For several years now the Kansas City Royals have had one of the better farm systems in Major League Baseball.  Most teams should be so lucky.  The Royals haven’t been able to translate this advantage into success on the field and there would seem to be one very good reason for this.

You can’t win the World Series with the AAA Storm Chasers.  It takes time to scout and develop major league talent.  While developing young talent can be exciting, it usually comes with long periods of growing pains while the fans wait for the team to assemble all of the necessary pieces to win consistently.  And if you’re a mid-market team like the Royals, then you hope that you have enough players developed each year to keep costs down.

But the patience may be paying off for Royals fans as they are now getting a glimpse at what a winning, home-grown baseball team looks like in Kansas City.  Mike Moustakas, who was a 1^st round draft pick in 2007, had 20 home runs and 73 RBIs last year in 560+ at bats.  Despite having a slow start in April, Moustakas has shown signs that his bat is coming alive hitting 3 home runs in the last week.  Moustakas isn’t available for arbitration until 2015 and doesn’t become a free agent until 2018.  Moustakas is still far from the player the Royals want him to be though.  He drew only 39 walks and struck out 124 times last year.  However, if Moustakas can learn some discipline at the plate he is sure to be the guy holding down the hot corner for years to come at Kauffman stadium.

There is cause for optimism for Moustakas as his first year stats are not all that dissimilar to the numbers that outfielder Alex Gordon put up in his debut year.  Gordon, another 1^st round pick from 2005 also struck out in excess of 130 times with only 41 walks.  You won’t hear anyone complaining about Alex Gordon though as the Royals have developed him into a player that turns in a 300 plus batting average every year.  Now hitting in the 3^rd spot in the lineup, he is currently batting over .320 this year and already has 6 home runs to go with that average.  Gordon is signed through 2015 with a club option for the 2016 season.

Gordon’s breakout is exactly what the Royal’s front office is hoping will happen for Eric Hosmer this year.  Hosmer, yet another first round pick from 2008 broke into the league in 2011 with 19 home runs and a .293 average.  As with other rookies, the walk rate could have been better but this was certainly a better rookie season than most expected.  Unfortunately it was followed up by a lack luster year in 2012 as his average dipped 60 points.  His average on balls in play (BABIP) for 2012 was a head hanging 255.  Hosmer is still incredibly young and should be able to correct his issues from last year.  Balls in play for 2013 are already up to 326.  Hosmer is available for arbitration next year so this season he is the player to watch as the Royals have been pretty open about how much they expect from him.  In fact, they probably expect him to be Billy Butler…at least by the numbers.

Billy Butler, if you’re keeping track, is also a 1^st round draft pick, consistently hits for average and power.  In his 7^th year playing for the Royals he has racked up 107 home runs and over 500 RBIs and will probably get his 1,000^th career hit before you finish reading this page.  This is the type of production the Royals want from Hosmer and it’s also why Butler’s 2015 option is starting to look like either the window for a home grown championship team or the year the Royals break out the check book and pay up.

While Butler is the type of player that all teams hope to develop, possibly the most important and likely the most overlooked piece to this young organization is Salvador Perez.  At 23 years old, Perez already holds the Royals franchise pick-off record for a single season.  The Royals believe that he will become one of the game’s best defensive catchers in years to come, something that no championship team can be without.  And the kid can hit as well.  In over 140 career games, Perez is hanging onto a 300 plus average.  The Royals feel so good about Perez that despite his apparent lack of experience, they have him signed through 2016 with options all the way through 2019.

In a weak division, this offensive core might be enough to keep the Royals out of the basement for the foreseeable future but to be yearly contenders we’re still missing something.

Check back tomorrow for a look at the pitching staff.

Pete Kozma might have gotten sudden public support along with the St. Louis Cardinals starting shortstop job after Rafael Furcal announced Thursday he would have Tommy John surgery and miss the entire 2013 season, but Kozma has deserved some of that respect long before now.

Kozma hit .333 in 26 games for the Cardinals at the end of last season after Furcal injured his elbow Aug. 30 against the Washington Nationals, and he was a big key to the team’s late-season success that got it within one game of the World Series.

But the Cardinals have rarely viewed Kozma in a positive light.

The organization considered releasing Kozma four times while he was in the minor leagues. Granted, the former first-round pick did put up dismal numbers much of his minor-league career, but the Cardinals have continued to treat Kozma as if he is that same minor-league player even after his big-league success.

The club openly solicited trade proposals to find a different shortstop during the offseason. And when a trade never developed because the Cardinals were unwilling to part with their young pitching prospects, they signed Ronny Cedeno as an option in case Furcal wouldn’t be healthy.

“We were looking at just making sure we have protection (and), in essence, if Pete continues to do what he did, he’ll likely be in the big leagues,” Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said. “We didn’t want to just go into the season and find out that Furcal couldn’t go and find out Kozma was not (going to build on) the six-week period. We had a lot of optimism. It was just shoring up the position.”

But Cedeno has hit just .167 in spring training and played poor defense, at times. That’s probably not where the Cardinals will shore up the shortstop position whether Kozma got the job or not.

