Let’s start with that.

The biggest addition to the September roster is going to be Wade Davis, who pitched a perfect rehab inning with the Storm Chasers and did so on 15 pitches, 13 of them strikes. That’s solid. Adding him to a bullpen performing so well already will make that unit as good as its been all season. Being able to push down the back of the bullpen will allow the Royals to turn games into five or six inning affairs with the starting rotation. The starters have been great lately, but with that deep of a bullpen, Ned Yost may not have to push quite as hard.

The bullpen will likely also include a few guys who have seen big league time this season. That means Scott Alexander, Brooks Pounders and maybe Alec Mills will return. None are impact pitchers, but they can all help the staff soak up some innings and maybe even get some big outs along the way.

Edit: Scott Alexander was called up prior to the series finale against the Yankees after Chien-Ming Wang was placed on the disabled list. He won’t be a September call-up after all. 

Edit 2: And now Pounders has been called up as well with Christian Colon getting caught in the roster crunch and heading to Omaha until their season ends on September 5th. 

What I’m most curious about in the bullpen (or maybe the rotation) is how the Royals handle Kris Medlen and Jason Vargas. I didn’t expect Vargas to even have a shot to pitch in the big leagues this year, but his rehab clock is up on September 6, so the Royals will either have to take him off the disabled list or pull him from his rehab stint. He hasn’t been very good with a 7.88 ERA in two Omaha starts, but he might be up in spite of that. The decision on Medlen doesn’t have to come until September 15, but that’s still before end of the season. Like Vargas, he wasn’t very good in his first couple appearances in Omaha, but he has three scoreless innings in his last two outings in relief, so maybe he can contribute.

One other name on the pitching staff to watch for is Nick Tepesch. He’s nothing special, but is a live arm. Of course, if he is DFA’d to make room for someone else on the 40-man, he won’t be part of the conversation, so just keep him in mind.

We could also potentially see Miguel Almonte, but man has he been rough this year. I’m not so sure the Royals will get him to the big leagues, possibly opting just to get this season behind him as fast as possible.

Offensively, I imagine we’ll see some guys we’ve seen before in Kansas City as well, assuming health. Whit Merrifield, Tony Cruz and Reymond Fuentes are all good bets to be up next month. We likely won’t see much of Cruz, but Fuentes and Merrifield could play decent-sized roles. We’ll also see Terrance Gore get to be a big leaguer for the third straight September (and he’s seen time before September, so he fits here).

A couple players are on the 40-man roster, but haven’t seen big league time. One has had a very nice season while the other, well, hasn’t. Jorge Bonifacio has had the nice season, hitting for a decent average and a lot of power. Reports are that he’s looked a little better defensively as well, so that’s a plus. I don’t see a reason not to call him up, but the Royals have done that before. The other is Bubba Staring who has had a less than good season between Double and Triple-A. I suppose they could call him up to play defense and run the bases, but I also wouldn’t count on that.

Oh. And Ramon Torres, a middle infielder, is on the 40-man roster. I mean, I guess he could get called up and play some defense or something. Anyway, moving on.

There are two players not currently on the 40-man who have a shot to be on the September roster. One is the guy they acquired just two days ago, Daniel Nava. I don’t think he’ll be an impact bat or anything, but it wouldn’t hurt to have a veteran who can draw a walk. No, Yost doesn’t pitch hit, but maybe he can go up there for Gore after Gore pinch ran for Kendrys Morales. The other is Hunter Dozier, who has had a monster year between Northwest Arkansas and Omaha. He’ll have to be added to the 40-man roster anyway after the season, so the Royals could just do that now if they want to. Of course, there are some roster maneuvers needed to make that happen, but there’s pretty much always a way. I’d like to see Dozier get a shot personally.

So those are your callups.

Since all we can think about now is what the Royals have to do to make the playoffs, let’s take a look at how that can happen. With the recent trends, I’m not sure they actually have to get to 90 wins to take the second Wild Card. Still, let’s pretend like that’s the case. With last night’s loss, the Royals need to finish 21-9 to get there. With 18 home games out of 30, that certainly helps. With 14 games left against teams below .500 and 12 games against the Tigers/Indians, they have a shot to make up that ground.

I’ve said this many times, but I’ll repeat it here because that’s okay to do. If they just win every single series without sweeping one, they’ll get to 90 wins. Not that it’s easy, but it certainly seems like something that could happen. If they don’t win every series, they’ll need to find a sweep somewhere or hope that 90 wins really isn’t the number they need.

I would think it would be very difficult to win all nine series they have remaining. They’ll need to take both against Detroit, I’d think, but they can probably stand to lose a series against the Indians if they can really go to town during their 14-game stretch against the Twins, White Sox and A’s. When I say go to town, I mean something like 12-2. That would allow them to just go 9-7 in the other 16 games, which seems like a very real possibility.

So yeah, go ahead and beat the Yankees, but September is where the fun happens. I have visions of Gore scoring from first on singles and Davis closing out games and Bonifacio maybe even hitting a big home run. We’ve done the Septembers with nothing to play for. The way the Royals do it now is much more fun.

HR Roll Call Nicky Lopez (6), Boo Vazquez (2)

BP KC Hitter of the Day – Reymond Fuentes 3-4 3b, 3 RBI

BP KC Pitcher of the Day – Josh Staumont 5 IP 7 H 1 R 1 ER 2 BB 10 K 1-2 GO-FO 84p/55k

Iowa Cubs 6 Omaha Storm Chasers 5

The Chasers scored five runs in the first five innings with Reymond Fuentes doing plenty of lifting prior before Iowa put on a comeback. A triple in the first, a single in the second and another single in the fourth by Fuentes plated three of Omaha’s five runs on the way to a 4-1 lead. After giving up a run in the second inning starter Jake Junis got dinged for five consecutive hits to start the inning, allowing four runs in that time. With the game tied at 5-5 Nick Tepesch gave up a run in the sixth and the Chasers couldn’t mount another comeback in falling 6-5.

