Baseball Prospectus Kansas City

Full Speed Ahead (BP Kansas City Episode 63)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/kansascitybaseballvault/2017/07/06/full-speed-ahead-bp-kansas-city-episode-63.mp3 This week, we marveled at the homerun hitting power of Mike Moustakas and the All-Star invitations given to Sal Perez and Jason Vargas. Then there’s that little matter of the Royals jumping into a wild card spot and being within a game and a half of first place. Oh, also Danny Duffy returned a […]

Moves on Moves (BP Kansas City Episode 62)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/kansascitybaseballvault/2017/06/29/moves-on-moves-bp-kansas-city-episode-62.mp3 The Royals were busy this week, going above .500, going back under .500, and shifting guys around. We discussed Danny Duffy’s rehab start and his timeline to return. We discussed Nate Karns going to the 60-day disabled list. We discussed Jorge Soler coming up while Cheslor Cuthbert went on the DL and we discussed […]

Let’s Get Crazy (BP Kansas City Episode 61)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/kansascitybaseballvault/2017/06/22/lets-get-crazy-bp-kansas-city-episode-61.mp3 Hours after Salvador Perez hit a game-winning grand slam against Boston, Jeff and Mike talked about the Royals’ improved play since the start of May and if it’s too crazy to buy into a potential playoff run. We discussed home run paces, the next couple months of schedules, and how weird and fun it […]

Interview: Lonnie Goldberg, Royals Director of Scouting, Talks With Clint Scoles

How about some bonus content? With the MLB Draft concluded, Clint Scoles tracked down Lonnie Goldberg, the Royals’ Director of Scouting, to talk about the 2017 draft, a few key players, some sleepers, and how these future Royals fit in within the rest of the farm system.

It’s interesting insight into a bit of the Royals’ process and the kinds of players they were looking for in this year’s draft pool.

You can find more of Clint Scoles’s minor league and draft work at Baseball Prospectus Kansas City, and by following him at @ClintScoles on Twitter.

Follow the Vault at @KCBaseballVault. Follow host Jeff Herr at @TheJeffReport, co-host Michael Engel at @michaelengel. You can also email feedback to KansasCityBaseballVault@gmail.com. Email us a question and if we answer it on the air, we’ll send you a gift certificate to our friends at Kelly’s Westport Inn.

The Draft, Plus Strahm’s Shot and Moose’s Balboni Chase (BPKC Episode 60)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/kansascitybaseballvault/2017/06/15/the-draft-plus-strahms-shot-and-mooses-balboni-chase-bpkc-episode-60.mp3 The Royals have been playing well and scoring runs finally. A big part of that has been the power bat of Mike Moustakas. We discussed his continuing chase for Steve Balboni’s club record of 36 homers in a season, including some thoughts on his future past the trade deadline. We also talked about Matt […]

Deep Thoughts (BP Kansas City Episode 59)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/kansascitybaseballvault/2017/06/08/deep-thoughts-bp-kansas-city-episode-59.mp3 After the Royals came back against Houston to win on Tuesday, it felt a little more like the recent Hey Day of the Dayton Moore era than what we’ve seen so far in 2017. The game also highlighted the improved performance of late of Whit Merrifield, Eric Hosmer, and others. On top of that, […]

Fidgeting Into Summer (BP Kansas City Episode 58)

Danny Duffy went on the DL. He’s unlikely to return until near the trade deadline. This team may look quite different when he returns.

We discussed Duffy’s injury and what it means, especially for this point in the season and where the Royals sit in the standings. A tough hill to climb just got tougher.

There have been a couple of bright spots, though. Eric Skoglund stepped in and did an admirable job in his MLB debut (and at the end of the show, we share some audio courtesy of our own Clint Scoles from Skoglund’s final Omaha start before getting called up, a nine strikeout game on May 22). Whit Merrifield is playing great, and Jorge Bonifacio is stepping up with power and patience.

Nonetheless, the Royals have a lot of work to do and some tough questions to answer while Duffy is away.

Rough Waves Ahead (BP Kansas City Episode 57)

The Royals passed the quarter pole of the 2017 season and so far have been consistently inconsistent.

The rough patches have them looking up at the rest of the American League and there’s a lot of work to do to turn it around. Can they? It’s going to take some help but that help may only be in the form of the current roster turning it around.

Otherwise…in a few weeks, we may be talking about trades and rebuilding.

On that note, we also talked about acquiring prospects via trade vs. in the draft, and the Royals rough draft track record.

Smoke and Mirrors (BP Kansas City Episode 56)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/kansascitybaseballvault/2017/05/11/smoke-and-mirrors-bp-kansas-city-episode-56.mp3 The Royals have hit a little better in May but Ned Yost is still working on how to jumpstart the offense. So he went back to an old trick and put Alcides Escobar at leadoff. We talked about “Esky Magic” and why it’s silly if you’re taking it seriously. After the break, we talked […]

Oh Player, Some Day We’ll Get It Together (BP KC Episode 55)

Well there are signs of some life on the Royals, but they’re still digging their way out of early season slumps and futility.

We discussed some of the recent bright spots, like an Eric Hosmer hitting streak and Jorge Soler’s performance in Triple A (and pending recall from a rehab assignment). We talked about Lorenzo Cain and picking favorites. We talked about the division’s makeup as of May 4th.

But mostly, we looked for any reassurance about this season and if there’s some way to climb out and go on a run. It’s been discouraging, so we looked for inspiration from a unique source.