Kozma also hasn’t gotten much more respect from Cardinals fans. A forum on stltoday.com Thursday was titled “Is there a worse middle infield in baseball right now?”

There certainly are worse middle infields. Can anyone name the middle infielders for the Miami Marlins, San Diego Padres or Houston Astros?

Plus, Kozma and whoever wins the second base job (Daniel Descalso or Matt Carpenter) are solid fielders who won’t embarrass themselves in the field. Cedeno, on the other hand, might be a liability in the field and at the plate.

Overall, that short period of success is likely a large factor in why people have yet to believe Kozma can handle the Cardinals shortstop position full time in 2013 and beyond. They hadn’t seen that sort of success previously in his career, and they were unwilling to get their hopes up in case Kozma was a one-hit wonder.

Instead, Kozma has excelled during spring training, hitting .429 with five RBIs and two homeruns, and the Cardinals have suddenly started talking him up as someone they really want to have as their starting shortstop this year.

“There’s no doubt given what Kozma did for us in the last six weeks of the season last year we do have a high level of confidence that he can continue to add that energy and be that type of player we saw last year,” Mozeliak said Thursday after the Furcal news broke.

It’s funny how circumstances tend to change those types of feelings.

Kozma would be a huge help to the Cardinals if he can hit for a good batting average and get on base fairly consistently. The Cardinals have enough power in their lineup with Matt Holliday, Carlos Beltran, David Freese and Allen Craig likely to fill the middle of the order, but they’ll need someone on base when they come up.

Kozma would most likely hit in the seventh or eighth spot in the Cardinals lineup, so he won’t face a ton of pressure to be a star at the plate. The Cardinals just need someone who can get on base and hold their own defensively at shortstop this year, and Kozma is a good candidate to fill all of those needs.

He might get his chance this year, but he’ll have done so by overcoming a strong perception by his team that he wasn’t good enough.

For Kozma, that motivation could make 2013 all the more fun.

The St. Louis baseball season got off to its unofficial start on Saturday with an annual high mark. The club began the Cardinals Winter Warm Up down the street from Busch Stadium at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, a three day festival of all things Cardinal baseball. From autograph signings from players both past, present and future, to an impressive showing of team related merchandise, the Winter Warm is the absolute best way to get primed for the upcoming summer of baseball.

During the event, both players and club management take time to stop and discuss the state of the team as well. And there is no better place to start than at the top. On Saturday morning General Manager John Mozeliak took some time to speak on the state of team for the upcoming season, including how the team is managing to come around from 2012’s ending, as well as the status on both the health (and contracts) of some of the club’s biggest contributors.

On team structure: He shares the optimism that many do on the homegrown future of the ballclub. “There should be more minor league impact expected this year on the roster”, stated Mozeliak. While not going into specifics on who or when, he was very encouraged by the group of young pitchers with Major League experience, including Trevor Rosenthal, Shelby Miller, Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly. All will work as starters early in camp, and compete for the fifth starter slot. However, Lynn will enter with a slight edge on the group. “He shouldn’t show up and be completely comfortable” said Mo, “but based on what he did last year, he has the inside track.”

Regarding the competition at second base, he feels Daniel Descalso will enter camp as the owner of the position, but there are some conditions as well. Matt Carpenter, who has worked at the position this winter, will get a look but he cannot accurately assess his place in the competition until he sees him in action.

Concerning any further moves in the middle infield, the availability and heatlth of Rafael Furcal is the most critical factor to any further activity. “We have not ruled out any additions in the middle infield”, Mozeliak said, “but it all depends on the health of Furcal.” He went on to say that all early signs are positive for the Furcal entering into the spring.

On Mike Matheny: All signs were positive on where he stands on Matheny entering into his second season at the wheel. “He exceeded expectations in year one” he explained, going on to say that he did not meet with him over the winter in any advisory capacity, only to touch base. He expects there will be the most growth in his area of player usage. “I expect he may not ride the hot hand as much” he commented.

On team health: He admitted that breaking free of camp at full strength is a concern, especially with some of the lingering conditions that are already in place. They are taking a “wait and see” approach concerning Jaime Garcia and Chris Carpenter, but more so for Garcia. Carpenter could see a decreased training program, but it’s not unusual for him at this point in his career. “The expectation for 200 innings for Carp is probably at 50/50”, but he has high confidence in his health status.

On big name prospects: There is an expectation that top prospect Oscar Taveras will get “plenty of opportunities” in the spring, to see what he can do. Second baseman Kolten Wong will also get some opportunities in big league camp, but the goal is not for him to share time in St. Louis currently, and to be an everyday contributor in the minors again.

On contract negotiations: The Adam Wainwright contract extension matter will carry into the season, and potentially into the season, but shouldn’t be compared to past high profile dealings. He feels this matter is “more open ended than other negotiations we’ve seen before” and that “there are no lines drawn in the sand this time around.”

He also elaborated that the organization has “moved on” from Kyle Lohse, but won’t close the door on anything either.

