Some Hope From Royals Camp!

In a previous entry I wrote that I was convinced that Ross Gload, "at the expense of better players with more potential," would play a "significant" role for the Royals in 2009." But after reading Bob Dutton's report in today's Kansas City Star, I am now cautiously optimistic I might have been wrong. Is it possible that Dayton Moore and Trey Hillman finally realize that Ross Gload, a player who's only "skill" is making a so-called productive out, has no value to the Royals?

At the time I wrote the entry mentioned above, I didn't believe that Moore would consider releasing Gload and eating his nearly $2 million salary. Ross Gload is Dayton Moore's boy. Moore signed Gload to a two year contract when every other Major League team would have given him a minor league deal with an invite to spring training. But the headline over Dutton's report, "Gload battling the odds to keep spot on Royals’ roster" is a clear indication that Moore and Hillman are, at the very list, thinking about admitting the Gload signing was a mistake and cutting their losses. It is far from certain the Royals will waive Gload but knowing that Moore and Hillman are considering the possibility should make every Royals fan smile.

The Opening Day 25 Man Roster

I promise everyone this is my last entry lamenting that Willie Bloomquist and Ross Gload are members of the Kansas City Royals. The battle is lost and I surrender. After reading Dick Kaegel's latest column on kcroyals.com, I am convinced that both Bloomquist and Gload, at the expense of better players with more potential, are going to play "significant" roles for the Royals in 2009.

Frequent visitors to kcroyals.com are aware that Dick Kaegel is an unofficial member of the Kansas City Royals PR department masquerading as a journalist. Fans seeking in depth reporting and unbiased analysis of the Kansas City Royals will waste their time reading much of what is posted at kcroyals.com. But Kaegel's work has value because he provides clues to what Hillman and Moore are thinking. In his latest column, Kaegel reports how the Royals roster might look when the team breaks camp. Unfortunately for Royals fans, it appears that the team is going to begin the regular season will not be the best possible team the Royals could field.

In theory, the biggest question mark for the Royals in 2009 is second base. The Royals are giving the perception that Mark Teahen, Alberto Callaspo, and Willie Bloomquist are all candidates for the job and each has a chance to win the position. But after reading Kaegel's column I am convinced the competition is an illusion and the decision has already been made.

"Willie Bloomquist, Alberto Callaspo and Mark Teahen are in a rumble around second base...Bloomquist might have an edge. He's got more experience than Teahen at second base and more range than Callaspo...Bloomquist was signed to a two-year contract which also might work in his favor."

Unless something has changed since the website went online, Kaegel would not post this if he didn't have the scoop from Hillman or Moore. So even though Callaspo has the potential to be an above average Major League hitter and Mark Teahen is athletic enough to possibly play the position, the Royals are going to compound a horrible free agent signing by handing him a starting job. Bloomquist might have a little more range than Callaspo and more experience than Teahen. But he is still the same player that isn't strong enough to hit the ball in the air to the outfield and isn't good enough to start for the AAA Salt Lake Bees.

Kaegel also commented on Ross Gload and Ryan Shealy's chances of making the team.

"Ross Gload, probably the best-fielding first baseman, can also play the outfield. His glove offers nice late-inning protection at first."

"Ryan Shealy logged a lot of time at first base in September and cranked seven homers, putting himself back in the mix. He's facing a numbers crunch although he has a good glove, too, and could be a big bat off the bench."

Gload is presented as a good glove who can play multiple positions while Shealy is facing a numbers crunch. Kaegel does point out that Shealy has a good glove, but there is no doubt Gload has the edge. This is another red flag for Royals fans. Ross Gload is a good defensive first baseman and he can play the outfield. But the Royals have a surplus of outfielders and Shealy blindfolded can hit better than Gload. There is no reason for Ross Gload to be anywhere on the Royals 25 man roster but I have no doubt he will be.

As spring training moves forward, I will post no more entries about whether Bloomquist and Gload should make the club. They are going to make it and it is time to move on to other issues. But if Willie Bloomquist is in the lineup and Ross Gload is on the 25 man roster on opening day, it is more proof that Dayton Moore is not the general manager that is going to assemble a contending team in Kansas City.

The First "Game" of the Spring

It was great to read the reports from Royals spring training this morning. After an active winter, there is finally on the field action to discuss. It was only an intrasquad game but Dick Kaegel's report that is posted on kcroyals.com and Bob Dutton's piece for the KC Star offer Royals fans first hand accounts of the action. Although both Kaegel and Dutton's reports accurately detail the happenings of the scrimmage neither offer any analysis. So, in the interest of fans that like to look below the surface, I will offer some random thoughts on the Royals first "game" of the spring.