Boxscore Link

Dusty Coleman 1-3 2R, 2b, BB
Jake Junis 4 IP 7 H 5 R 5 ER 0 BB 4 K 3-1 GO-FO 68p/47k
Jorge Bonifacio 1-2 R, RBI, 2 BB

Springfield Cardinals 2 NW Arkansas Naturals 1

For the second night in a row the Cardinals beat the Naturals with a run late. Despite the loss the Naturals starter Josh Staumont was solid in his five innings, navigating around seven hits and a pair of walks as he was able to control the strikezone. Hitting that zone with 55 strikes in 84 pitches the righty struck out 10 while on the mound. The Naturals plated a run in the second inning, but went just 1 for 11 with runners in scoring position to drop the game after a two out error in the eighth scored a run for Springfield. Despite the loss the Naturals stayed a half game ahead of Arkansas heading into their three game series starting Saturday.

Boxscore Link

Samir Duenez 1-4 2b
Frank Schwindel 2-4 R
Corey Toups 1-5 4K

Myrtle Beach Pelicans 5 Wilmington Blue Rocks 0

Things didn’t start well for Matt Tenuta with five runs in the first inning after giving up six hits including three doubles to the first six hitters he faced. From there he and the rest of the bullpen settled things down the final eight innings. Unfortunately those runs were more than enough for a win as the Rocks could put together just three hits in the loss.

Boxscore Link

Anderson Miller 1-4
Robert Pehl 1-3 Bb, SB (2)
Matt Tenuta 5 IP 8 H 5 R 5 ER 2 BB 3 K 5-3 85p/52k

Delmarva Shorebirds 6 Lexington Legends 1

The Legends starter struggled in his time on the hill while the offense couldn’t get much done in their Friday loss. Dominican born Yunior Marte gave up six runs in just five innings as he allowed eight hits and a pair of walks with runs in the second, third and fourth innings. The Legends had just six hits on the day with Roman Collins accounting for three of those with the only run driven in. The loss was the Legends fourth in their last five games played.

Boxscore Link

Roman Collins 3-5 RBI
Jecksson Flores 1-3 R
Mark McCoy 3 IP 2 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 2 K

Idaho Falls Chukars 8 Orem Owlz 6

The Chukars used nine hits and seven walks on the way to eight runs and a victory. In addition to all the baserunners Idaho Falls stole five bases to push across enough runs despite a 4 for 17 performance with runners in scoring position. A big three run seventh inning was the big blow for the Chukars as Angelo Castellano tripled in a pair of runs prior to scoring on a Ryan Dale single.

Boxscore Link

Meibrys Viloria 1-4 2R, BB
Joe Dudek 2-3 2R, 2-2b, RBI, 2BB
Arnaldo Hernandez 5 IP 6 H 3 R 3 ER 3 BB 3 K 5-3 GO-FO 79p/46k

Elizabethton Twins 7 Burlington Royals 6

The Royals bullpen couldn’t close the door on a pair of leads to have their six game winning streak snapped. A pair of home runs helped Burlington build a 5-2 lead with Boo Vazquez’s three run shot in the fifth being the big blow. Unfortunately starter Ofreidy Gomez gave up four runs in his five innings prior to relievers Alex Close and Vance Tatum giving up three runs in the final four innings to drop the game by a run. Despite the loss the Royals didn’t lose a game in the standings.

Boxscore Link

Nicky Lopez 2-5 HR
Chris DeVito 3-5 R, 2b, RBI
Boo Vazquez 1-4 HR, 3 RBI, BB

AZL Rangers 5 AZL Royals 2

The Royals may have picked a poor time to fall into a losing streak, dropping their fourth game in a row to see their division lead shrunk to just 1.5 games. The Royals plated a pair of runs in the first inning before starter Rex Hill gave up three runs in the second on the way to dropping the game.

Boxscore Link

Khalil Lee 2-4 R, 3b, RBI
Cal Jones 1-4 R
Jeremy Gwinn 1.1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 2 K

DSL Royals 6 DSL Rays1 2

The Royals kept their winning ways going with a six run shortened win. A four run sixth inning broke things open for the Royals with three singles to start the inning before a groundout and a wild pitch finished off the scoring. The best pitching staff in the DSL allowed just two unearned runs to trim the deficit in the division to two games with two games to play.

Boxscore Link

Dennicher Carrasco 2-3 2R
Jose Caraballo 2-3 2R, RBI
Cristian Perez 2-2 2b, 2 RBI

HR Roll Call: Chase Vallot (10), Logan Nottebrok (2)

BP KC Hitter of the Day – David Edwards 3-4, 2R,  3-2b, 3 RBI

BP KC Pitcher of the Day – A.J. Puckett 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 6-2 GO-FO, 73/44

Salt Lake Bees 2 Omaha Storm Chasers 0

The Chasers ran into a buzzsaw in their first game back from the All Star break. Angels left-hander Tyler Skaggs mowed them down over seven innings, striking out 14 hitters while allowing just a Reymond Fuentes first inning single. Royals pitcher Alec Mills kept pace for a bit, tossing five scoreless innings, but couldn’t get through the sixth without damage. It was a pair of solo home runs that ended his night with two runs allowed in his 5.2 innings. That would be the only scoring done on the night with Omaha dropping the first game back and Hunter Dozier’s hitting streak snapped at nine games.