Well, the Kansas City Royals aren’t making it easy to be a fan, are they? With a 3-8 record through Tuesday and losing to the Detroit Tigers 4-3 while I’m writing this Wednesday night, the Royals are digging themselves into the American League Central cellar. Again.

In 2004, the Royals and former manager Tony Pena came up with the slogan, “Together We Can,” after a surprising 83-79 2003 season. It showed the optimism of a promising 2004 season. However, by mid season “Together We Can” became a punchline and the Royals ended up with a 58-104 record.

This year, the slogan is “Our Time.” But after a six game losing streak, it appears it’s “our time” for the Royals to be the same old Royals. Let’s look at the good (it’s Our Time) and the bad (same old Royals) of the 2012 season.

It’s Our Time: Danny Duffy is pretty good. In two starts, the Royals fifth starter is pitching like a, well, at least a number two or three starter. In two starts, Duffy has a 2.13 ERA with a team leading 15 strikeouts and 12.2 innings pitched. Sure, he gave up two home runs in a loss to the Detroit Tigers and he’s issued five walks. Besides Bruce Chen, he’s doing something the other starters are not: pitching effectively every start.

Same old Royals: Uh, what’s up with Greg Holland? In six games, Holland pitched 6.1 innings, giving up five runs and 10 hits. In 2011, Holland pitched 60 innings and gave up just 13 runs and 37 hits. And he’s giving up these runs when the Royals can’t afford to give up runs. The bright side is he has 10 strikeouts, two walks and hasn’t give up any home runs yet. But so far he’s not the Greg Holland of 2011.

It’s Our Time: Billy is being Billy. As of Tuesday, Butler has a .356/.370/.622 line, leading the team with 16 hits, eight of them for extra bases. He also leads the team with nine RBI. Sure, Butler is a slow runner and he needs to hit more home runs, but he’s a bright spot in a lineup that’s looking a little dim.

Same old Royals: Alex Gordon and Eric Hosmer are under the Mario Mendoza line. As of Tuesday, Gordon is hitting .140/.245/.233 and Hosmer is at .182/.280/.364. They’re also striking out a lot, with Gordon at 16 and Hosmer at eight. They are leading the team in taking walks, each with six free passes. But they need to start hitting, especially with runners on base.

It’s Our Time: Alex Gordon is doing well in left field. Where Gordon is struggling at the plate, he’s making it up for his play in left field. He’s made some spectacular catches, including one where he bounced his face on the turf, holding on to the ball. He also leads the outfielders with 23 putouts.

Same old Royals: The Royals sure miss Lorenzo Cain‘s defense. When Cain was playing, he wasn’t hitting well, with only a .133/.176/.133 line. But his play in center was good, getting balls Melky Cabrera probably wouldn’t get. And there was the great catch in Oakland that resulted in a double play and a stint on the DL with a groin injury.

The Royals called up Jarrod Dyson from AAA Omaha and with his speed the Royals started him in center. Well, he was fast, but speed doesn’t matter when you misjudge fly balls and they sail over your head. After two games, the Royals sent Dyson back to Omaha. Now Mitch Maier is starting in center field, who should have been starting there in the first place.

It’s Our Time: It’s early in the season. They have time to figure it out. Over a 162 game season, the Royals have played about ten percent of their games. And if a few things had gone differently in their losses, they might have a chance to win those games, except last Sunday’s game against the Indians. When the Royals pitching is good, the offense struggles. If the offense is good, the pitching struggles. If the Royals get the pitching and offense working together, they will win more games.

Same old Royals: The Royals have no problem losing several games in a row, and they usually play bad in April. Since 2007, the Royals are 55-70 in April. However, except in 2007 (8-18) and 2010 (9-14), the Royals have been around .500 in the other years. Of course the team does have a knack of losing several games in a row and maybe win a few games in a row here and there. When the losing happens early in the season, it magnifies the Royals struggles and gets fans thinking about the Chiefs upcoming season.

The Royals aren’t doing themselves any favors losing six games in a row, with five of them against A.L. Central opponents. If the Royals want to make 2012 their time and not be the same old Royals, they need to get their offense going, stay away from big innings and get Lorenzo Cain back in center field.

Despite being swept by the Cleveland Indians while playing in front of their home crowd for the first time in 2012, the Kansas City Royals provided some reasons for optimism.

Photo Courtesy of Minda Haas

After what the box scores would tell fans was an absolutely miserable weekend for Royals fans at the K, the easy thing to do would be to point out all of the things that went wrong (which were many), all of the players that need to be sent packing (one already was, there may be few more), and all of the reasons Royals fans should be concerned for the rest of the season. But now is not the time to be dwelling on Jarrod Dyson’s defense, the Royals’ starting pitching, Mitch Maier’s relief pitching appearance, or the distance of Travis Hafner’s home run on Sunday. Sure, Luke Hochevar had a bad half inning. Though he wasn’t helped by his defense or an accidental check-swing bloop hit to right by Shelley Duncan, he needs to be able to limit the damage and pitch his way out of those situations without giving up 7 runs. Sure, after a decent first showing against the Los Angeles Angels, Jonathan Sanchez was erratic agains the Indians on Saturday, lost control of his pitch count, and couldn’t find the plate, unless it was being met by a Cleveland Indians’ player’s bat. Did fans really expect anything different? If Sanchez goes out and throws a 2-hitter with 11 K’s in his next outing, he will have, in 3 outings, perfectly exemplified both why the Royals wanted to acquire him and why he was available in the first place. That is who he is. Was anyone really surprised when, on Sunday, the imposter who had been running around in the Mendoza jersey revealed his true identity to be none other than Luis Mendoza himself? He of the 7.21 career ERA?

