Today is the day when teams can begin signing 16 year old Latin players, and it appears that this year there will be more cash flying around than ever before.  Michael Inoa, the top prospect this year, has reportedly been given a bonus of $4.25mm by Oakland, which almost doubles the previous bonus record for a player.

As for the Royals, it sounds like we continue to take steps forward in the international market.  We have been rumored as one of the main suitors for Adis Portillo, the 2nd best Latin pitcher and 3rd overall prospect, who should command a seven figure bonus.  Also, many publications have mentioned us as "new money" players on the Latin scene, along with teams such as Oakland, San Diego, and Cincinnati. 

Personally, I'd love to see us steal one of the top 10-15 players, simply because of the signal that it would send to Latin America and the rest of MLB that we are ready to take the next organizational step forward.

Don't look now, but Mike Moustakas is on fire.

After his horrid April, he has now hit 3 HR in the last 4 games and 4 HR in the last 7.  He is also flashing some wheels as he stole his 3rd base tonight.

This is a perfect example of why fans should not be so trigger-happy about writing a guy off so early in his pro career.  It seems like we do this every year.

                                                                                                       

http://www.kansas.com/sports/wranglers/story/119333.html

Personally I think this is a great idea, as a move out of the Texas League might do wonders for him, a la Jered Weaver.  

Weaver had a very blah tour through the Texas League, but really turned it on once he got to the PCL.  I wouldn't be shocked if Hochevar followed suit.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/highschool/features/264412.html

I can't wait to see this kid take the field, he's a very intriguing prospect.  On one hand, he's not exactly a scout's dream, as he's only 6 feet tall, a bit stocky, and doesn't have a true defensive position.  On the other hand, he had a season and career for the ages, belting 24 HRs this season and finishing with 52 in his career - both California prep records.  

Is this light tower power legit, or was he helped out by weak pitchers and small fields?  I have no reason to doubt him, but it's hard for me to believe a kid his size could have this much power at his age.  Also, could this have been just an amazing hot streak?  He came into this season as more of a top 3-5 rounds guy, rather than a potential #2 overall pick.  

In summation, I'm interested to see how he performs after a few months off.  He has an 80 arm and has displayed 80 power, but will it last?  Can he stick in the middle infield, or will he move to a corner spot?  

Lubanski got the call yesterday after the Texas League All-Star game that he was being promoted to Omaha, KC's Triple A club.  

http://www.kansas.com/sports/wranglers/story/108556.html

It will be interesting to see how he adjusts to PCL pitching and if he can make improvements against LHPs.  He's always crushed righties but he hasn't made that next step against the southpaws.  Also, he's arguably had the best 1st half of his career this season, as he's a notoriously slow starter.  

Best case scenario is that he's KC's starting left fielder at some point in 08, worst case is that he develops into a solid platoon player in 09.  

I led the Royals mock draft through the first three rounds, then handed the reigns off to adschofield for the final two.  Overall, I thought we had a tremendous draft, as we picked up a handful of premium high-ceiling arms to go along with our surprise 1st round pick, the polished catcher Matt Wieters.

1st round: Matt Wieters, C, Georgia Tech

I went back and forth on the decision between Wieters and Rick Porcello, and in the end I decided to play it safe with Wieters.  I have no doubt that Wieters will be at the very least a league average catcher in the show, with the potential to be a perennial All-Star.  Porcello was tempting, but overall I feel this draft class was loaded with high-ceiling prep arms and I thought I could pick up some nice talents later on.

2nd round: Nick Tepesch, RHP, MO HS

I ended up going with the local boy at the 66th pick with Nick Tepesch out of Blue Springs, MO.  He is your power righty with a projectable frame and has shown a great fastball/curve combo.  He has reached the mid 90's, and I believe the velocity will gain a few ticks as he matures.  While I like the pick, Tepesch was roughly my 4th or 5th choice at this spot, and I was really counting on Dan Duffy or Neil Ramirez being available.  

3rd round: Julian Sampson, RHP, Wash HS

Sampson was my #1 target for this spot, and I actually gave consideration to taking him a round earlier for fear that he wouldn't be here.  I absolutely love this guy as a prospect and feel he is underrated.  Long, projectable frame, loose arm action, low 90's gas that should improve in time, and a great feel for his breaking stuff.  I feel his potential is throught the roof.