Boxscore Link

Raul Mondesi 0-4, 3 K
Reymond Fuentes 1-4
Alec Mills 5.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 6 K, 4-3 GO-FO, 105/65

NW Arkansas Naturals 3 Springfield Cardinals 0

The Cardinals were able to collect hits off Jake Junis on Thursday, but the Texas League All Star was able to maneuver around threats to toss plenty of zeroes on the board. Seven hits and a walk were thwarted by Junis over his six innings with seven ground outs and four strikeouts as he navigated around base runners in all six innings. The offense rewarded Junis’ high-wire act with a win, thanks to single tallies in the fourth thru sixth innings. His batterymate Cam Gallagher drove in Ryan O’Hearn twice with hits in the fourth and sixth. Relievers Aroni Nina and Mark Peterson finished off the final three innings with the pair striking out four and not allowing a hit.

Boxscore Link

Corey Toups 1-3, RBI – hits in 17 of his last 18 games
Cam Gallagher 2-2, 2b, 2 RBI, BB
Aroni Nina 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, 2-1 GO-FO, 25/16

Salem Red Sox 5 Wilmington Blue Rocks 3

Wilmington could mount offense in just one inning while falling short in Salem in game two of their series with the Red Sox. A three-run sixth inning pushed Wilmington within a run after starter Zach Lovvorn allowed four runs in his five innings, but the offense couldn’t get anything going in the final three innings. Over those final innings the Rocks placed just one hitter on the bases to mount little in terms of resistance.

Boxscore Link

Samir Duenez 1-4, R, 2b, 2 RBI
Wander Franco 2-3, R, 2b
Brandon Downes 3-4, R, 2-2b

Kannapolis Intimidators 4 Lexington Legends 2

The Legends received solid starting pitching from A.J. Puckett but couldn’t get the same effort from a reliever in dropping the finale and missing out on a chance to sweep Kannapolis. Puckett worked five scoreless, striking out five while navigating around four hits and two walks before leaving with a lead on a limited pitch count. Reliever Daniel Concepcion pitched a perfect sixth before running into trouble in the seventh, allowing four runs to come across as the first five hitters reached. Ben Johnson doubled in a run in the eighth, but they could get no closer the rest of the way to drop the finale of the series. The RBI for Johnson was his second of the game and his sixth in the series, driving in two in each game.

Boxscore Link

Ben Johnson 2-3, 2b, 2 RBI
Amalani Fukofuka 1-3, R, 2b
A.J. Puckett 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 6-2 GO-AO, 73/44

Idaho Falls Chukars 9 Helena Brewers 3

The league’s second leading offense pounded out 11 hits to score nine and earn a 2016 draftee his first pro win. The first six hitters in the lineup pressured the Brewers pitchers, scoring all the runs while reaching base 12 times, with David Edwards doing the most work. The Idaho Falls first baseman scored two runs and drove in three more to pace the offense. Starter Jace Vines earned his first professional win, tossing five innings while allowing three runs on eight hits and a walk in that time. Three pitchers teamed to finish off the final four innings scoreless to earn the win in the series for Idaho Falls who will seek a sweep of the series tomorrow.

Boxscore Link

Yeison Melo 2-3, R, 2 RBI
Rudy Martin 1-4, 2R, BB, 2SB (4)
Jace Vines 5 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 8-1 GO-AO, 72/43

Burlington Royals 5 Johnson City Cardinals 4

An error in the seventh led to a three-run inning for the Cardinals, costing the Royals starter a win, but the team rebounded to earn a tie in the series. A Logan Nottebrok home run in the bottom half of the inning broke the tie to give the Royals the lead back. Two run innings in the fourth and fifth gave Burlington a lead with Nottebrok scoring in that fifth after reaching on an error. Starter Geoffrey Bramblett pitched well, but missed out on a win, having finished his work at five innings and a run allowed.

Boxscore Link

Geoffrey Bramblett 5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 5-3 GO-AO
Nicky Lopez 1-3, R, BB
Nathan Esposito 2-3, 2b, 2 RBI

AZL Cubs 8 AZL Royals 2

The Royals had trouble making contact in this one, striking out 15 times in the loss. Glenn Sparkman gave up four runs in four innings on six hits while new Royal Anthony Bender struggled in his first Arizona appearance, allowing four runs in 1.2 innings. Catcher Chase Vallot homered in his second straight game.

Boxscore Link

Chase Vallot 1-4, HR, 3K
Glenn Sparkman 4 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 7-2 GO-AO
Jeison Guzman 1-4, R, 3b

DSL Royals 7 DSL Astros 2

The Royals were helped along by the Astros and their 10 walks allowed to continue their winning ways. They plated seven runs despite a 2 for 16 effort with runners in scoring position with shortstop Christan Perez driving in four runs. Perez drove in a run in the second inning on a groundout, two more in the sixth with a bases loaded double and then a fourth in the seventh inning with a bases loaded walk.

Boxscore Link

Christian Perez 2-3, 2b, 4 RBI, 2 BB
Raymond Lopez 1-3, R, 2 BB
Darwin Feliz 4 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 3-2 GO-AO

BP KC Hitter of the Day – Frank Schwindel 3-4, 2R, RBI

BP KC Pitcher of the Day – Jonathan Dziedzic 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, 3-8 GO-FO, 90p/57k 

New Orleans Zephyrs 4 Omaha Storm Chasers 2 

Chasers pitching limited the Zephyrs to just six hits Wednesday. Unfortunately four of them left the yard, leading the club their seventh consecutive loss to New Orleans. Starter Jonathan Dziedzic used a minor change in his delivery to work through six one-hit innings while navigating around three walks. He was helped by a south breeze that kept a couple balls from the leaving the yard. Dziedzic was pulled in the seventh following a solo home run and things got sloppy from there. After getting a ground out, reliever Kevin McCarthy quickly gave up back to back home runs to turn what was a Omaha 2-1 lead into a 3-2 deficit. Following a scoreless eighth, Scott Alexander gave up the Zephyrs fourth solo home run to extend the deficit to two. While New Orleans was doing home run damage, the Chasers were doing very little after scoring a pair of runs in the first. They waste one out doubles in the third and fourth and went hitless from the sixth inning on. Omaha is now just 9-23 since Whit Merrifield’s promotion to the major leagues.