A message to Royals fans: let’s take a deep breath, back away from the ledge, and focus on the things that went well over the weekend, of which there were several:

1. The Royals did not quit in any of the 3 games. Some might consider putting Maier in as a relief pitcher on Sunday as a sign of quitting, but when the bullpen has been exhausted the way it was all weekend, and with no day off on Monday, that was about survival and living to fight another day. The Royals gave up 7 runs in the first game, and lost 8-3 with the final Indians’ run being scored on a Home Run in the 9th inning. Watching the game, you had the feeling they might have a big inning in them that could get them back in the game. They threatened several times, but couldn’t make it happen. Imagine what the final score would have been had the 2005 Royals gotten down 7-0 in the top of the first…ok, never mind. The next night, the Royals fought back from a 9-2 deficit to tie the game at 9-9, before losing 11-9 in extra innings. That speaks for itself. And on Sunday, even with the game getting out of hand, the Royals still managed to put up 7 runs.

2. Mike Moustakas appears to have grown up quickly. Despite ending the weekend with his batting average sitting at just .257, Moustakas is hitting the ball extremely hard, playing amazing defense, and does not seem to resemble the awestruck rookie he appeared to be much of last season.

3. Billy Butler is still Billy Butler. With 8 RBI’s in the first 9 games of the season, Butler is on a torrid run-producing pace. He appears poised for a true breakout season. It is hard to believe he is still only 25 years old (for 2 more days-Happy early birthday, Country Breakfast!). Butler is certainly the most underrated hitter on this team.

4. The Royals have something in Everett Teaford. What his role might be in the future will be determined, but the performance he put up in 4 innings of relief on Friday (1 Hit, 2 Walks, 3 SO, 0 Runs) was impressive.

5. Kelvin Herrera is flat out nasty. Though the radar gun at Kauffman is less than trustworthy, it had him clocked as high as 102 over the weekend. He gave up the home run on Friday night to the first batter he faced, but after that, he was un-hittable.

So settle down, Royals fans. This may not be the last weekend we see like this. There will be more bumps in the road. And though it may be time to hit the reset button on your expectations, just enjoy watching what is still the most exciting collection of young talent in all of baseball.

With the Kansas City Royals officially opening their 2012 season this Friday, the optimism for some fans is now being replaced with nervousness.

For a baseball fan, it is only natural to be optimistic during the off-season. The disaster of the previous year is in the past, free agents have been added, that overpaid free-agent’s contract finally expired, and well…somebody has to win next year, right? And for fans of most teams, eventually the optimism pays off. Your team comes from out of nowhere to qualify for the playoffs, and whether they advance or not, that can be considered a successful season (unless you’re the Yankees or Red Sox). But for longer than any other organization in baseball, Royals fans have had their off-season optimism shoved down their throat in the form of embarrassingly bad baseball. The Royals have the longest playoff drought in all of MLB. So one can understand why a Royals fan might eventually decide not to even bother with the positive thoughts.

Until the 2010 season, it was hard to envision a scenario in which Royals fans would be given any reason to believe they would see a winner in the near future. It was during that season, that things began to come together at the minor league level. Former first-round draft picks Mike Moustakas(3B) and Eric Hosmer(1B) began to emerge as two of the top prospects in baseball. 19-year old 3rd round draft pick Will Myers began to turn heads in A-ball. Other prospects began giving people to take notice as well, and before long, the Royals farm system was the talk of baseball. All of a sudden, that dark tunnel that Royals fans had peered into for so long started to show a faint light at the end. After the 2010 season, all the talk was about the Royals farm system. Not only was it considered the best in all of baseball, but some were calling it the best farm system that they had ever seen. And while the expectations for the 2011 Royals season weren’t great, fans were, for the first time in a very long time, allowed to feel legitimately optimistic for the future. 2011 saw the arrival of Hosmer, Moustakas, Salvador Perez(C), Johnny Giovatella(2B), Danny Duffy(SP), and a whole crop of young bullpen arms.

For the most part, all signs were positive. Hosmer impressed from day one. Moustakas went through his struggles, but by the end of the year, looked like he was figuring things out. Perez was very impressive, and while Giovatella and Duffy both struggled at times, both showed definite signs of promise. On top of this, Alcides Escobar(SS) emerged as arguably the best defensive SS in all of baseball. Lorenzo Cain came up for an impressive September call-up. Free-Agent Jeff Francoeur(OF) pulled his career out of the toilet with a fantastic year, and former top prospect Alex Gordon(OF) finally showed the promise he was thought to have when he was drafted in 2005. Looking at things from a long-term perspective, it is hard to imagine things going more positively in 2011. Everyone has pointed to 2012 as the year when the Royals will begin to ascend back to relevance for the first time in almost 20 years.

