A breed of player you don’t see much anymore is the catcher who also plays some corner infield and corner outfield spots. With today’s emphasis on having plenty of relief pitchers, I wonder if teams will try to find some catchers athletic enough to handle playing elsewhere. Such versatility could be useful, especially for a […]
Author: Darin Watson
The Dynasty That Wasn’t?
Here we are, at the end of the Royals’ championship window for this group of players. I know, the Royals have made some noise about re-signing their impending free agents, but I’ll believe that when I see it. Odds are, the key players are going to be too expensive, and at any rate there is […]
Another Look At The Royals’ (And Other Contenders’) Remaining Schedules
By capturing the last two games of their weekend series with Minnesota, the Royals kept their flickering playoff hopes alive. In fact, their margin is so slim that if they’d lost Saturday or Sunday, I might not have bothered putting this together. They may not have much of a shot, and their likely reward for […]
Saying Bye-Bye To Balboni’s Record
When you’re at the tender age of eight or so, picking your favorite baseball player is serious business. Of course you want a good player, so you may win any playground arguments that come along. It helps if the choice has some sort of noticeable calling card: an odd batting stance, an unusual pitching motion, […]
U.L.’s Toothpick: What If…The Royals Had Switched Leagues?
Twenty years ago this summer, the Royals had a chance to move to the National League. The addition of expansion teams in Arizona and Tampa Bay meant one league needed 16 teams, as interleague play was so new no one knew if it would have staying power, and as we see today, two 15-team leagues […]
A Look At The Royals’ (And Other Contenders’) Remaining Schedules
If you had asked me in April, I would have said there was no way we would be discussing this sort of thing. But the Royals got back in the race, gradually and then suddenly, and here we are. With two months to go, it’s time to once again examine the remaining schedule for Kansas […]
Selling Now Would Be A Mistake For Royals
At the beginning of the 2017 season, the Royals went through an offensive funk you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy. Well, maybe the Yankees. Anyway, the drumbeat began then, increasing in volume with every strikeout, popup, and weak grounder. Sell. Sell. Sellsellsell! After 30 games, the Royals were 10-20 and had scored a grand […]
U.L.’s Toothpick: The Year Of The Card–Dick Drago, 1970
When the Royals participated in the 1968 expansion draft, their emphasis was on pitching. Five of their first seven picks were pitchers, and their starting rotation for the 1969 season came entirely from that expansion draft. As expansion teams go, it wasn’t a bad rotation; all five starters had a positive WARP and the team […]
U.L.’s Toothpick: The Best And Worst Drafts In Royals History
It’s a cliché, but it’s true: for a small-market team like the Royals, the amateur draft is the lifeblood of the franchise. The opportunity to get young talent at a greatly reduced cost is vital to any organization, especially one that rarely has the wherewithal to buy top free agents. Of course, the draft isn’t […]
U.L.’s Toothpick: What If…The Royals Faced Boston In The 1978 ALCS?
The 1978 ALCS is probably the least-remembered of the four playoff matchups the Royals had with the Yankees in the 1976-1980 period. That’s probably because it lacked an indelible image like Yankee fans mobbing Chris Chambliss (and keeping him from touching home plate—that game ain’t over!) after his walk-off home run in 1976 Game Five, […]