MLB: Kansas City Royals at Cleveland Indians

The Royals Need a Hero

Cheslor Cuthbert and Mike Aviles have nothing in common.

Aviles, born in New York, was signed for $1,000 at the age of twenty-two after expending his college eligibility. Cuthbert, born in Nicaragua, signed for $1.3 million at the age of just sixteen.

An organizational afterthought, Aviles never generated much buzz (okay, no buzz) as a prospect, even to the point that he was left exposed to the Rule 5 draft… and not selected. Cuthbert, on the other hand, was always a prized prospect, even if his star slowly faded over time.

The two have nothing in common. Well, except for minor league track records of that, minus the names, would not catch anyone’s eye. Sure, they each had some moments:  Aviles hit .300/.352/.443 in Wilmington, Cuthbert slashed .280/.354/.418 at the same location nine years later and at three years younger.

In either career, however, neither put up the NUMBERS.  The Hosmer or Moustakas like domination or even, dare we say, a Justin Huber like season were not on either player’s resume.

Yet, as he embarked on his third season in Omaha, Mike Aviles went off.  He smashed 37 extra base hits in 51 games on his way to a .336/.370/.631 line before being promoted to Kansas City. He basically forced his way past the listless Tony Pena Jr. and hit a robust .325/.354/480 as a major league rookie.

Cheslor Cuthbert who, unlike Aviles, got a taste of the major leagues last year, also came alive to start his third season in Omaha. Through 24 games this season, Cuthbert hit .333/.402/.624 with 12 extra base hits and was promoted when Mike Moustakas went on the disabled list.

Am I predicting an ‘Aviles 2008′ season for Cuthbert?  I am not. As I started this column, there is no real similarity between the two than a few selected numbers on a spreadsheet.  I think it is possible that Cheslor does a capable job until Moose returns, but that will end when the Royals’ All-Star third baseman does make it back to action, no matter what Cuthbert does in the interim.

Could you imagine, however, if Kansas City were to get a month of hot hitting from Cuthbert?  Or, to go a step further, if someone were to emerge from Triple-A obscurity (Eibner, Martinez?) and ‘do an Aviles’?

Listen, the mental aspect of baseball is somehow both overstated and understated by pundits, fans and baseball insiders as well.  I don’t believe this team is resting on its laurels or even that they have lost their edge.  Kansas City is certainly not playing well or, excuse the term, even playing ‘the right way,’ and that is more a mental aspect than a lack of talent.  None of that will be solved by, say, throwing a handful of bats into the shower and shouting mean words.  Still, a little spark from an unexpected source could do this Royals team some good.

We could play with space and time and selectively insert the 2008 Mike Aviles into second base for the 2016 Royals, but that gets dicey.  He might run into himself on the road and then black holes would stop popping up in Shawnee Mission, but I digress.

Could a guy like Cuthbert, getting hot and playing out of his mind for month get this team back to playing at the level of which they are capable?  Or do they need a full Aviles to push them back into the team we expected them to be?

Logically, of course, maybe Kansas City just needs Kendrys Morales to get hot (among others) and they don’t need a great month from Cuthbert or a great season out of nowhere from a relative nobody.  Wait, what they really need is a starting pitcher not named Kennedy to pitch into the seventh inning.

Three good weeks from Cheslor Cuthbert, who really is not all that similar to Mike Aviles, won’t hurt, but probably will not solve the issues surrounding the Royals right now. Any evidence of the existence of the 2008 Mike Aviles disappeared somewhere towards the end of 2010 and a ready candidate to fill the role is no currently apparent.

The Royals need someone, known or unknown, on the roster or not, to propel them out of this funk.

They need a hero.

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