But what if it all goes wrong? This is a question that Royals fans are conditioned to ask. While Hosmer is as close to a sure thing as there is, would it surprise anyone if Moustakas never fully came around? If Duffy can’t keep his pitch count down? If Francoeur returns to being a near useless hitter? What if Gordon also finds himself with an extended stay on the DL? Center-fielder Lorenzo Cain is thought to be ready to break out, but what if that doesn’t happen? Salvador Perez has already been injured and is out until June. Closer Joakim Soria is out for the year with Tommy John surgery.

Each of these things individually is a very realistic possibility. But what makes this year different from past years, is that rather than considering all of the things that would have to go wrong for things to go bad, Royals fans were forced to point out all of the things that COULD go right to help them contend.

This year may not go as Royals fans hope. Every single thing listed above could take place. But it sure beats sitting around hoping Juan Gonzalez regains his MVP form, Mike Sweeney‘s back finally holds up, and Benito Santiago and Reggie Sanders discover the Fountain of Youth.

Despite all of the attention the Kansas City Royals are receiving for their young offensive stars, most analysts still say that the starting pitching will be what holds the Royals back this year.  But is this group getting the credit it deserves?

There is an immense amount of optimism surrounding the 2012 Kansas City Royals.  For any fan under the age of 20, this sort of optimism is unprecedented in their lifetime.  For the rest of us, it is hard to remember the last time there was this much excitement around the club.   However, there is one part of aspect of this year’s Royals edition that most consider to be a huge question mark, and that is the starting pitching.  People outside the organization look at the Royals pitching staff and don’t see a proven Ace. This is a valid point.  But the Royals, for the first time in a good number of years, should have 5 guys (or more) that they can throw out there that can not only miss bats, but give them a chance to win every time out.  Here’s a look at the projected Royals starting rotation and what we might expect from this group in 2012:

Projected Opening Day Starter-Luke Hochevar:

Last season was a mixed bag for Hochevar.  The first half was mostly the usual erratic Luke Hochevar that Royals fans had become used to seeing pitch for the previous 3 years.  He would start a game strong, sometimes even dominant.  Then he would get himself into a jam and things would completely unravel from there.  It was maddening.  Was it in his head?  Could he not pitch effectively out of the stretch?  It wasn’t until Ned Yost began forcing Hochevar to pitch out of these situations that a change became evident.  The results in the 2nd half demonstrated that change.

First the good:

-Hochevar was 2 innings away from pitching 200 innings, finishing with 198, the most of his career to this point

-At 4.68, Hochevar finished with his lowest ERA as a full-time pitcher in the majors

-His 1.283 WHIP was down significantly from 2010, and was the best he has posted as a full-time starter

Now, the better:

-In his 12 starts after the All-Star Break, Hochevar’s ERA was 3.91

-His strikeout rate was also way up.  For the year, Hoch had a 5.8k/9 SO rate. However, after the break, it was 7.7

-His WHIP after the All-Star Break was a stellar 1.12

-After the break, Hochevar averaged 6.11 innings per start

If we assume Hochever picks up where he left off in the 2nd half of the season, we should expect something along these lines:

Innings: 201

ERA: 3.90

WHIP: 1.15

K: 172

Those numbers might not be Ace type of numbers, but that is a damn good #2 starter on a championship team, which is what Hochevar’s potential was always thought to be.  He is also 28 years old, in what should be the prime of his career.

Projected #2 starter-Jonathan Sanchez:

Sanchez is probably the most electrifying pitcher to wear a Royals uniform since Zack Greinke.  If anyone in the 2012 Royals rotation has the potential, when at his best, to become the ace of the staff, it is likely Sanchez.  However, he has always struggled with control, and last year battled injuries.  He will be 29 years old for the duration of the season and is probably the biggest wild-card in the rotation.  When at his best, he is a high strikeout, low hit-rate, high walk-rate pitcher.  If we split the difference between what would be a successful season, or a disappointing season for Sanchez, it might look something like this:

Innings: 175

ERA: 4.10

WHIP: 1.35

K: 185

To put it into perspective, in 2010, Zack Greinke’s last season with the Royals, he posted these numbers:

Innings: 220

ERA: 4.17

WHIP: 1.245

K: 181

Sanchez has the potential to do much more than the numbers listed above.  But if he gives the Royals something along those lines, that will make him a solid contributor to the rotation.

Projected #3 starter-Bruce Chen:

Chen would probably be the biggest candidate for regression out of this group, mainly due to his age.  He will turn 35 midway through the season.    He has also spent a significant amount of time on the Disabled List the last two seasons, which has cut into his Innings Pitched #’s and is definite cause for concern. I have a feeling that Dayton Moore might like a mulligan on the decision to give Chen a 2 year deal for $9,000,000.  If you assume Chen hits the DL for his normal stint in 2012, with a bit of regression, it is reasonable to expect his 2012 numbers to look like this:

Innings: 145

ERA: 3.97

WHIP: 1.40

K: 95

If Chen can make it 145 innings, and put up these type of numbers, he probably slots as more of a #5 starter on a playoff team.  If we ever again have to say that Bruce Chen was the best pitcher on the staff, that will mean things have gone terribly wrong.

