The veteran starter looks to alter the shape—and results—of his changeup, the Royals sign some depth for the outfield and they just keep laying waste to the Cactus League.
I can't begin to tell how much I hate them signing JBJ. I can see them keeping him on the Opening day roster and taking at bats away from the young guys. This looks like another Taylor signing to me!! Thanks for the great writing you do.
Thanks, Paul! I’m not too concerned about JBJ. If he sticks (which is far from a guarantee), I think it’s as a 5th outfielder. Old days? Yeah, I’d be very worried. With the new guys in charge? Not so much.
Sometimes things happen, just not the way or when you thought they would. I recall 5-6-7 years ago when JBJ was putting up good offensive numbers in Boston. There were a LOT of rumors about the Royals being interested in trading for him, and I think even signing him when he became a free agent. Many's the times since then when I have seen his name and abysmal stats that I have counted blessings that it never happened. Now here he is...lol...albeit as desperate depth. Agree with you, Craig, will probably not break camp with the major league club, but as a defensive warm body really no harm.
Great article. The thing that jumps off the page with Greinke is his home and away splits. 1.91 ERA at the K and 5.32 ERA on the road. Can this be explained?
Thanks, Jeff! Best I can do in way of explanation: He gave up 1 HR in 66 innings at The K. And 13 HRs in 71 innings on the road. Splits like this keep me up at night.
I wrote a bit about it (along with his monthly splits and abandoning of the slider) when the Royals signed him again last month.
As someone who has no life I scrolled through the schedule and determined that a pitcher can get 24 home starts without ever pitching on the road. It is hard to imagine Q doing that but we might see him toying with the rotation to get Grienke more home starts.
I’ve wondered if they go with some sort of six-man rotation at some point this season. I think we’re going to see a lot of creativity in how they manage the workloads of pitchers. And Jeff, looking through the schedule and plotting out pitching rotations is living your best life. :)
That sound you hear is Ryan Lefebvre gearing up to make dozens of on-air references to Jackie Bradley Jr. being teammates with Whit Merrifield at South Carolina.
I can't begin to tell how much I hate them signing JBJ. I can see them keeping him on the Opening day roster and taking at bats away from the young guys. This looks like another Taylor signing to me!! Thanks for the great writing you do.
Thanks, Paul! I’m not too concerned about JBJ. If he sticks (which is far from a guarantee), I think it’s as a 5th outfielder. Old days? Yeah, I’d be very worried. With the new guys in charge? Not so much.
As we all know, success in spring training games is always an infallible indicator of what's to come in the regular season.
All I know is I’m in first place in my Spring Training Fantasy League.
Well, that's clearly the most important thing of all! 😸
Sometimes things happen, just not the way or when you thought they would. I recall 5-6-7 years ago when JBJ was putting up good offensive numbers in Boston. There were a LOT of rumors about the Royals being interested in trading for him, and I think even signing him when he became a free agent. Many's the times since then when I have seen his name and abysmal stats that I have counted blessings that it never happened. Now here he is...lol...albeit as desperate depth. Agree with you, Craig, will probably not break camp with the major league club, but as a defensive warm body really no harm.
Sometimes the best transactions are the ones that never happen. :)
Great article. The thing that jumps off the page with Greinke is his home and away splits. 1.91 ERA at the K and 5.32 ERA on the road. Can this be explained?
Thanks, Jeff! Best I can do in way of explanation: He gave up 1 HR in 66 innings at The K. And 13 HRs in 71 innings on the road. Splits like this keep me up at night.
I wrote a bit about it (along with his monthly splits and abandoning of the slider) when the Royals signed him again last month.
https://intothefountains.substack.com/p/zack-is-back-again
As someone who has no life I scrolled through the schedule and determined that a pitcher can get 24 home starts without ever pitching on the road. It is hard to imagine Q doing that but we might see him toying with the rotation to get Grienke more home starts.
I’ve wondered if they go with some sort of six-man rotation at some point this season. I think we’re going to see a lot of creativity in how they manage the workloads of pitchers. And Jeff, looking through the schedule and plotting out pitching rotations is living your best life. :)
That sound you hear is Ryan Lefebvre gearing up to make dozens of on-air references to Jackie Bradley Jr. being teammates with Whit Merrifield at South Carolina.
His voice cracking as he struggles to hold back tears, thinking of what could’ve been.