far ahead of the deadline.
The Royals are a business, and it’s worth noting that they have not been among the teams criticized for not spending on talent since Moore’s hiring in 2006. But the paths to acquiring talent are limited, and the Royals’ success depends on maximizing each. This is one area they have chosen to save money rather than acquire the best talent possible.
7. Breaking from their identity.
Prioritizing defense and athleticism over power helped the Royals win. Brandon Moss’ contract may have been the clearest break from that philosophy, but there were others — trading Jarrod Dyson, putting Jorge Bonifacio in the outfield, and targeting Jorge Soler when it was determined Wade Davis needed to be traded.
Soria’s free-agent deal was a departure from loading the bullpen with younger, cheap, power arms. Five years and $70 million for Ian Kennedy meant sacrificing long-term financial flexibility for someone else’s free agent.
Soria’s trade is particularly regrettable as he’s having a nice season for the White Sox, and earned back some trade value. In Moss’ case, the Royals were able to unload him (with cash, it should be noted) in a deal that brought back Jesse Hahn and Heath Fillmyer, each of whom could be part of the future.
6. Alex Gordon’s four-year, $72 million contract.
Sound logic and real-time praise surrounded this deal, but it might be the worst in franchise history. A wrist injury halted and then diminished his first season on the contract, and a total lack of production ruined the second. He’s back to among the game’s best defensive left fielders in 2018, but his value is still being squashed by a lack of power and too many strikeouts.
5. That foul ball in Chicago two years ago.
How many teams that already needed a fair amount of good luck lost two All-Stars for a total of 149 games on a single play?
Moustakas had just returned from an injury, and missed the rest of the season. Gordon struggled offensively before and after the injury, but combined with Yordano Ventura’s death (more on that in a minute) there was an unmistakable deflation of emotion for a team that had always relied so heavily on it.
4. Trades for Ben Zobrist and Johnny Cueto in 2015.
There are no regrets, obviously. They won the dang World Series, with Cueto and especially Zobrist playing important roles. But the trades did amplify the hangover after the party.
Brandon Finnegan, John Lamb and Cody Reed are still searching for big-league traction with the Reds, but each retain promise and long-term club control. Sean Manaea has a 3.44 ERA across 19 starts for the A’s, is allowing fewer than one base runner per inning, and would be the Royals’ best starting pitcher.
3. Yordano Ventura’s death in January 2017.
The skinny kid with a fastball that touched 100 was just 25 years old and poised for the season of his career when he died in a one-car accident near his home in the Dominican Republic.
Viewed coldly in baseball terms, his death left an enormous hole in the rotation, and erased the advantage of having a front-of-the-rotation talent under club-friendly terms through 2021. The Royals chased that by signing Jason Hammel to a two-year contract worth $16 million. At least indirectly, Ventura’s death also helped create the need for last year’s trade with the Padres.
Viewed in a wider context, his death shook the franchise and clubhouse in undeniable ways that must’ve affected the play on the field. He was energetic, cocky, wildly talented, often a pain in the neck, and loved by nearly everyone.
2. The drafts and international signings haven’t been good enough.
The Royals have internal metrics that rate their draft classes relatively well, and they absolutely have success stories that for various reasons are easy to overlook — Ventura, Manaea, Whit Merrifield, Ruiz, Adalberto Mondesi, Alexander, Bonifacio, etc.
But look at division rivals. The Indians’ homegrown stars include Francisco Lindor, Jose Ramirez, Jason Kipnis and Lonnie Chisenhall. They traded for Corey Kluber when he was in Class AA, and have highly regarded Francisco Mejia and Triston McKenzie in the minor leagues.
The Twins boast Brian Dozier, Byron Buxton, Jose Berrios, Eddie Rosario, Max Kepler and Miguel Sano (I know, but still). The Tigers and especially White Sox have farm systems generally valued greater than the Royals.
1. Not choosing a path after 2016.
This remains the single most significant and tangible mistake of the Royals’ front office. Notably, this is not hindsight, but something detectable in real time, though the consequences have been even worse than imagined.
Going into the 2017 season, the Royals knew they had one more year with the championship core, and either of two paths would’ve been thoroughly defensible.
First, the Royals could’ve gone all-in to make the most of it. Most obviously, that would’ve meant retaining Wade Davis. Instead of trading for Jorge Soler, the Royals could’ve pursued outfielder Josh Reddick.
If they were able to do that, a domino of positive results might have followed — Soria would not have been put in position to blow seven saves, Moss would not have needed to be signed, and Bonifacio could’ve been the primary DH instead of right fielder. The Royals finished five games out of a playoff spot last year. It’s not a stretch to believe these moves (and perhaps a few others) could’ve been the difference, not to mention less of a need for trading away young talent at the deadline.
