SB Nation User Blog: twill

AskBA on Moustakas

twill — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 21:11:22 -0000

Jim Callis from Baseball America on Moustakas:

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/askba/265239.html

What is your gut reaction as to who will be the best long-term hitter coming out of high school in the 2007 draft: Mike Moustakas, Josh Vitters or Jason Heyward?

Mike Russell
Ixonia, Wis.

Those are three very special bats, which is why Moustakas went second overall to the Royals, Vitters third overall to the Cubs and Heyward 14th overall to the Braves. Heyward would have gone higher had clubs gotten a better look at him this spring, but he was pitched around so much that evaluating him became difficult.

I think all three will become stars, but my gut feel is that Moustakas will have the most devastating bat. His agent, Scott Boras, called him the best high school hitter since Alex Rodriguez, and while I'm not ready to buy into that much hyperbole, it's impossible not to be excited about Moustakas' potential. He has so much bat speed and strength, not to mention a sweet lefthanded swing, that it's easy to project him winning batting titles and home run crowns in the major leagues once he hits his prime.

He set California state records for homers in a season (24) and a career (52) this spring, and the only real question about Moustakas is what position he'll eventually play. The Royals have agreed to let him try shortstop, but few scouts believe he'll stick there. Alex Gordon is already at third base in Kansas City, so Moustakas may end up in right field. Some clubs were intrigued by the possibility of making him a catcher, though the demands of working behind the plate would take a toll on his bat.

Bale to Rotation

twill — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 17:11:55 -0000

From The Star:

The Royals are already looking at John Bale as a possible solution to their need next season for a left-hander in their rotation. Bale has pitched as a starter at times in his 12-year professional career but spent this season as a setup reliever.

"My mentality going home," he said, "is I'm going to prepare in the offseason to be a starter. Get ready for that. You can always go back to the bullpen. It's a little bit tougher to go from the bullpen to a starter."

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/royals/story/298078.html

Dotel to the Royals

twill — Fri, 08 Dec 2006 20:03:09 -0000

So says the KC Star: http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/16195861.htm

"The winter meetings are over, but the Royals show no signs of slowing down.

They reached an agreement Friday morning on a one-year contract with veteran reliever Octavio Dotel and further supplemented their bullpen by signing left-hander John Bale to a two-year deal.
"

System rankings

twill — Sat, 19 Nov 2005 22:16:44 -0000

I think it would be kind of interesting for John, or anyone else that wants to, to rank all 30 teams farm systems from 1 - 30. It's pretty clear who the top few systems and bottom few systems are, but it'd be fun to see a complete list. Specifically, I'd like to see everyone's opinion on where the Royals would rank, but there are a lot of other interesting teams. Just an idea, feel free for anyone to add their own.