Thursday, April 29, 2004
Q&A on the Royals
Bob Dutton is the Royals beat writer for the Kansas City Star. Dutton was gracious enough to answer a few questions about the Sox upcoming opponents over Mother’s Day weekend at Fenway.
El Guapo’s Ghost: Are the Royals brass considering calling up David DeJesus to play left field for the struggling Guiel? At 31 and one good season under his belt, I would not expect the Royals to be patient with Guiel.
Bob Dutton: At this point, no, I don't think the Royals thinking of dumping Guiel for DeJesus. Guiel is a very affordable fit for them for the next few years. He's above average defensively, too, especially in left field.
[Editors note: DeJesus was added to the 25-man roster on April 24 prior to this exchange. Rich Thompson was designated for assignment. Guiel remains on the big league club. For more on this move, check out the link]
EGG: I read last year, probably in the Star, that one of Beltran's objectives in 2003 was to cut down on his strikeouts. He did. Has Beltran announced any of his personal goals for this season? He doesn't seem to have a glaring flaw in his game now.
BD: Beltran wants to increase his walks by laying off bad pitches. He's been terrific at this so far. [Beltran's BB/PA is .198 in 18 games this season. It has improved year each since 2001. Manny's career mark is .133 BB/PA.]
EGG: Will Zack Greinke act as the Royals trade deadline pick up for the stretch run?
BD: The Royals might use Greinke as you suggest. But I don't think that's an actual plan. If the Royals are contenders at the trade deadline, and they're certainly not playing like it now, I think they will make some short-term moves like last year, when they acquired Leskanic, Rondell White, Brian Anderson, etc. David Glass proved last year that he's willing to make short-term cash investments if the club has a chance to win.
EGG: Is the Royals front office taking a close look at their medical and training staff? It seems that over the past couple of seasons, players have had difficultly staying healthy (Sweeney, MacDougal, Affeldt, etc.).
BD: Those folks are under review all the time. Just like the players. But look around the league at how many players are on the disabled list, including 60-day DLs. The Royals aren't unique, but they are going through a bad stretch. The White Sox went through a real bad stretch a few years ago. The Dodgers have had multiple pitchers on the DL over the last couple of years. There are plenty of examples. But Royals fans usually only see what's happening to the Royals. The guys we're currently talking about -- Snyder, Hernandez and Asencio -- were all examined and operated on by the top guys in the country. It doesn't seem to me the Royals are cutting corners.
EGG: Is having mostly LHP in the rotation an advantage or disadvantage for the Royals? It should be an advantage against the Sox. Substituting Kapler and Burks for Ortiz and Nixon (when healthy) is helpful for the Sox opposition.
BD: The lefty rotation sure hasn't paid dividends so far. This wasn't part of any specific plan, either. Remember, a year ago, the Royals thought they were building a mostly righty staff with Hernandez and Asencio at Nos. 1 and 3.
EGG: Thanks! I really appreciate this. Beltran is a superstar. It is unfortunate that most of the country only watches him six times a year.
Bob Dutton is the Royals beat writer for the Kansas City Star. Dutton was gracious enough to answer a few questions about the Sox upcoming opponents over Mother’s Day weekend at Fenway.
El Guapo’s Ghost: Are the Royals brass considering calling up David DeJesus to play left field for the struggling Guiel? At 31 and one good season under his belt, I would not expect the Royals to be patient with Guiel.
Bob Dutton: At this point, no, I don't think the Royals thinking of dumping Guiel for DeJesus. Guiel is a very affordable fit for them for the next few years. He's above average defensively, too, especially in left field.
[Editors note: DeJesus was added to the 25-man roster on April 24 prior to this exchange. Rich Thompson was designated for assignment. Guiel remains on the big league club. For more on this move, check out the link]
EGG: I read last year, probably in the Star, that one of Beltran's objectives in 2003 was to cut down on his strikeouts. He did. Has Beltran announced any of his personal goals for this season? He doesn't seem to have a glaring flaw in his game now.
BD: Beltran wants to increase his walks by laying off bad pitches. He's been terrific at this so far. [Beltran's BB/PA is .198 in 18 games this season. It has improved year each since 2001. Manny's career mark is .133 BB/PA.]
EGG: Will Zack Greinke act as the Royals trade deadline pick up for the stretch run?
BD: The Royals might use Greinke as you suggest. But I don't think that's an actual plan. If the Royals are contenders at the trade deadline, and they're certainly not playing like it now, I think they will make some short-term moves like last year, when they acquired Leskanic, Rondell White, Brian Anderson, etc. David Glass proved last year that he's willing to make short-term cash investments if the club has a chance to win.
EGG: Is the Royals front office taking a close look at their medical and training staff? It seems that over the past couple of seasons, players have had difficultly staying healthy (Sweeney, MacDougal, Affeldt, etc.).
BD: Those folks are under review all the time. Just like the players. But look around the league at how many players are on the disabled list, including 60-day DLs. The Royals aren't unique, but they are going through a bad stretch. The White Sox went through a real bad stretch a few years ago. The Dodgers have had multiple pitchers on the DL over the last couple of years. There are plenty of examples. But Royals fans usually only see what's happening to the Royals. The guys we're currently talking about -- Snyder, Hernandez and Asencio -- were all examined and operated on by the top guys in the country. It doesn't seem to me the Royals are cutting corners.
EGG: Is having mostly LHP in the rotation an advantage or disadvantage for the Royals? It should be an advantage against the Sox. Substituting Kapler and Burks for Ortiz and Nixon (when healthy) is helpful for the Sox opposition.
BD: The lefty rotation sure hasn't paid dividends so far. This wasn't part of any specific plan, either. Remember, a year ago, the Royals thought they were building a mostly righty staff with Hernandez and Asencio at Nos. 1 and 3.
EGG: Thanks! I really appreciate this. Beltran is a superstar. It is unfortunate that most of the country only watches him six times a year.
0 Old Comments:
Thank you - Red Sox!
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