Boxscore Link 

Jorge Bonifacio 1-3, RBI, BB
Reymond Fuentes 2-3, R, 2b, BB
Jon Dziedzic 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, 3-8 GO-FO, 90p/57k

NW Arkansas Naturals 8 Arkansas Travelers 6

More offense for the Naturals to finish off the Travelers and earn a split in the series and a 2-0 start to the 2nd half of the season. Each Naturals hitter had at least one hit on the day with team banging out 13 singles, a Terrance Gore RBI triple and a pair of walks. The game was a back and forth effort with the Travelers tying the Naturals on two different occasions and getting within a run late, but NW Arkansas answered each time. Starter Jake Junis was improved over his last start versus Arkansas, but wasn’t good enough to earn the win as he left with just a one run lead that the Naturals couldn’t hold. Junis allowed four runs in 5.1 innings, giving up a pair in the third inning on three well-placed Arkansas hits, two of which reached the outfield off the gloves of Naturals fielders, while the third was an infield job that went off Junis. A Logan Moon two-run single with the bases loaded in the seventh gave NW Arkansas a final lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.

Boxscore Link

Alex Gordon 1-4, 2R, BB
Frank Schwindel 3-4, 2R, RBI
Terrance Gore 2-4, R, 3b, RBI

Idaho Falls Chukars 5 Orem Owlz 4 

The Chukars used quality early pitching and a four-run fifth inning to jump ahead and hang on for a win against Orem in the third game of their series. Trailing 1-0, the Chukars put together four consecutive one-out singles in front of a Yeison Melo triple to take a 4-1 lead. Starter Matt Portland struggled with the zone most of the night, walking five, but worked through five innings with just one run allowed thanks to six groundouts and four K’s. The Chukars would answer a Owlz run with one of their own via a Melo sac fly in the seventh. After reliever Sam Lewis gave up two more runs in the eighth, Idaho Falls turned things over to Reinaldo Cepin who quickly finished off the victory.

Boxscore Link

Yeison Melo 2-3, 2R, 3b, 2 RBI
Tanner Stanley 2-3, R, 2b, RBI
Matt Portland 5 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 4 K, 6-1 GO-FO, 72p/37k

AZL Rangers 5 AZL Royals 3

Royals second round pick A.J. Puckett made his minor league debut Wednesday night in Arizona, tossing three innings while giving up a pair of unearned runs. Sketchy defense behind Puckett cost him baserunners in the first and third, when shortstop Jeison Guzman made errors in both innings. Puckett was able to work around the problems in the first but gave up a pair of singles in the third to allow two runs. Fourth rounder Jace Vines didn’t fair so well, giving up a pair of runs on three hits in the sixth to put the Royals down 4-0. It took until the seventh for the blue squad to collect their first hit, a John Brontsema single that lead to their first run when he stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error before eventually coming home on a groundout. The Royals would tally two more runs in the eighth before falling short on their comeback bid.

Boxscore Link

A.J. Puckett 3 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, WP, 4-3 GO-FO
Khalil Lee 1-4, R, 2b, BB
Robby Rinn 1-3, 2b, BB, RBI

DSL Royals 3 DSL Rays 1

The Royals used the most of their four hits combining two of them in the fourth inning with a pair of walks to score three runs and take a victory. Juan Peguero had the big knock in the inning, connecting on a one-out triple that plated two runs and left him in scoring position to score on a Rubendy Jacquez single. Those runs were enough for Enderson Rodriguez and Joel De La Cruz to finish off the win as the pair allowed just one run over nine innings.

Boxscore Link

Joel De La Cruz 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K
Juan Peguero 2-3, R, 3b, 2 RBI
Cristian Perez 1-3, R, BB

The past two seasons the Royals have taken a couple different approaches to the deadline which both paid off in different way. The 2014 squad added just Jason Frasor to add depth to the bullpen and later Josh Willingham to help the team end a playoff run before coming up 90 feet short of glory. Last year’s moves hurt; four pitchers who have pitched in major league rotations led to two studs and the world championship that Dayton Moore had dreamed about when he took the job.

What will the move in 2016 be? For most in the Royals community, it doesn’t appear on the surface that the Royals have much to trade but they do have one Top 25-30 prospect talent combined with a few positional players who have rebuilt their value and a few pitchers who could be nice additional pieces in a move.

Via @kylezimmer11

Positional Pieces

The Royals strength here stands out. Last July trade deadline, very few position players traded jerseys as no key position players were flipped in any of the David Price, Johnnny Cueto or Yoenis Cespedes rental deals last year. The only major position players flipped came in the Cole Hamels deal, which was more than just a rental. If the Royals are willing to flip positional pieces, they could get a better rental than what experts currently think.

1. Raul Mondesi – The emergence of Whit Merrifield has opened the eyes of fans, broadcasters and I would guess a few members of the front office. The other thing that it has done is it’s assured that the Royals will not be forced to move their #1 prospect up the chain to play second base prior to when he’s ready to be in the majors. With Whit’s emergence, it could be interesting to see how much, if any, second base Mondesi will play after the end of his suspension in July. Prior to the suspension, Mondesi had played about one-fourth of his games at second since June of last year, but I doubt we see that going forward.

