Happy Opening Day!
Please sign my petition to make this a national holiday.
Finally! It’s time.
Thank you for reading and subscribing to the newsletter. I think we’re going to have some fun this season. As mentioned in the past, I’ve been toying around with different ways to provide coverage this season and I’m excited to get things underway.
As I’ve written all winter, my optimism around this team and the direction they’re heading is as high as it’s been since they won the commissioner’s piece of metal back in 2015. While I’m not expecting playoffs (or even a winning record) in 2023, I do expect meaningful progress. There are myriad ways to measure that, which is really one of the reasons I’m looking forward to this season.
It’s Zack Greinke against Pablo López to get us started. I can barely wait for the first pitch at 3:10.
I’m sure you’re the same way. So here are a few notes to tide you over. Let this be your diversion.
As of this writing, the Royals still have not set their official Opening Day roster. As you know, there will be a flurry of activity to get the three non-roster invitees on there. This also means we don’t have an official lineup as of 8:45 AM.
In a move that I can only call revolutionary, the Twins went ahead and dropped their lineup last night.
The Twins spend their springs in Florida, so this will be the first time the Royals get a look at their division rivals. They have—as is the norm for them—been beset by injuries. Missing from their starting nine is first baseman Alex Krilloff and second baseman Jorge Polanco. Byron Buxton will get a ton of time at DH as they try their best to keep him healthy, which means we get to see Michael A. Taylor return to The K. And now that the infield shift has been outlawed, let’s see how the Royals deploy their outfield for Joey Gallo.
A pitch hasn’t even been thrown in anger yet and that dumb bundle of circuitry known as PECOTA says the Royals have a 0.0 percent chance of making the postseason. Hold on a moment! Ahead of every season, the crew at Baseball Prospectus takes those PECOTA projections and runs 100,000 simulated seasons. So even though the odds say there’s no chance that the Royals play in October, if you’re running that many simulated seasons, there just might be one that comes out in your favor. And wouldn’t you know it, Sim #176 is our winner.
You like rankings. You love lists. Here’s a list of FanGraphs positional rankings and where the Royals check in at each position. Tipper Gore thinks this part of the newsletter needs a warning label.
Starting Pitching - 26
Relief Pitching - 21
Catcher - 21
First Base - 13
Second Base - 26
Third Base - 30
Shortstop - 12
Left Field - 26
Center Field - 26
Right Field - 29
Designated Hitter - 16
I mean, you’re probably not surprised by this. It’s Bobby and Vinny with a dash of Salvy and a sprinkle of MJ. With a cameo from Franmil. And the bullpen is better than the rotation. As fans and followers of this team, we tend to look at things through a Royal-centric focus and probably lean a little too much on potential when evaluating this team. Something like FanGraphs positional rankings lends a little perspective. Or as the great David St. Hubbins once protested, “Too much f**king perspective.”
It’s been relatively quiet on the downtown stadium front, but that didn’t stop Mammoth Sports from posting a render of what they envision for the new stadium.
There are a few things to unpack while keeping in mind this is nowhere near a finished product. First, I kind of dig the location. If they’re going to cover the south side of the downtown loop and make it a public park-type space (yes, please!) I like the idea of connecting that area to a new stadium. It’s not like the old Kansas City Star printing press is doing anything other than rusting away. (Hire a beat writer already!)
Second, I just don’t know how you can get away with a render that doesn’t include fountains and a crown. I mean, I’m not changing the name of this newsletter. My advice to any aspiring stadium architects looking to spec out a ballpark for the Royals, start with the fountains and build out from there.
Third, it’s an odd hybrid of Citi Field classical with a new Euro soccer stadium feel. It’s a bit confusing that way.
Meanwhile, John Sherman told Anne Rogers the Royals are closer to deciding the location of their new proposed stadium.
Royals owner and CEO John Sherman said on Wednesday the club’s ownership group is getting closer to deciding a site location for a new ballpark and having that vision presented to taxpayers on a ballot. Sherman confirmed two site considerations that the Kansas City Star reported earlier this week, including an area in the East Village and the former Kansas City Star printing pavilion on McGee Street, closer to T-Mobile Center and the bars and restaurants within the Power and Light District.
I think the focus needs to be on when the team decides to bring this to the voters. August is the earliest, but that felt a little rushed to me. This sort of thing takes all sorts of time to plan out, and not having a site even selected four months out doesn’t bode well for having this on the ballot that soon. And an August referendum for a ballclub that, let’s face it, struggles to get any attention paid to it at that point in the calendar, may not be a good thing. April 2024 could be a more realistic target and timeline.
Salvy is in favor of the pitch clock.
What I like about this is I already expected Perez to catch basically forever. What’s forever plus two years?
I know the clock has been in use all through spring training and I’m aware of the data that it’s shaved about 30 minutes off exhibition games, but I don’t think I’m fully prepared for its impact for a regular season game. It’s just a massive change to the rhythms and pace of the game. As Perez alluded to in his comment, it’s going to be a net positive for the players in so many ways. And it’s a much better experience for the fan.
I really can’t wait to experience this, for real, on Thursday afternoon.
Enjoy today. Feel free to hang in the comments section if you like. I’ll be around. More to come later today and Friday.
It’s good to have baseball back.
Happy Opening Day! And I'm all for anything that allows Salvy to play longer, especially since the Royals don't seem to have any kind of coherent plan on what comes next at C.
In the words of Janet (Bridget Fonda) from "Singles" - "If you're going to have the operation, have the operation."
ie- if you're building a new stadium, put a retractable roof on that bad boy.