Projected #4 starter-Felipe Paulino:

Why the Royals were trying to act as if there was any question as to whether Paulino would be in the rotation at the beginning of the season, is still a mystery.  At least Ned Yost is now conceding that Paulino has a “leg up” in the competition for the rotation spot.  What Paulino did last year is likely the most under-appreciated part of the Royals 2011 campaign.  Paulino will be 29 in October, so he is another who is in what should be the prime of his career.  Despite a paltry win total, he posted an excellent 8.6K/9 innings.  His 4.11 ERA and his 1.372 WHIP should both come down in 2012, as the BABIP (Batting Average on Balls In Play) stats show that an abnormal # of balls dropped for hits last year.  Paulino started 20 games last year, and averaged just over 6 innings per start.  If he is able to start 32 games, that should put him right around 200 innings for the season.  Call me optimistic, but this is what I expect from Paulino this season, with the potential for more:

Innings: 198

ERA: 3.80

WHIP: 1.25

K: 190

This would make Paulino another solid #2-like starter for a championship team, which he is certainly capable of becoming.  If only the Royals could find a #1 starter (hint, hint)

Projected #5 starter-Danny Duffy

It is looking more and more likely that the #5 spot in the rotation will end up going to Duffy, though this is not a certainty yet. Duffy just turned 23 in December, so he has youth on his side.  As a rookie in 2011, he showed promise, but also struggled to go deep into ballgames and pitch his way out of jams.  There was one game though, last year, in which Duffy gave Royals fans a taste of what he could become.  That was on June 19 against the St. Louis Cardinals, when Duffy struck out 9 batters in 3 2/3 innings.  This game showed the reasons both why Duffy has such promise, and why he still had a little ways to go.  While he only walked 1 batter, he gave up 6 hits and let his pitch count get all the way up to 90 before being pulled with 2 outs in the 4th.  If Duffy can adjust his approach this year to not always pitching for the strikeout, learning how to finish a batters off, and pitching more efficiently, he is the guy who could step up and be the ace of this staff.  I expect Duffy to take a huge step forward this year, and for his numbers to look something like this:

Innings: 170

ERA: 3.65

WHIP: 1.35

K: 132

It would make sense that the Royals would continue to be careful with Duffy.  If “The Process” is to come to fruition, Danny Duffy is going to need to be a big part of that.  If he can put up numbers close to those above, that will put him in great position for a true “breakout” campaign in 2013.

While this Royals team is missing the true “ace” starter that they had in Zack Greinke, one could argue that top to bottom, this is the best rotation the Royals have had in over a decade.  While injuries could play a role in this, there is also more starting pitching depth in the organization than at any other time in recent history.  Whether it’s Luis Mendoza, Aaron Crow, Mike Montgomery, Nate Adcock, or someone else, the Royals should be able to keep things afloat should one or more of these guys go down.   This group of starting pitchers will be one of the more interesting things to monitor as we get rolling in 2012.

As we are one month from Opening Day, with so much optimism surrounding the 2012 version of the Kansas City Royals, and all of the young stars that project to be in this years Opening Day lineup, we must remember some of the players that graced the Opening Day lineup card in years past that made us ask, “WTF?!?!?”

Ahhhhhhhh….Opening Day…when hope springs eternal. The only day (presumably) when parents write fake doctor’s notes to pull kids out of school to go to the ballpark. When playoff dreams have yet to be shattered, and every team still has a chance to win the World Series.

Kansas City Royals fans have been no exception to this tradition over the years, even if the optimism is usually gone within the first week of the season. There is no denying that there is something very special about Opening Day. Every hitter who had a good season the year before is expected to pick up where he left off the previous year; every pitcher who couldn’t get anybody out the year before is expected to turn it around (he’s changed his arm angle!); and mediocre players are expected to take that next step to stardom. On Opening Day, the injuries have yet to occur (usually), and fans have no idea who is going to continue to suck, or go back to sucking. It is all roses until that first crooked number goes up on the scoreboard next to the opposing team’s name. It is for this reason, that there is no greater buzz-kill than when your favorite team decides to pencil names into an Opening Day lineup card that don’t just put all optimism to the test, but crush it to pieces before the first pitch is ever thrown, and force you to scream at the top of your lungs, “WTF?!?!?!?!?”

It is one thing for a manager to be forced to write out a lineup card full of obscure names in September. If the team is out of the race and playing guys recently brought up from the minor leagues (Royals fans are very used to this over the years), this is acceptable. If a team has been ravaged with injuries and it is a Sunday in June on get-away day, it is moderately acceptable to place a fair amount of obscurity on the lineup card (Cardinals fans are very used to this over the LaRussa years). More-so than probably any other organization in baseball, though, the Royals have sent either Trey Hillman, or Buddy Bell, or Tony Pena, or Tony Muser, or Bob Boone, or any of the other skippers of the Royals’ “Stink Era” out to home plate with a lineup card on Opening Day with at least one name on it that makes a fan wonder what in the hell the organization was thinking all off-season. In this column, we will take a look, position-by-position, at the Royals All-Time “WTF” Opening Day Lineup.