Trade Value – Mondesi is the piece that could help the Royals compete with deeper farms systems in Chicago, Boston and Cleveland to acquire the #1 starter that they need.

2. Hunter Dozier – The big third baseman struggled for a pair of seasons at Double-A, but made some changes in his swing mechanics and stance that allowed him to get to his power. With Moustakas and Cheslor Cuthbert possibly ahead of him on the third base roster Dozier has played in left field to increase his versatility and options for teams and to the Royals in the future.

Trade Value – Not a cornerstone piece but a valuable addition to any deal.

3. Jorge Bonifacio – Much like Dozier, Bonifacio has begun to rebuild his value after a pair of down seasons, showing power to all fields and playing with more speed than he exhibited in the past year plus. Having just turned 23 this month, Bonifacio at Triple-A isn’t behind the curve that some people, myself included, believed prior to the season.

Trade Value – Similar value to Dozier’s

4. Brett Eibner – He’s athletic and offers a team upside power and speed. A true corner outfielder with a big time arm. His age is a negative and the fact that the Royals and others with Rule 5 picks have passed multiple times.

Trade Value – Is a major league audition enough to turn heads in the game to think he can be a valuable second piece?

5. Reymond Fuentes – the bat looks competent, the speed is there to be solid on the bases and maybe even play an average center field defense in the majors or perhaps a plus corner if a team can iron out the wrinkles.

Trade Value – 2nd piece in a smaller deal or 3rd/4th piece in a bigger deal.

6. Ryan O’Hearn – the bat appears to be solid and enough to carry 1st base but the defense lacks there and even with athleticism he doesn’t have the speed to play outfield.

Trade Value – a nice 2nd or 3rd piece.

Lower level additions
Chase Vallot – big time power would be intriguing to teams.
Alfredo Escalera – young with solid hit tool and athleticism
Anderson Miller – gliding smooth athlete who is starting to hit at Low-A

Pitchers

The Royals lack here after trading away so many starters last year but with the ability to trade draft picks the Royals could offer a few intriguing options.

7. A.J. Puckett – As the 67th pick, he’s not likely able to carry a trade but if a team is desperate for a pitching prospect to be included in a deal then the Royals could look to toss him into a deal. A team that had him rated highly on their board won’t be able to see the negatives that other Royals pitchers bring to the table.

Trade Value – Package option

Alec Mills Debut 5/18/16 Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

8. Alec Mills – He doesn’t profile as a top of the rotation starter, but all he has done for the past year plus is succeed. Like Puckett, the negatives aren’t there for teams to see and if he can continue to pitch well at Triple-A maybe Mills turns enough heads to be a second cog in a trade.

Trade Value – Package option

9. Matt Strahm – Like Mills, he has excelled and who wouldn’t want a lefty arm that throws 95+? The changeup needs refinement, but a team could easily see a major league starter or elite bullpen piece.

Trade Value – Package option

10. Miguel Almonte – He has been hurt, but the pitches are there and another team could see things that need to be ironed out to make an effective starter. If he’s not a starter, then the talent is definitely there to see a young controllable reliever that could stick as an 8th or even 9th inning option.

Trade Value – Package option

Lower level additions
Josh Staumont – big big arm a team may thing they can iron out
Ashe Russell – doesn’t have the negatives of most due to lack of pitching
Kyle Zimmer – another team may want to take a lottery ticket on the backend of a deal.

Ultimately the Royals don’t have the top end package to go out and nab a #1 starter for multiple years (Cole Hamels) but with the addition of Mondesi, they have more than enough to nab a rental. A package of Mondesi, Bonifacio/Dozier and a pitcher seems more than fair for a Julio Teheran or even Sonny Gray and his injuries this year. Should the Royals make that deal? After 30 years of no playoffs and a couple extremely fun Octobers with a window that could be closing soon, it might not be a bad thing to strike while they’re hot.

To replace Moose on the roster, the team recalled Brett Eibner. The 27-year old outfielder has been crushing Pacific Coast League pitching for the second consecutive season, to the tune of a .948 OPS and 10 dingers. He has enough range to play center field capably, the arm to handle right field, and has a handful of games’ worth of experience in left field, so he’ll be able to help out all over, while also providing a bit of insurance at designated hitter, if Morales’ injury and/or struggles continue to linger. At least, the Royals hope he’ll help out and provide that insurance. The nice thing is, they don’t need to rely solely on Eibner.

Obviously the injury to Moustakas is bad. There is nothing good about losing an All-Star third baseman for the last four months of the regular season, along with any potential playoff games. The Royals’ offense was scuffling enough with Moose in the lineup, and now they need to find some production from someone else.

But if there is anything that may eventually lead to something positive here, it’s the timing. The trade deadline is still two months away, which gives the organization plenty of time to evaluate their situation. I doubt they become sellers at the deadline, because they could just as easily hold tight and reload for 2017 with the idea that everyone will be back and healthy.

These next two months will determine if a big move will be needed, and how big that move will need to be. The Royals have several internal options that they can give at-bats to before they feel like they have pursue someone like Jay Bruce or Josh Reddick.

For the time being, Cheslor Cuthbert will hold down the fort at the hot corner, with Whit Merrifield also getting a little bit of time. Eibner will work in with Paulo Orlando and Jarrod Dyson at the corner outfield spots, along with Merrifield.

