Kansas City Baseball Vault

The Royals were getting the magic back and then - boom - went on a tear.

Eric Hosmer and Lorenzo Cain started hitting like we think they can. The Royals made three improbably comebacks against Chicago, then ran over Tampa Bay. Now they're in first place.

But the performances of some of the guys called up to fill in for injured players has been the biggest boost. Alex Gordon, Mike Moustakas, and Salvador Perez out? No problem. Whit Merrifield, Brett Eibner, and Drew Butera - Drew Butera! - are here to help.

We also covered All Star Game voting and the absurdity of some of the columns that have reacted to early voting results.

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to [email protected].

BP Kansas City's Clint Scoles caught up with some Omaha Storm Chasers this week to get some additional insight into their season. 

He tracked down:
Mike Minor to talk about his rehab assignment's progressHunter Dozier to find out about any adjustments leading to his success in Triple-A so farChristian Binford to see what he's working on on the moundRonnie Richardson, Director of Minor League Operations, to learn more about some outfield work from Dozier and Double-A prospect Ryan O'Hearn, Jake Junis's big May for Northwest Arkansas, and how Chase Vallot in Lexington is progressing behind the plate.
Follow Clint Scoles on Twitter at @ClintScoles.Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to [email protected].

We were pleased to be joined by Jonah Keri, author of two great baseball books (The Extra 2% and Up, Up, and Away) and baseball writer for SI.com and CBSSports.com. 

Keri compared his preseason evaluation of the Royals to the team we watch today and discussed how clustering and regression have the Royals falling back a bit after a World Series title in 2015. He also added his impressions of the AL Central race and where the Royals sit in relation to the other teams the rest of the way.

He also talked about his fandom of Tim Raines and Andre Dawson and the balance of having a connection as a fan to players but still maintaining a professional relationship with those players. 

Just a reminder: Keri will be hosting a live podcast recording with Raines and Dawson on June 10th at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Also on hand during the night will be Sam Mellinger of the KC Star, Arturo Marcano of ESPN Deportes, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports, Darin Watson and Michael Engel of Baseball Prospectus Kansas City, and Max Rieper and Minda Haas Kuhlmann of Royals Review.

Tickets are available on HomestandSports.com for $25 *OR* $20 with the case-sensitive promo code “bpro”. Admission includes a year membership with the NLBM. (http://www.homestandsports.com/showslist/2016/6/10/pitch-talks-kansas-city)

Jonah Keri's work can be found at JonahKeri.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @jonahkeri.

A few weeks ago, the pattern was that most of the Royals lineup struggled and one or two players would be productive at a time. 

Now, though, some of those early struggling players are heating up in a big way and others have stepped up as well. As a result, the starting rotation has stabilized, the bullpen is back to its old tricks, and the lineup is doing better.

Jeff and Mike discussed the struggles of Kendrys Morales and (more recently) Eric Hosmer, the hot streaks of Lorenzo Cain and Salvador Perez, and the surprising first week of Whit Merrifield's career. In the process, we took an early snapshot of the AL Central and how the Royals measure up in relation to the White Sox, Indians, and Tigers.

Also, we shared info about two upcoming events.

First, the Westport Block Party (hosted by Kelly's Westport Inn and McCoy's) will be held on May 29 at 8 p.m. with tickets available on EventBrite for $10: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/westport-block-party-tickets-24781943460

Then, on June 10, Mike will be joining Darin Watson from Baseball Prospectus Kansas City at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum for an event featuring Jonah Keri and NLBM Hall of Game inductees Tim Raines and Andre Dawson. Tickets are available on HomestandSports.com for $25 *OR* $20 with the (case-sensitive) promo code "bpro". Admission includes a year membership with the NLBM. (http://www.homestandsports.com/showslist/2016/6/10/pitch-talks-kansas-city)

Follow us at @KCBaseballVault.

After a frustrating road trip to Cleveland and New York, the Royals got some wins against Atlanta and Boston and started to hit the ball a bit.

The starting rotation changed a bit but it was an effective change, as Danny Duffy and Dillon Gee threw good innings. 

So when the bats wake up and the pitching improves, it makes things more fun.

This week, we talked about all of these things: the hitting, the pitching, the future for Cheslor Cuthbert, the surprising move calling up Whit Merrifield and demoting Christian Colon, and the ever-growing legend of Eric Hosmer, who is mashing with regularity. 

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to [email protected].

The Royals have not played well.

The hitting is only starting to wake up, the defense has lagged at times, but mostly, the starting rotation has been a problem. The bad things were our focus this week, including the Raul Mondesi PED suspension.

Lorenzo Cain and Alex Gordon are heating up and Eric Hosmer's been great all season. Even Alcides Escobar is hitting a bit more now, and while Mike Moustakas went on the DL, Cheslor Cuthbert is filling in fine so far. Things are (hopefully) starting to turn around. The good things were also our focus this week, pulling ourselves out of the muck and into an optimistic place.

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to [email protected].

Thanks to Clint Scoles (@clintscoles on Twitter) for sharing audio of a brief interview he had with Assistant GM JJ Picollo from Omaha.

This week, we were thrilled to have the opportunity to catch up with Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Bob shared information about some of the upcoming events at the museum over the next month or so, including a celebration of Jackie Robinson's love of Kansas City and Jazz (May 6), Dressed to the Nines Day at Kauffman Stadium and the Salute to the Negro Leagues (May 15), and the Hall of Game inductions on June 11.

Bob talked about personality in baseball, Bryce Harper's visit to the museum, and the style of play embodied by Tim Raines, Andre Dawson, Orlando Cepeda, and Tony Oliva, the inductees to the NLBM Hall of Game. And he shared a couple stories about Oscar Charleston, Satchel Paige, and the late, great Buck O'Neil.

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to [email protected].

For more information about the Negro Leagues or the events at the museum, go to NLBM.com. Follow Bob Kendrick at @nlbmprez.

This week, we kept it brief (for us) and discussed the Royals' series against Detroit and Baltimore (and recalling their road series win in Houston) as a way to show how the Royals are not showing complacency early in the 2016 season as they defend their World Series crown. While half the offense is still finding their footing, a lot of the success has been due to a pitching staff that's been better than expected, with Yordano Ventura playing a central role. We discussed his adjustments and early successes as well.

 

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to [email protected].

This week, our first segment covered some of the ways the Royals aren't performing quite like we've grown accustomed to seeing and how it's making the fanbase slightly cranky. Or apoplectic. Depends on who you ask. And that's for a 9-4 (at the time of recording) team! What a country!

Our second segment veered a bit differently, as Jeff pitched a hypothetical player with a very special gift from the baseball gods, and Mike had to decide how best to use that player in a lineup.

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to [email protected].

This week, we discussed the Royals going right back to their comeback-winning ways.

We also discussed such hot-button topics like:
A Creative Bullpen Approach!
The First Turn Through the Rotation!
Alex Gordon's Defense!
Alex Gordon's Strikeouts!
Eric Hosmer's Similarities to Brandon Belt!
What Teams Do We Dislike??!

And much, much more...

Tune in next week. Same BP time, same BP channel.

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to [email protected].