4th round: Kevin Rhoderick, RHP, Ariz HS

This is when adschofield took over, and I was pleased when I saw this pick.  Rhoderick is another power arm to add to our farm system, but his stock is lower than his stuff warrants due to the bias against short pitchers (Rhoderick is 6 feet tall).  Excellent arm action, low/mid 90's velocity, good feel for his secondary stuff.  Hopefully adschofield can share his thoughts on Rhoderick later on.

5th round: Drake Britton, LHP, Texas HS

Another great pick by adschofield, and Britton filled the southpaw void in our draft.  Britton is another underrated prospect that isn't getting the love he deserves due to BA not placing him in their top 200.  Britton mixes a heavy, low 90's fastball with a nasty curve and was impressive during a showcase run last summer.

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, I think we did a tremendous job of achieving our main priority, which was injecting the farm system with elite, high-ceiling talent.  Wieters should fly through the system, while the four HS pitchers will be able to take their time and develop properly to aid in achieving their true potential.  The focus on upside players is a high-risk proposition, but it is what a small-market franchise needs to do in order to find a few diamonds.  

Thoughts?

With just over a week until the draft, it's time to start narrowing down who we like and who we don't like.  I said in the first Royals mod that I want to focus on high-ceiling players to help inject some talent into our system.  This is one of the strongest drafts for preps in some time, and therefore I think it would be wise to lean towards HS athletes early on.

There has been a lot of discussion on who KC should take with their first pick, and I have set up a poll so we can finally put this one to bed and move on.  

After the 1st round, there should be many interesting names to sift through that offer some promise.  We've talked about some high school players, but who are some college players that you are high on?  I have some names in my head, but I am wary about naming them here, so I'd like to hear what everyone else thinks.  

Poll

Who Should KC Take At #2?

37%

Matt Wieters

22 votes

0%

Ross Detwiler

0 votes

1%

Mike Moustakas

1 votes

3%

Jarrod Parker

2 votes

52%

Rick Porcello

31 votes

5%

Josh Vitters

3 votes

59 votes | Poll has closed

John was kind enough to appoint me as Scouting Director for the Royals in this little mock draft, so I guess I will start off by briefly discussing my draft philosophies and how they relate with our Kansas City Royals.

1. First and foremost, this team needs an influx of talent.  You can try and point to different areas, but they just need talent anywhere they can get it.  Outside of Gordon, Butler, and Hochevar, there are a lot of question marks and organizational fodder.
2. Based off of #1, I prefer a BPA approach at all times during the draft.  I don't like to take a short-sighted approach to try and plug current holes on the parent club - that might work for a large-market team, but that is not a prudent approach for a low revenue club such as the Royals.
3. In the famous words of Roy Clark, I prefer to "raise our own kids".  With Dayton Moore in charge, I would like to see the Royals focus on preps with high-upside and depend on our player development department to groom quality MLB players.  It's certainly an approach that takes patience, but I think that patience will pay off if done the right way.  

Let's get some quality discussions going, I think this can potentially be a fantastic draft for the future of this franchise.

Thoughts?  Opinions?  

Per 810 radio in KC.

Ryan Shealy sent to DL.

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According to Rosenthal and ESPN, the Royals are close to terms with Gil Meche on a 4 year, $45 million dollar deal.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2689724&campaign=rss&source=MLBHeadlines

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6247654

If true, the Royals certainly overpaid for him in regards to his probable market value, but it makes a statement that the Moore-led Royals are going to make a legit effort to be competitive MLB team.  

Thoughts on this deal?

In yesterday's Winter Meetings notes, Jayson Stark mentioned that the Royals signed former #3 overall pick Dewon Brazelton to a minor league deal.  

This got me thinking - what ever happened to this guy?  Has he dealt with injuries, or is it a classic case of a million dollar arm and a ten cent head?  Was he overrated coming out of college because of the weak competition he faced?  

I would have more faith in a career resurgence if he signed with a team like the Cardinals or Braves; the Royals are probably the last team that can get him turned around, but I guess it's worth a shot.

I'd love to hear some feedback from the Tampa fans on this site.

By the sound of this article, KC will give Butler a legit chance to make the team out of spring training:

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/app/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061010&content_id=137223&vkey= news_milb&fext=.jsp

No mention of being a DH in the article, so it appears Dayton Moore is comfortable with his defense in right.  In my opinion, that speaks volumes about his current defensive abilities.  

