16 Comments

Big commitment from ownership to compete! I doubt they've blown their entire budget on Wacha before FA even starts.

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Exactly. I wonder what that budget looks like.

I would bet that Sherman and his ownership group are energized by the outcome of last season and still have that eye on a new stadium.

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It was critical to secure Wacha's 150 innings a year...hopefully we get 450 innings over 3 years. Any thing else is a complete bonus. Singer...either he's good enough to extend...if not trade him....I think trade him.... but they better focus on getting Vinnie extended now.... how many other players have won a batting title and gold glove at shortstop?

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...in the same year...congrats to Twinkle Toes !

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I’m not sure SS has won the Gold Glove and batting title in the same season. I think Witt will win the Silver Slugger. The last shortstop to win a GG and SS in the same year was Brandon Crawford back in 2015.

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While I’m with you on trading Singer, I’m not all-in on extending Vinnie. Yes, he was a key guy in the 2024 lineup, but is he going to have that OBP breakout that he teased us with a couple of years ago? Will he find a bit more power you’d like to have from your 1B? Don’t get me wrong, I’d love it if he stuck around, but I just need to see a little more promise and consistency to commit.

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That makes sense...I'm an RBI man myself...so I think he is there. I just hope they got him on thier budget plan so they don't find themselves without the resources to do it....at some point

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It’s always a dance to figure out when to come together if player and team are thinking extension. A huge breakout from Vinnie could push him out of their range. Can you imagine what it would’ve cost the Royals to lock up Witt if they had waited?

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Lets hope V can stay longterm.

In reality Witt has so many opt outs in his contract it will end being as big as anyone else's.

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With the Royals or elsewhere....

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Kinda new to kinda following stats vs bubble gum pack many, many years ago.

Eye test Vinnie seemed to advance runners all the time on a fly, (no RBI). Some eventually scored - do any stats account for that?

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I think Witt is the first shortstop win a batting title and gold glove in the same year....he's my MVP! Can anyone verify?

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I'm very eager to see which Kyle Wright we get and if he can stay healthy. I loved the move for him, but it's up to his performance on the field to make Picollo look like a genius.

Maybe I've just missed this topic in your & other Royals coverage, in which case I apologize if I'm asking you to go back over well-trod ground, but what are your thoughts on Bubic moving forward? Obviously, starting pitching is the hardest thing to find in baseball, and Bubic has experience. That said, outside of a few pre-TJ starts in 2023, he's never wowed me. Not saying he was a failure as a starter, by any stretch, but he really seemed to settle into the 8th inning setup role this season and I'd love to see him and Erceg holding down the back end of the pen in '25. Is my judgment being corrupted by nostalgia for HDH? What are your thoughts and how do you think the Royals are leaning? I'll listen off the air.

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Bubic is an interesting case. It felt like he was primed for that breakout season before undergoing the TJ in 2023. He did everything you would want from a guy going from the rotation to the bullpen post-TJ: Velocity was up a couple of ticks. Strikeouts were way up. And as a bonus, walks were way, way down. He’s a guy who was walking around 4 per 9 and suddenly he’s posting a 1.5 BB/9? After TJ surgery? Whoa.

I’d try really hard to find a spot for him in the rotation. At least you know that if he struggles, he can move back to the bullpen and there will be some value there. Just another reason the team can afford to deal Singer.

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Great point on Wacha respecting the coaching staff and organization. Hadn't thought about last years contract being structured as a turn and burn for him, a route he obviously could have taken. Even with the QO tax, he likely would have made more elsewhere.

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I wonder about the impact of a QO. It’s scared some teams in the past on some of the second-tier free agents, but it only takes one team to push that concern aside.

I’m such a huge hot stove geek that I can’t wait to see who gets the QO today.

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