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It’s time for our 4th Annual Over/Under Extravaganza And Pancake Luncheon. 

After covering some of the roster news, Jeff and Mike call out some numbers and discuss whether they think certain Royals will end up over or under that mark. Simple! For instance, Baseball Prospectus projects Alex Gordon to bat .239 this year. Over or under?

As in year’s past, the Vault also tossed out a couple of bold predictions about the Royals in 2018. Maybe we’re just crazy with a couple of these. You can let us know.

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.

While the Royals cut down the roster at big league camp, Jorge Bonifacio got suspended and will miss half the season.

Bonifacio’s suspension impacts playing time for a number of Royals we figure will be on the opening day roster, and we discuss those implications. We also looked at the first cuts in camp and what’s next for some key players, including Hunter Dozier’s first base adventure, and Bubba Starling’s injured oblique.

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 prevailing idea in baseball lately is that when your contending window closes, you carve it up and lose for a few years, but I guess nobody told Dayton Moore that.

A week after signing Lucas Duda to a one-year deal, the Royals signed outfielder Jon Jay to a one-year deal as well. And they signed Ricky Nolasco to a minor league deal. And – oh yeah – while we recorded this episode, news broke that they’d reached an agreement with Mike Moustakas as well.

So we discussed those moves and how they fit for the Royals in 2018 and their impact even beyond that. 

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.

In an effort to fill the gap left by Eric Hosmer, the Royals signed Lucas Duda to a one-year deal to play first base. But wait, what about Hunter Dozier?

We cover Duda’s deal and Dozier’s fate, as well as taking a big picture look at the roster and who’s safe to make the team out of spring training, and who might end up in Omaha. In the end, some of the guys who are out of options might get the advantage. We looked at the implications.

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.

In the past week, the Royals made a trade, sending Joakim Soria and Scott Alexander out and acquiring minor leaguers Trevor Oaks and Erick Mejia. We discuss.

We also revisit the re-signing of Alex Gordon, just a short two years ago. It’s…not that uplifiting, I’m afraid.

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.

So news finally popped up during this slow, cold offseason, as Bob Nightengale reported that the Royals offered Eric Hosmer a seven-year deal at $147 million. Not a bad deal for Hosmer in a rough first baseman market!

It seems that the Royals are competing with the Padres for Hosmer’s services, but Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star also reported that there has not been an offer. Jeff and Mike weighed the two reports and discussed the potential idea of that size of contract, plus its implications. They also talked about potential developments in the future for former Royals Alcides Escobar and Jason Vargas, who have hardly been mentioned this winter.

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.