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/features/262604.html

1. Alex Gordon, 3b, Wichita (Royals)
   
2. Brandon Wood, ss, Arkansas (Angels)
   
3. Troy Tulowitzki, ss, Tulsa (Rockies)
   
4. Billy Butler, of, Wichita (Royals)
   
5. Travis Buck, of, Midland (Athletics)
   
6. Ubaldo Jimenez, rhp, Tulsa (Rockies)
   
7. John Danks, lhp, Frisco (Rangers)
   
8. Hunter Pence, of, Corpus Christi (Astros)
   
9. Juan Gutierrez, rhp, Corpus Christi (Astros)
   
10. Ian Stewart, 3b, Tulsa (Rockies)
    
11. Chris Iannetta, c, Tulsa (Rockies)
    
12. Mitch Talbot, rhp, Corpus Christi (Astros)
    
13. Joe Koshansky, 1b, Tulsa (Rockies)
    
14. Kurt Suzuki, c, Midland (Athletics)
    
15. Matt Albers, rhp, Corpus Christi (Astros)
    
16. Chris Lubanski, of, Wichita (Royals)
    
17. Juan Morillo, rhp, Tulsa (Rockies)
    
18. Marcus McBeth, rhp, Midland (Athletics)
    
19. Terry Evans, of, Springfield/Arkansas (Cardinals/Angels)
    
20. Wladimir Balentien, of, San Antonio (Mariners)

IMO, not too many surprises.  Hunter Pence seems a bit low, but maybe that's just nit-picking.  One thing that jumps out to me: what does Chris Lubanski need to do to get some love?  He's had two impressive seasons in a row, is still young for his level, has solid tools, and still seems to be brushed aside by BA.  I don't know, maybe I just like him more than everyone else does.  

Thoughts?

Thoughts?

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/news/262429.html

WICHITA, Kan.--Kansas City Royals fans have salivated over the thought of watching Alex Gordon, the No. 2 overall pick in 2005, play at Kauffman Stadium. They've dreamed of how he'll turn around the organization, become a mainstay at third base, lead the team to the playoffs.

Just like Hall of Famer George Brett did.

Gordon is the future, they believe.

Those are pretty high expectations that carry a hefty amount of pressure, but Gordon has certainly done nothing to prove those diehards wrong, earning Baseball America's Minor League Player of the Year award.

Don't call it a comeback, Zack's been here for years....

In his last four games in AA, Greinke has a 1.00 ERA, 0.78 WHIP in 27 IP (30 K, 2 BB).

Since the start of July, he has a 2.91 ERA, 0.94 WHIP in 58.2 IP (63 K, 8 BB).

If you exclude the one blemish in his record since July, a 4.2 IP, 8 ER slugfest versus Tulsa, his numbers drop to a remarkable 1.83 ERA and 0.84 WHIP.

Any way you slice it, the wunderkind looks like he may be back.  He's still only 22 years old, so it will be interesting to see if the Royals bring him up to KC this year or let him stay in Wichita and help them win a Texas League crown.

Who's got the inside track as the #1 overall pick next year?  

On the college side, David Price certainly isn't hurting his stock this summer.  In 5 starts for Team USA, he has a 0.30 ERA, 47 K, 5 BB in 30 IP.  

The other top college player appears to be Matt Wieters, who is following up his amazing performance in the CWS with a very good showing at the Cape Cod League.  In the Cape regular season, he batted .307 with 8 HR and 21 RBI in 127 AB.

On the high school front, it seems like Michael Main and Robert Stock are leading the pack.  Both players are fantastic two-way players and have excelled in all areas.  Main's future lies on the mound, but Stock could be drafted as a pitcher or a catcher.  

Thoughts on these players or any other potential #1's next year that I didn't mention?  

Does anyone see one of these players breaking away from the pack to become the no-brainer #1 overall player, or will it be similar to last year where any number of players could be picked at #1?  

According to KC radio, Hochevar has signed a deal with the Royals.  No financial numbers yet, but it is being reported as a 4 year ML deal.  

I guess he really does want to play ball....now watch him bust and never even reach the majors.

Good news for a Royals team desperate for pitching prospects.

Colorado trades Shealy/Dohmann to KC for Affeldt/Bautista.

KC comes out like a bandit on this one.  Shealy could be huge next year surrounded by Gordon, Butler, and Teahen.  

Affeldt's stats are a bit inflated this year from his stint as a starter, but he has performed much better as a reliever.  However, I think he and Bautista may give up a few more gopher balls pitching in Coors.