Catcher: Hector Ortiz (2001)

Ortiz was drafted as a 19-year-old prospect out of Puerto Rico by the Dodgers in 1988. However, he did not see his first big league action until, after bouncing around with several teams, he landed with the Royals in 1998. That tells you a lot about the Royals’ catching situation at that time. After getting the Opening Day nod in 2001, Ortiz became a part of the 4-headed catching monster that was he, A.J. Hinch, Gregg Zaun, and Brent Mayne for the rest of that season.

1st Base: Ross Gload (2008)

It’s been said before in this column, that it isn’t Ross Gload’s fault that he is Ross Gload. In this case, it is most definitely the Royals’ fault that they didn’t have a more suitable option for a starting 1st Baseman on opening day than a career utility-player. This is completely inexcusable.

2nd Base: Mark Teahen (2009)

How ridiculous does this experiment now seem in hindsight? This poor guy went from being a highly regarded 3rd Baseman, to Right-Field, to Left-Field, to 2nd Base, traded to the White Sox to play 3rd Base again, and is now completely irrelevant. Makes you wonder what he could have done had he never been moved off of 3rd.

3rd Base: Willie Bloomquist (2010)

With Alex Gordon unavailable, the Royals were forced to choose between Bloomquist and Alberto Callaspo to start at 3rd on Opening Day. They chose Bloomquist, and clearly regretted it. He went 0-4 with 3 strikeouts, and missed a routine pop-up early in the game that helped continue a Detroit Tigers rally. Callaspo started at 3rd from that point forward and Bloomquist went back to his rightful role as a utility infielder.

Shortstop: Felix Martinez (1998)

Sandwiched in between Jay Bell and Rey Sanchez, was something called Felix Martinez. He only received 98 plate appearances, while Shane Halter led all Royals’ Shortstops in plate appearances that year with 226. Clearly the shortstop position was a disaster for the Royals in 1998.

Left-Field: Ross Gload (2007)

-See Ross Gload explanation for 1st Base position

Center-Field: Rick Ankiel (2010)

This may have been the only time that Dayton Moore figuratively slapped Royals fans in the face. The guy never wanted to play with the Royals, the Royals still over-paid to get him, he acted like a jerk the whole time he was with the team, suspiciously injured his ankle walking to the field in Spring Training, and under-performed when he did play that year (which was rarely).

Right-Field: Brandon Berger (2003)

Somehow this guy played 4 seasons in the majors (2001-2004), all with the Royals, and I still have no idea who he was. I do know what I was probably saying when I saw his name in the Opening Day lineup in 2003 though…

Designated-Hitter: Terry Pendleton (1998)

Okay…we all know who Terry Pendleton is, so there is nothing obscure about this. Other than…HE PLAYED FOR THE ROYALS?!?!?!? It was Pendleton’s last season before retiring, as he muddled his way through 257 plate appearances and a .257 average floating between DH and 3rd Base for the 1998 Royals. Clearly this was not a very memorable showing.

Starting Pitcher: Scott Elarton (2006)

As a fan, I am still profoundly insulted by this. He was 10 shades past finished before he ever put the Royals jersey on for the first time. In 2006, he struck out a mind-boggling 49 batters in 114 innings. I remember watching him pitch and just feeling bad for the guy. He always looked like he was pitching in pain, and you always had the feeling his arm could go flying into the 14th row with the next pitch. It was almost as if he had to point to something in the stands to get the batter to look that way, then pitch the ball really quick when the batter wasn’t looking to get anyone out. Elarton put up a 5.34 ERA in those 114 innings in 2006, so naturally, the Royals brought him back in 2007. He threw 37 innings with a 10.46 ERA before the Royals finally showed a bit of mercy and just sent him packing.

Here’s hoping 2010 was the last installment of Royals baseball that will ever contribute to this group, and that we will never again be forced to scream out “WTF?!?!?!?” prior to the first pitch of the Royals season ever being thrown.

It’s that time again, for the monthly article devoted to the Kool Aid Drinker. Originally, the Kool Aid Drinker wanted to run down his most boo-able Kansas City Royals at each position, but then I thought that might confuse some people. I have clearly presented the Kool Aid Drinker as an overly positive Royals fan that is predicting big things for the club, so talking about booing Royals doesn’t seem like his style right? Wrong. That bit of foreseen confusion led me to this, the Kool Aid Drinker’s Manifesto:

First and foremost, the Kool Aid Drinker is not just in me. There is a little bit of him in everyone that still considers himself a Royals fan in 2012. Every true fan that believed in Bob Hamelin, Mike MacDougal, and Angel Berroa…amongst others. I cannot imagine you could still be a fan of this team after 20 some years of futility without having a little unreasonable optimism in you.

