Pitchers and catchers are expected to report to Spring Training sites in Arizona and Florida on February 17th, which means that the start of the MLB season will begin in less than 10 days. And thus, while there is still some time for clubs to make some deals before Spring Training and eventually, Opening Day,… Read More Grading the off-season activity of each AL Central team
In about a week, 2020 will finally come to a close, much to everyone’s relief. For MLB fans, it has been a “frigid” Hot Stove season, as virtual MLB Winter Meetings, owners financial concerns, and the hazy state of when Spring Training will actually begin have kept the transactions to a minimum this off-season. Cespedes… Read More One roster question for each AL Central team as 2020 nears its end
Honestly, among most Royals fans, year one of the Mike Matheny era was a relative success. Even though former Royals manager Ned Yost helped bring two pennants and a World Series title back to Kansas City, it was obvious that the club was in need of a change. His old-school approach, especially in regard to… Read More Year two will provide different challenges for Matheny as Royals manager
The MLB non-tender deadline has passed, which should make the upcoming MLB Winter Meetings all that more interesting, especially with so many quality free agents available. Due to financial losses from COVID, it was evident that MLB clubs were more frugal than in seasons past, and were less willing to give expensive contracts to arbitration-eligible… Read More Taking a look at each AL Central club’s most intriguing non-tender/free agent
As a baseball and Royals fan, I wasn’t particularly thrilled with the Tony La Russa hire. While I knew La Russa had name-recognition and was a Hall of Famer, I felt that the game had passed him by (he struggled in a front office stint with the Diamondbacks), and that there were more qualified candidates… Read More Baseball fans should be upset with the White Sox right now after La Russa DUI
The American League Central has been a manager “carousel” of sorts, as both the Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox had vacancies for their manager position this off-season. The Tigers knew of their need for a replacement earlier than other clubs, as former manager Ron Gardenhire announced his retirement in the final weeks of the… Read More Pedro Grifol may still be on staff next year, and why that’s good for the Royals, but bad for baseball
Riffnoun: riff; plural noun: riffs-1. a short repeated phrase in popular music and jazz, typically used as an introduction or refrain in a song.—“a brilliant guitar riff”-2. a monologue or spoken improvisation, especially a humorous one, on a particular subject.–“subsequent riffs on the same themes fail to amuse” Definition from Oxford Languages Watching both the… Read More Playoff Riff: Why the Braves and Rays should give Royals fans hope
The American League Central appeared to be one of the stronger divisions in the American League in 2020, as they had three teams represented in the new expanded postseason format: the division champion Minnesota Twins (36-24); the Cleveland Indians (35-25); and the Chicago White Sox (35-25), who were appearing in their first postseason since 2008.… Read More Should the AL Central’s lackluster showing in the postseason give hope to (or worry) Royals fans?
The Royals may not be in the playoffs for the fifth-straight season since winning the 2015 World Series, but that does not mean that the postseason should be ignored by Royals fans. In addition to a new format which includes an increase in teams (16 now total) and rounds, there are some former Royals with… Read More Five former Royals to pay attention to this postseason
The Royals had an amazing weekend in which they swept the AL Central-leading Twins, and believe me, it took all of my inner fan boy to keep the Royals off the top spot of these weekly Power Rankings. Just a week ago, it seemed like doom and gloom on the horizon for baseball in Kansas… Read More August 11th AL Central Power Rankings: What? The Tigers? Really?