Let’s say Cuthbert’s hitting isn’t improving like the team expects, and Merrifield’s bat isn’t enough either. Christian Colon isn’t a Gold Glover at third base, but he’s had a bit of success in the big leagues, so maybe he gets a crack at that spot in Kansas City. If he doesn’t work out, Hunter Dozier has had a terrific 2016 season thus far, and while he’s not yet on the 40-man roster, he’ll need to be added after the season anyway, so the organization shouldn’t have any qualms about adding him sooner.

Orlando is hitting better than Nelson Cruz and Jose Bautista at the moment, so when he cools down, the Royals may want to give more reps to Eibner. He’s not really a prospect at this point, but he’s on the 40-man, so it would be nice to know what they have in him. If Eibner can’t cut it, they could turn to Jorge Bonifacio, who has 21 extra-base hits in Omaha this year. Reymond Fuentes is also on the 40-man roster, and the Royals felt good enough about him to give him an Opening Day start.

The point isn’t that the Royals’ options to replace Moose and Gordon are all great. The point is that the Royals have a lot of potentially acceptable options, and because this injury occurred in May instead of July, they have the time to evaluate those options before looking to thin out what is an already thin farm system, to acquire another bat.

I really have no clue if any of the players mentioned above will perform well enough in Kansas City. I like what I’ve seen from most of them in a limited sample here in Omaha, but they clearly have some deficiencies.

Cuthbert hasn’t proven he can hit major-league pitching consistently. Merrifield doesn’t have much power, and may not hit enough. Eibner’s improved his strikeout rate against minor-league pitching, but that’s not guaranteed to continue now. Bonifacio was pretty bad the last two years before bouncing back this year. Ditto for Dozier. Fuentes hasn’t been able to stick on a big-league roster yet.

There are obvious questions about each candidate, and it’s possible that not a single one of them does enough to earn regular playing time in the next two months. If that’s the case, and if the Royals are still close enough to contention to explore trade possibilities, then they might pursue some of those players available. I’m a big Martin Prado fan, personally, and as David Lesky mentioned back in March, he could be available, and would be a terrific fit with the club. There are other names out there, of course, but he’s one that makes all kinds of sense.

But for now, those names may not have to be heavily considered. The Royals could simply stick with their current roster, and give players in the organization a chance to take advantage of the playing time that is now available to them, because the organization has some time to give those players a chance.

HR Roll Call None

BP KC Hitter of the Day – Christian Colon 3-6 2b

BP KC Pitcher of the Day – Clayton Mortenson 3.1 IP 1 H 0 R 1 BB 4 K 3-2 GO-FO 47p/28k

Transactions
Benino Pruneda promoted to Omaha from NW Arkansas Naturals
Cody Jones promoted to Wilmington Blue Rocks from Lexington Legends
Roman Collins assigned to Lexington from Wilmington

Alburquerque Isotopes 4 Omaha Storm Chasers 2 F/12 

For the second consecutive day, the Chasers starting pitcher worked his club into the 8th inning as Luke Farrell gave the Chasers seven and two-thirds innings of quality work. Unfortunately, the start wasn’t enough due the offense’s inability to cash in with runners in scoring position. Outfielder Brett Eibner knocked in a run in the 1st and Reymond Fuentes had a sac fly that scored a run in the 5th, but those were the only successful efforts, going 2 for 12 on the night. The game would head to extra innings where Malcom Culver would allow a pair of runs to cross in the 12th inning and the eventual loss.

Reymond Fuentes doing his best Alex Gordon impersonation.

Boxscore Link

Christian Colon 3-6 2b
Reymond Fuentes 1-3 2b, R, RBI, BB
Hunter Dozier 1-6 – 12 game hitting streak

Tulsa Drillers 4 NW Arkansas Naturals 2

The Naturals had a ton of trouble elevating the baseball versus Tulsa starter Trevor Oaks which led to their second defeat in as many days. The right-handed Dodgers prospect helped create 17 groundball outs while allowing just five hits in his seven innings of the mound. While Oaks was doing that from the hill, his second baseman, Willie Calhoun, was doing plenty of damage at the plate going 4 for 4 with a pair of doubles and a home run. Calhoun spread out the damage as he connected on an extra base hit versus all three pitchers who worked including starter Matt Strahm. It was one of Strahm’s weaker starts of the season with the lefty going just four innings while allowing six hits and giving up three runs (2 ER) with a pair of walks allowed as he struggled with the zone. Cam Gallagher continued his excellent defensive play with two more caught stealing in three chances to up his total to 16 in 23 attempts this season.

Boxscore Link

Cam Gallagher 2-4 2b SB (1) 2/3 CS/Att
Orlando Calixte 2-4 R, RBI, SB (14)
Matt Strahm 4 IP 6 H 3 R 2 ER 2 BB 4 K 1-5 GO-FO 81p/49k

Kanapolis Intimtadors 7 Lexington Legends 2

Gerson Garabito’s season got off to a rocky start Monday when the Intimidators did just that to the Latin right-hander. Five hits, two for extra bases including a two run home run started the night in the first inning for Kanapolis against Garabito. From there, the starter settled a little bit giving up two more hits and a run in the 4th which he created himself with a wild pitch that pushed a runner to third. The offense couldn’t make up for the early deficit scoring just a run in the 3rd and 9th innings.

Boxscore Link

Yunior Marte 5 IP 4 H 2 ER 0 BB 7 K 3-3 GO-FO 58p/44k
Gerson Garabito 4 IP 7 H 5 ER 0 BB 2 K 6-2 GO-FO 71p/48k
Ben Johnson 1-2 2b, R, BB CS (3)

Here are three things that have caught my attention as the Royals are continuing on their first road trip of the year. Your mileage may vary.