While it is quite obvious that the Kool Aid Drinker loves his Royals, it should be mentioned that he is not above becoming disenchanted with those who do not live up to his lofty expectation, especially if their effort or desire seems to be lacking in any way. Ricky Blownsavico, Pop Up Perez, and Odalis “grasa pedazo de caca” Perez are just a few players that have felt his wrath. The Kool Aid Drinker is a very vocal fan, in good times and in bad.

As you can probably tell from above, the Kool Aid Drinker loves nicknames. But not Trey Hillman type nicknames. Getzy? Gordo? C’mon. He expects creativity like Country Breakfast, The Pain Killer, and The Dominator. Sometimes the Kool Aid Drinker latches on to main stream nicknames, and others he creates his own. But you will not hear him calling Jonathan Sanchez “Sanchy” any time soon.

The Kool Aid Drinker is fairly old school, especially when it comes to stadium behavior. If there is something exciting going on and you are behind him you are expected to stand; don’t ask him to sit on his hands. While he believes that there is no place for vulgarity in the stadium, he will absolutely heckle an opposing player if given a reason, mercilessly at times. I say fairly old school because he does not hate the amusement park in left field or people that start the wave. If you’re there to cheer on the Royals, we are all on the same side.

The Kool Aid Drinker hates the New York Yankees and the St. Louis Cardinals. He doesn’t care much for their fans either, especially the ones that live in KC. He believes that Yankees fans living in KC are generally bandwagoners who know little about the game. He thinks that the “Greatest Fans in Baseball” are probably the ones still coming out to the K after 26 years of losing baseball, and not some “Nation” of bird watchers that are so absolutely “informed” and “polite,” yet they blindly cheered for one of the most obvious steroid users of our generation without even a hint of remorse. (Mark McGwire, not Albert Pujols.) He also likes to goad these fan bases into ridiculous arguments that even he knows he can’t win with logic, like telling them it is okay that they lost the 43 year old Pujols because he’d rather have Eric Hosmer in 2012 anyway…or that new video evidence clearly shows that Denkinger got it right.

The Kool Aid Drinker is not thrilled with bandwagon fans, but he welcomes them all the same. There’s plenty of Kool Aid for everyone, especially in 2012. Unless, of course, they are in the above mentioned categories and just trying to hedge their bets. In fact, the Kool Aid Drinker wants to take this moment to invite anyone who reads this to jump on board right now. I’m not ready to make my final projections, but you can see what I think about the first half of the year here. It’s going to be an amazing ride in 2012, with youth developing into greatness and the eyes of the world on Kansas City in both July and hopefully October. It is “our time” Kansas City–for winning, for championships, for Kool Aid.

To paraphrase Smokey and the Bandit, the St. Louis Cardinals loaded up their truck Friday because they’ve got a run to make.  That trip will take the Cardinals to Jupiter, Fla., to begin Spring Training 2012 and kick off the six-week journey to Opening Day April 5 in Miami against the Marlins.  That means this is the last weekend without official St. Louis Cardinals baseball activities on the lush, green fields in Florida set underneath the backdrop of palm trees.

Some teams such as the Seattle Mariners have already reported to their Spring Training complex. The Cardinals will get everything set up during the week, and pitchers and catchers will report to camp Saturday.  Hear that? I said Saturday. We are finally close enough to count down the remaining days by the day of the week rather than the date on the calendar.

A few players have already begun practice at the Cardinals’ Roger Dean Stadium facilities. Most notably, starting pitcher Adam Wainwright has thrown regularly from a mound and came away from those sessions saying he felt “danged good.”  That comment should bring a giddy smile to Cardinals fans’ faces. Wainwright’s competitive fire is right up there with teammate Chris Carpenter. Both guys have talent, but they can also will themselves through a game to put the team in position to win.  He also says the Cardinals will be better than last year. Time will tell us if that is the case for a 90-win team coming off of a World Series championship, but Spring Training is all about optimism, after all.

Most of Wainwright’s optimism is based on solid reasoning rather than mere hope. Unless something terrible happens to derail the season, the Cardinals will not be horrible. Most baseball fans would likely consider the team a disappointment this year if it finished close to .500 or worse.  A return trip to the playoffs, much less the World Series, will still be difficult for the Cardinals. The Milwaukee Brewers are worse on paper this year than last, and the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates and Houston Astros are not substantially better than last year at this time.  The Cincinnati Reds are better now on paper than they were at the beginning of Spring Training in 2011, and they look to be the main competition for the Cardinals to win the division crown.

Either way, the Cardinals will be competitive, and that is really what makes a baseball game fun.

Yes, it is excruciating to lose late in the late innings of a game after the starter threw a terrific seven innings, but the fact the Cardinals are often in games where the late innings matter keeps the fan base energized.  That energy will start to build Saturday when Spring Training officially opens for the defending World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals. Doesn’t that sound nice?

The delivery trucks might still have a long way to go and the team might have a relatively short time to get ready for the season, but it is time to say goodbye to winter.

This team is going to try to do what many say can’t be done: successfully defend its title in 2012.