What an illustrious career.....you will be missed.

"According to the Kansas City Star, former first-round pick Colt Griffin will retire due to ongoing shoulder problems.
Griffin is just 23 years old, but struggled to get minor leaguers out prior to the injuries and has had major problems coming back from labrum surgery. Jul. 26 - 10:35 am et"

The latest report says KC has offered Hochevar a contract similar to the one Pelfrey received from the Mets, and they are optimistic that a deal will get done soon.  Honestly, it would be pretty amazing if Dayton Moore was able to get Glass to open up his wallet and dish out Pelfrey-type numbers to a draft pick....definitely couldn't see Allard Baird getting him to do that.

If Hochevar isn't willing to sign after this proposal, I doubt he truly wants to play pro baseball.  

Here's the latest from the KC Star:

Moore sees progress on Hochevar

Team is hopeful that latest proposal will break a deadlock in negotiations for the right-hander.

By BOB DUTTON
The Kansas City Star

BOSTON | - Royals officials appear cautiously optimistic that the framework for a deal is in place to break the deadlock in negotiations with right-hander Luke Hochevar, the first overall pick June 6 in the new-player draft.

"We are very comfortable with the direction of the negotiations," general manager Dayton Moore said. "We're upbeat about where we are, and we hope and expect to get Luke Hochevar under contract."

Moore declined to confirm specifics, and efforts to contact Hochevar's agent, Scott Boras, were unsuccessful. Club officials are currently awaiting word from Boras on their latest proposal.

The Royals are believed to be offering terms similar to those the Mets reached in January with right-hander Mike Pelfrey, a Boras client who was the No. 9 overall pick in the 2005 draft.

Pelfrey's deal included a $3.5 million signing bonus and guarantees sweetening the overall value to $5.3 million. It also contained escalator clauses that further boost the value if he is on the major-league roster in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Such terms would represent the richest contract ever given by the Royals to a draft pick. The current record is the $4 million signing bonus given last year to third baseman Alex Gordon, the No. 2 overall pick.

Hochevar, 22, has already sat out one year after failing to reach agreement with the Dodgers following his selection in the 2005 draft. He made four starts this spring for the Fort Worth Cats, an independent-league team, before the Royals selected him with the first overall pick.

From today's KC Star:

"It's day 40 and counting for the stalled negotiations between the Royals and top draft pick Luke Hochevar, a right-hander represented by Scott Boras.

And while scouting director Deric Ladnier continues to characterize the talks as cordial, he acknowledges Hochevar is on the verge of throwing away a second professional season.

"If he doesn't get out and pitch," Ladnier said, "that becomes undeniable at some point. I don't know what that date is, but there's no getting around that."

The minor-league seasons conclude roughly around Labor Day, which leaves about seven weeks, but Hochevar is likely to require a conditioning period once he signs before entering active duty.

Hochevar, 22, re-entered this year's draft after failing to reach agreement last year with the Dodgers. He made four starts for the Fort Worth Cats, an independent-league team, before the Royals selected him June 6 with the first overall pick.

Ladnier said the two sides "haven't talked for a while." He also said the club has not received a formal response from Boras to a revised offer tendered more than two weeks ago.

Attempts to reach Boras were unsuccessful.

Ladnier declined to comment on growing speculation within the industry suggesting the Royals are holding firm to their financial offer but are willing to sign Hochevar to a major-league contract.

Club officials previously confirmed their offer to be in excess of $4 million, which is more than Boras and Hochevar sought last year from the Dodgers. It would also be the highest bonus given this season to a first-round pick with 26 of the 30 selections already under contract.

Right-hander Greg Reynolds, the second overall pick, received $3.25 million from Colorado."

So the Royals are offering a bonus in excess of $4 mill AND a ML deal.  What more does Hooch want?  Wasn't this what he was demanding last year from the Dodgers?  

Honestly, the Royals have all the leverage at this point, why would he risk sitting out another season and going back in the draft next year?  There will be NO chance he gets anywhere near this much money.  

Just doesn't make sense....

It seems puzzling that the Royals would trade away a young promising pitcher like Howell when they #1 thing they need is, well, young promising pitchers.  

I'm not sure where Gathright fits in with KC, maybe they will move Dejesus to left.  I really don't see why KC would do this, but Howell has been hurt for a good portion of this season so maybe there are some injury concerns involved.

Thoughts on this deal?