Or, if the Royals prioritized their long-term future over one more year with the core — again, a reasonable stance — they could’ve replaced the prospects they traded away by dealing Hosmer, Cain, Davis and, if they really wanted to be bold, Salvador Perez and Danny Duffy.
It was a difficult situation. The first option risked a financial operating loss, the second angering fans, which by extension could’ve put revenue at risk.
But the Royals attempted to build and win simultaneously, which meant accomplishing neither, and failing to take advantage of the last position of power they’re likely to have for a few years.
Check back soon. We’ll go through the 10 most important ways the Royals can make themselves better.
Royals’ TV ratings drop but remain among baseball’s best
July 12, 2018By Blair Kerkhoff/KC Star
Are you still watching the Royals?
As the All-Star Game approaches, television ratings are about half of what they were last season. The 2017 Royals averaged an 8.0 household rating for the entire season, second among local markets in baseball. They topped baseball in 2016, coming off the World Series championship season.
Through games of July 8, the Royals averaged a 4.7 household rating on Fox Sports Kansas City, according to Nielsen Media Research. That’s the percentage of Kansas City’s approximately 900,000 TV households. At the same time a year ago, the Royals averaged a 7.7 household rating.
Hey, the team stands 26-65 after Wednesday’s 8-5 loss at Minnesota. Viewership was bound to drop.
What’s interesting is the Royals remain in the top five among 29 baseball teams in local market ratings (except Toronto, because Nielsen doesn’t track Canadian viewership trends).
The top five through July 8: Cardinals, Indians, Red Sox, Brewers and Royals. Three are leading their division and the Cardinals are a handful of games over .500.
As they’ve been for the past few seasons, the Royals remain the top-ranked program during prime time in the Kansas City market.
Perhaps it’s the drawing power of players like Salvador Perez, Mike Moustakas and Alex Gordon, but their 2018 rating is higher than any season-long rating for the Royals before 2013, when they posted their first winning record in a decade. The Royals’ cable package started in 1997.
Royals have suspended their Papa John’s promotional deal
July 12, 2018By Pete Grathoff/KC Star
Papa John’s pizza founder John Schnatter resigned Wednesday as chairman of the board after he apologized for using a racial slur during a conference call in May.
After news of Schnatter’s use of the N-word during a training call, Major League Baseball indefinitely suspended its Papa Slam promotion with Papa John’s, Yahoo Sports reported.
Beginning in 2016, when a Major League Baseball player hit a grand slam, the league called it a “Papa Slam,” and fans received 40 percent off their order at Papa John’s the next day by using an online coupon code, the Yahoo story noted.
The Royals have a deal with Papa John’s as well. If the Royals score five runs in a game, fans can enter a promotional code the following day on the Papa John’s website and get 50 percent off the price of a regular menu pizza.
However, the Royals are suspending that deal.
“The promotion has been suspended indefinitely, and we are reviewing the matter with Major League Baseball as Papa John’s is also an MLB partner,” Toby Cook, the Royals’ vice president of publicity, wrote in an email to The Star.
On Thursday afternoon, the Royals put out this statement: “We are taking a pause on the Papa John’s 5 run offer. We’re working with MLB and Papa John’s and will reassess during the All-Star break and decide how to proceed from there.”
MINORS
Coming Home: Former PHCC standout Bradshaw suits up for Royals
July 13, 2018By Chris Doherty/Martinsville Bulletin
Montae Bradshaw spent his first year in the minor leagues out in Arizona, playing for Kansas City's Summer League team. But now, the Patrick Henry Community College product is playing a bit closer to home.
A 38th round pick in the 2017 MLB Draft, Bradshaw is now with Kansas City’s rookie-affiliate, the Burlington Royals out of Burlington, North Carolina. Being near the West Coast for a year was a nice change, but Bradshaw said he’s glad to be back on the East Coast.
Bradshaw was in town this week playing a four-game series against the Danville Braves.
“I’d never been to the west coast before,” he said prior to Thursday night’s game in Danville. “The change of scenery was good. Arizona is kind of different, way different than the east coast.”
Bradshaw said last year was a good welcome to professional baseball and now he feels much more comfortable being in Burlington. It’s not only closer to home, but it’s his second year in pro baseball.
“My first year in Arizona, baseball wise, I was just trying to get adjusted to everything, used to the pitching, just the everyday routine,” Bradshaw said. “I got used to it pretty quick… then to come out here I’m kind of used to it.”
Burlington is obviously much closer to Bradshaw’s hometown in Prince George, Virginia, but the field the Royals play at is also a familiar one to the former Patriot.
“We played in Burlington for the (Region X) tournament, so I’m used to the field. Everything is going good so far,” he said.