I was thinking about the Royals and especially the last two games this morning, and I thought "hey, I'm not supposed to be enjoying them this much this late in the year!" Almost hate to say it for fear of jinxing, but they are starting to remind me a bit of when the youngsters started arriving in 2013. Maybe Hoz being in town got me nostalgic. Anyway, LOVE the enthusiasm and fun they play with, as well as the talent.
Your point on Witt is one that I had also entertained recently. Maybe I am mis-remembering, but I thought reports on his glovework in the minors was excellent. I think I am onboard with a possible move back to third.
Pratto and then Sunday -- I wonder if we will look back and see this as a turning point. The walk-off followed by the beatdown seemed to change the atmosphere at the K and with the team.
Aug 9, 2022·edited Aug 9, 2022Liked by Craig Brown
Craig - I enjoyed your most recent appearance on 810 so much that I decided to subscribe. Seems I'm spending more and more time on substack lately! (You can blame Seth Keysor and one of your competitors for that.)
Based on your column that I just read, I think you're gonna be partly to blame for that as well!
I'm right there with you on putting BWJ at 3B and Nicky at SS. Just because guys can play multiple positions doesn't automatically mean that it's best for them or the team to have them do so.
BWJ appears to be in too much of a hurry on some plays while taking others for granted. Admittedly that's an odd combination but that's what I'm seeing.
I'll be back. Looking forward to future columns....
Craig - I was wondering if you would mind if I posted my Buck O'Neil story here. It's a good one and was very well received at The Athletic. I genuinely believe you and your readers will enjoy it! It's (kindasorta) off topic from the Royals and I didn't want to just barge in here and start posting stuff like that without your okay. It's a bit lengthy but doesn't exceed the substack character limit. I'll wait to hear back from you. If you'd rather that I not post it here I totally get it....
Some pitchers who are unusually fiery and emotional seem to be able to channel all of that into pitching well. Guys like Pedro and Schilling come to mind. Closer to home, I think of Shields and Cueto, maybe even Kelvin Herrera. We all watched Yordano struggle with that at times.
Then there are other guys who seem to constantly be seeking to avenge some imagined wrong, or who are out to prove their manhood rather than looking to get outs. Those guys usually don't do well because they're unable or unwilling to control or channel their emotions.
I've seen enough of Amir Garrett to have him classified in the latter group. Sure, he has a MLB-caliber arm. But I'm feeling very little confidence that he has a MLB-caliber head.
So much good stuff here, Craig.
I was thinking about the Royals and especially the last two games this morning, and I thought "hey, I'm not supposed to be enjoying them this much this late in the year!" Almost hate to say it for fear of jinxing, but they are starting to remind me a bit of when the youngsters started arriving in 2013. Maybe Hoz being in town got me nostalgic. Anyway, LOVE the enthusiasm and fun they play with, as well as the talent.
Your point on Witt is one that I had also entertained recently. Maybe I am mis-remembering, but I thought reports on his glovework in the minors was excellent. I think I am onboard with a possible move back to third.
Pratto and then Sunday -- I wonder if we will look back and see this as a turning point. The walk-off followed by the beatdown seemed to change the atmosphere at the K and with the team.
Craig - I enjoyed your most recent appearance on 810 so much that I decided to subscribe. Seems I'm spending more and more time on substack lately! (You can blame Seth Keysor and one of your competitors for that.)
Based on your column that I just read, I think you're gonna be partly to blame for that as well!
I'm right there with you on putting BWJ at 3B and Nicky at SS. Just because guys can play multiple positions doesn't automatically mean that it's best for them or the team to have them do so.
BWJ appears to be in too much of a hurry on some plays while taking others for granted. Admittedly that's an odd combination but that's what I'm seeing.
I'll be back. Looking forward to future columns....
Craig - I was wondering if you would mind if I posted my Buck O'Neil story here. It's a good one and was very well received at The Athletic. I genuinely believe you and your readers will enjoy it! It's (kindasorta) off topic from the Royals and I didn't want to just barge in here and start posting stuff like that without your okay. It's a bit lengthy but doesn't exceed the substack character limit. I'll wait to hear back from you. If you'd rather that I not post it here I totally get it....
Some pitchers who are unusually fiery and emotional seem to be able to channel all of that into pitching well. Guys like Pedro and Schilling come to mind. Closer to home, I think of Shields and Cueto, maybe even Kelvin Herrera. We all watched Yordano struggle with that at times.
Then there are other guys who seem to constantly be seeking to avenge some imagined wrong, or who are out to prove their manhood rather than looking to get outs. Those guys usually don't do well because they're unable or unwilling to control or channel their emotions.
I've seen enough of Amir Garrett to have him classified in the latter group. Sure, he has a MLB-caliber arm. But I'm feeling very little confidence that he has a MLB-caliber head.