— The Royals are hitting .176/.250/.235 with runners in scoring position. Ouch. That’s the second-worst rate in the league, ahead of only the Minnesota Twins. Yet the Royals are 5-2. The Twins are 0-7. What gives?

To start, in the small sample size of a week-plus, the numbers with runners in scoring position are down across the league. Last year, batters hit .260/.338/.415 with runners in scoring position. This year, the league is hitting .232/.294/.382. Again, we’re talking a sample of a week of games against a full slate of 162. The numbers from a single week aren’t going to jive with a full year of data. It’s early to panic over the Royals depressed offense to begin with, but in perspective of the stats being down overall it makes even less sense to fret.

It’s simply that the Royals are Royaling to get their wins. They are stringing together just enough hits to push just enough runs across the plate. Take Tuesday for example. Back to back singles to open the game followed by a cheap Minute Maid home run. Then…27 outs. And it was still enough to win. They’ve played seven games and four of them have been decided by one run.

Which brings us to other factor that has helped the Royals along the first week of the season: The pitching. The starters have been lights out for the most part in the young season. The bullpen has been the bullpen. The relief corps has surrendered just seven earned runs in 25 innings of work. That’s a 2.52 ERA. Meanwhile, the starters are checking in with a 3.32 ERA.

Aren’t small sample sizes all kinds of fun?

— Omar Infante had another hit on Tuesday, but is hitting just .286/.273/.381 through his first six games. On Sunday, Rustin Dodd noted the Royals would seek to give Infante regular rest this season. Rafael Belliard, who was a coach with the Tigers during Infante’s most recent spell with the team, spoke to Ned Yost and relayed Detroit purposefully kept the second baseman rested. Rest for an aging – and injury prone – player isn’t something that should need to be suggested. It just seems like common sense.

Let’s be honest here. Rest probably wouldn’t have salvaged the offensive disasters that have been Infante’s two seasons with the Royals. Sure, it may have helped some. Some. But injuries and age have conspired to keep his offense below league average. At this point, it’s far from a certainty a rested Infante equals a productive Infante.

Did you see the throw Infante made on a double play pivot on Tuesday? I watched the play like it was the Zapruder film, convinced there was something wrong with his lead foot to where he got absolutely nothing on the throw. It wasn’t there. It was basically a throw like Johnny Damon would’ve made. You know, a twelve-hopper to the cutoff man. From Infante, this was one of those throws where he tried to get everything he could behind it…and there wasn’t anything there.

The bet here is that Infante is on borrowed time. At some point, he’s going to break down. Again. Until then, you just hope he doesn’t cost the Royals a game or two.

— Jarrod Dyson has played three games in Triple-A on a rehab assignment and has collected a couple of walks and a pair of steals. He looks like he playing at full speed and full health. This is good news. The purpose of his time in Omaha at this point feels like getting some of the reps he missed in spring training.

With Dyson set to return in about a week, the latest roster question is who will the Royals send out once Dyson rejoins the team? The smart money would seem to be on Terrance Gore. Of course, Gore seemingly single-handedly won the game on Sunday, disrupting the flow enough to draw an errant pickoff throw before scampering home with the deciding run on a wild pitch. He’s the current darling of the team. The guy with one tool who can change the game.

It’s always difficult to predict how the Royals will move, but keeping Dyson and Gore on the roster is a bit like having a Porche and Ferrari in your garage. One is enough. Two is overcompensation.

On 29 major league teams, Gore on the roster makes zero sense. With Yost in charge, it’s understandable. If Yost really needs to pinch run and Dyson is already in the game, why not Reymond Fuentes? He swiped 37 bags last year in the minors. No, he doesn’t have the “game changing” speed of Gore, but he has enough he can get to second and then score on a single.

But Fuentes, like Dyson, is a left-handed bat. The platoon would still be the planned pairing of Dyson with Paulo Orlando, leaving Fuentes scraping for time. While it makes sense to use Gore solely as a pinch runner, to utilize Fuentes in a similar manner isn’t wise. If he’s not getting some reps in the majors, he should be dropped to Triple-A, so he can stay sharp.

It will be interesting to see the direction the Royals go with this.

When spring training opened, there were battles for the fourth and fifth starters, second base, the last two spots in the bullpen, backup catcher and probably the 25th man on the roster. Jarrod Dyson’s injury added one more open roster spot for the time being, too. With just two weeks left before the season, there’s still plenty of time for things to change, but as of now, I think we’re starting to see what the roster may look like.

Let’s dive into the battles.

4th and 5th Starters
This battle seems to be as good as over, but I’m not really sure how big of a battle it really was to start. I kind of expect these two spots to be somewhat fluid throughout the year, but to start the season it looks like Chris Young will be the fourth starter and Kris Medlen will fill the fifth spot in the rotation. I thought it would be the other way around, but it doesn’t really make a huge difference who pitches in what spot.

What Could Change?
I don’t think there’s much of a chance anything changes here without an injury, but Dillon Gee and Chien-Ming Wang are still very much a part of the conversation. Both had chances to start over the weekend because of Edinson Volquez’s tired arm and Yordano Ventura being sick, and both had their moments. Gee was able to go five innings and was generally effective. Wang threw just three innings and was done in by a throwing error and a home run over the comically close wall in right field. I don’t think either has a real shot to break the rotation, but they seem to be the next in line for now.

Second Base
I’ve said this before, but when this competition opened, I didn’t think it was much of a competition. I figured Christian Colon would have to be out of this world while Omar Infante would have to be just regular season bad. Neither has happened. As it stands right now, Infante looks like he’ll be getting the nod to start. He is the better defender, and Colon hasn’t done enough this spring to wrestle the job away. So the Omar Infante Experience looks like it will continue to start, but I expect he’ll be on a short leash.