Ryan Shealy and Ross Gload, players competing against each other for one of the final roster slots, hit homeruns. But, while Ross Gload was allowed to circle the bases after his ball left the yard, Ryan Shealy was held at first base to set up a runner on first-no out situation. According to Kaegel, "

"You don't see that every day," Shealy said....Normally you get to circle the bases. Instead, I had to try to break up a double play...." Sure enough, when Alex Gordon followed by rapping into a double play, Shealy had to slide into second base.

Even though it worked out and Shealy was able to work on breaking up a double play, the question remains why did manager Trey Hillman do this with Alex Gordon at the plate? This would have been the perfect opportunity to take advantage of the abilities of Willie Bloomquist. In order to practice breaking up a double play the hitter must hit a weak ground ball or two-hopper to an infielder. Willie Bloomquist is one of the best in the Major Leagues at hitting these types of balls and yet Hillman chose to use Gordon. Not the wisest use of personnel.

Former Salt Lake player Alberto Callaspo had two hits. Hillman described Callaspo's performance this way:

"He [Callaspo] had a couple of nice ABs," manager Trey Hillman said of Callaspo. "Bert can hit. I think he's one of those guys who can just hit getting out of bed."

The 2008 Royals finished 12th in the American League in runs scored and 12th in on-base-percentage. Heading into 2009 they have a player in Callaspo that is under contract for near the Major League minimum and the manager of the team says he can "hit getting out of bed." Yet Dayton Moore felt the need to sign Willie Bloomquist to a two-year contract to battle him for the position. I'm still waiting for an intelligent reason for the Bloomquist signing.

2008 Kansas City Royals First Baseman

Spring training is a time for baseball fans to be optimistic about their team. Sometimes the optimism can be misplaced, but Royals’ fans have legitimate reasons to be excited about the team. I don’t think any reasonable Royals fan believes Kansas City has a chance to win the AL Central in 2008. Cleveland and Detroit are two of the best teams in Major League Baseball and the Royals are not strong enough to over take either of them. But the Royals are finally starting to put together a core of players that can be the foundation of a contending team. The key question heading into 2008 is will Dayton Moore and Trey Hillman continue to be patient and allow the young players to play through their mistakes as they improve. My fear is they will sacrifice building for the future in an attempt to make a run at a .500 record in 2008. I would love for the Royals to win 80 games in 2008 but not at the expense of continuing to build for 2009 and beyond. The everyday first baseman will be an indication of whether the Royals are going to stay the course in building for the future.

Before discussing the Royals’ best options at first base, I want to emphatically state that Ross Gload should not be the Royals first baseman in 2008. Ross Gload should not even be in the discussion about who will start at first base for the Royals in 2008. By all accounts Gload is a nice guy, good teammate, and popular with the fans. He has been a decent player throughout his career but he has never established himself as anything more than a solid bench player. Ross Gload can be a valuable player to the Royals as their backup first baseman and late inning defensive replacement. But Gload should not be taking away at bats from younger players that have a chance to be a part of a contending team. If Ross Gload gets 400 at bats this season it will mean that Hillman and Moore are more interested in winning a few more games in 2008 and not going all out to build a contending team.

The best choice for the Royals would be to play Billy Butler at first base until he either learns the position or proves he will never be able to master it. Butler is going to be a huge run producer at the plate and one of the priorities for the Royals should be finding a position for him. Maybe Butler will always be a defensive liability and will have an Edgar Martinez type of career. But before deciding that Butler is going to be nothing but a DH the Royals should give him a chance to play in the field and first base is the logical choice.

Ryan Shealy is another option at first base. The Royals should not give up on Shealy and he should be given a chance in 2008. If Butler is going to DH Shealy would be an excellent choice to man first base. I became impressed with Shealy when the Omaha Royals played here in Salt Lake City last summer. In an empty AAA stadium, I watched him work hard in batting practice and pregame fielding drills. His was focused on getting himself back in shape and sharpening his skills to get back to the Major Leagues. I have seen many minor leaguers in the position Shealy was in and not all of them were as committed as he was. A player with this attitude and work ethic has a chance to succeed in the Major Leagues.

Mark Teahen could move to first base to free up an outfield spot for Joey Gathright. The Joey Gathright situation is a topic for another entry but if Gathright continues his torrid spring Teahen moving to first base could be an option. Another option relating to Gathright would be to move Teahen to third base and Alex Gordon first base. Interesting things can happen if Gathright makes the team.

Whether it is Butler, Shealy, Teahen or Gordon, the Royals have solid choices to fill the first base position in 2008 and beyond. I am looking forward to seeing if Butler can handle the position and if Shealy can bounce back from his injury plagued 2007 season. Hopefully the Royals will continue to go forward with young players and not take a step backward with Ross Gload.