[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by Nightfyre

https://www.kansascity.com/sports/sp...215490520.html

Interesting article on Bubba Starling and potential lack of motivation.

Interesting, but I disagree with Quirk on pretty much every aspect.

There's no upside in KC cutting ties. They've invested so much already... Might as well hang on until he quits baseball. His tools and defense are such that there's risk in moving on (slim as the chances of it being a real risk are). Would be brutal to cut ties and then have him make some sort of MLB contribution.

I also don't think questioning his work ethic or how much he wants to succeed is fair. Starling works hard. He just can't recognize pitches. That's a skill, not necessarily something that can be learned.

Originally Posted by tk13

Before we get too carried away expecting too big of a return on Moose, apparently the Braves view him as a platoon or bench player.

I checked further on this. The #Braves interest in Moustakas is minimal at best. They're happy with Camargo at 3B, and the deadline focus remains pitching. There's also the question of how Moustakas would adapt to a bench role. Barring an injury in Atlanta, there's no fit. https://t.co/s7ou8XFmNO

— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) July 25, 2018

I don't expect a huge return, but they'll get something worthwhile back if there are really 9 teams interested/checking in.

Originally Posted by tk13

Also, this guy exists.

I'm just amazed that there are people out there that think the Royals won the WS because of some genius planning. No, they're some guy who discovers gold in his backyard when trying to blow up gophers with homemade fertilizer bombs in his backyard for a Youtube video.

— Dan Szymborski (@DSzymborski) July 25, 2018

What was planned: Having a great defense, an offense that made contact and could run the bases at a high level, having a pitching staff that played to the ballpark (fly ball pitchers).

The bullpen dominance was a little unplanned, but the formula was purposeful heading into 2014, and the formula was so successful everyone is now trying to emulate it.

To suggest a 3-year run where the team was so good was just blind luck shows a real stubbornness and willful ignorance on his part. And it's annoying.

It's no different, really, than the Giants formula in 2010, 2012, and 2014.