What Could Change?
Infante could go ice cold, and Colon seems to be emerging with the bat. The Royals might want to play the “hot hand” to start the year given their clear lack of trust in Infante. I don’t think that’ll happen, but you never know. As the season progresses, keep an eye on the young’n, Raul Mondesi. It’s not just the spring numbers (which are very good), but that he looks more comfortable at the plate. He’s got a lot to work on, but hey, it could happen.

Last Two Bullpen Spots
At the start of spring, I fully expected Dillon Gee to make the roster as the long reliever. The Royals clearly liked him enough to give him a very early opt out in the spring. They’ve since added him to the 40-man roster, so he’s essentially made the team. The other spot seemed to be Brian Flynn‘s to lose. He was so good last spring and Ned Yost talked about him being one of the toughest cuts he’s ever had to make and all that. Here’s the problem. He’s been really bad this spring. I haven’t seen a ton of him, but he doesn’t seem to have what he had last spring, and that’s disappointing.

All things equal, I think the Royals would like a second lefty, so that gives Scott Alexander and Brian Duensing a leg up. Both have been really good, but Alexander’s been better. Still, given the Royals affinity for inventory, I think Alexander probably gets squeezed out and Duensing is the guy. Ross Ohlendorf (yesterday was the date he could opt-out of his deal; at the time of writing, he had not yet done that) and Wang are still in the running, but I really do think it’s between the lefties even though Yost doesn’t play matchups all that often.

Update: Ohlendorf has chosen to opt out of his contract. As Rachel Phelps would say in Major League, cross him off.

What Could Change?
Who are we kidding? It’s a bullpen competition in spring training where small sample sizes reign supreme. I don’t think anyone provides what Brian Flynn could provide to the bullpen. If he has a good last two weeks, he could reclaim the top spot in this battle and make the big league roster. That would give the Royals multiple guys who can go multiple innings in Gee, Flynn and Danny Duffy and really round out a powerful bullpen.

Backup Catcher
When the Royals traded for Tony Cruz from the Cardinals for the other Jose Martinez (other as in not the guy who hit .384 in Omaha last year), it seemed a curious move. They already had a backup catcher who couldn’t hit in Drew Butera. But they had already let Francisco Pena go and needed another catcher who would be able to step in. Butera’s been very good defensively this spring and decent enough offensively. Cruz hasn’t been great in either aspect, so with his options, I expect him to go to Triple-A to start the year.

What Could Change?
Catching depth around baseball is ridiculously thin, so maybe the Royals trade one of their backups. Of course, they’re not getting much for either Butera or Cruz. Keep an eye on Parker Morin as a backup option to emerge throughout the season, though. He’s definitely not ever a starter, but he hits lefty and actually hit for the first time in 2015 in Double-A. The easy comp Royals fans will know is Brent Mayne, but if he can actually hit reasonably well, that’s a solid backup.

Paulo Orlando Complement
When Dyson went down, the right field competition seemed to be open enough, but Paulo Orlando would have had to lose the spot. Honestly, Orlando hasn’t been so great after a hot start, but I think he’s the guy to start the year, which leaves really two guys fighting for lefty hitting right fielders. Travis Snider and Reymond Fuentes are the two, and there’s not much of a competition right now. Snider has been nothing short of bad this spring, while Fuentes has lit up the Cactus League. Don’t be surprised if Fuentes even gets the nod on Opening Day since the Mets are starting Matt Harvey.

What Could Change?
Without an injury, not much. Plus, Dyson looks to be on track to return in the second week of the season. I guess Snider could go on an absolute tear and Fuentes could struggle, but based on what I’ve seen of Snider, I don’t see it.

25th Man
This is the spot that I think really opened up with Dyson’s injury, and the frontrunner appears to be Whit Merrifield. He put on muscle in the offseason, has hit very well in the spring and has some defensive versatility. I mentioned in Friday Notes that he isn’t on the 40-man roster, which brings up some logistical concerns, but the Royals seem to really like him. Some believe he could be competing for the utility role with Colon, but he’s very inexperienced on the left side of the infield, which showed on Saturday in San Antonio when he made a throwing error. I’m not sure how comfortable the Royals would be with him at shortstop even for a few innings, so he’s probably relegated to jack of all trades. Personally, I’m not sold, but they don’t let me make decisions.

What Could Change?
I would like to see the Royals have a power bat in this last spot. With four outfielders already and a versatile Colon to help in the infield, that seems to make a lot of sense to me. Snider is really the only guy in camp who fits that mold and could reasonably make the roster, so if he goes nuts, maybe he takes that spot and then keeps it when Dyson comes back and Fuentes could get sent to AAA. But likely not much will change.

So if you’re keeping score at home, here’s what I think the Opening Day roster looks like:

Catchers
Salvador Perez
Drew Butera

Infielders
Eric Hosmer
Omar Infante
Mike Moustakas
Alcides Escobar
Christian Colon
Whit Merrifield

Outfielders
Alex Gordon
Lorenzo Cain
Paulo Orlando
Reymond Fuentes

Designated Hitter
Kendrys Morales

Starting Pitchers
Edinson Volquez
Yordano Ventura
Ian Kennedy
Chris Young
Kris Medlen

Bullpen
Wade Davis
Kelvin Herrera
Joakim Soria
Luke Hochevar
Danny Duffy
Brian Duensing
Dillon Gee

With less than two weeks until the season begins, it’ll be fun to see how this plays out to see who’s on that first base line to get introduced while wearing those gold trimmed jerseys and hats.