***Official 2021 Royals Season Repository Thread***

[ChiefsCountry]

For all things Royals for the new year.

Free Agent Signings:
Carlos Santana
Mike Minor
Michael Taylor
Ervin Santana

Top 10 Prospects:
1 Bobby Witt Jr., SS
2 Asa Lacy, LHP
3 Daniel Lynch, LHP
4 Jackson Kowar, RHP
5 Erick Pena, OF
6 Nick Loftin, SS
7 Kyle Isbel, OF
8 Khali Lee, OF
9 Jonathan Bowlan, RHP
10 Carlos Hernedez, RHP

[WhawhaWhat]

Originally Posted by Valiant

Nope. A no hitter is a 9inning complete game.
Sorry, bum doesn't get it. Nor will the other players this year to match.

If the 7 inning game counts as a win just like a 9 inning game, then I don't see why a no hitter in a 7 inning game should be treated any differently than one in a 9 inning game.

[Chris Meck]

Originally Posted by WhawhaWhat

If the 7 inning game counts as a win just like a 9 inning game, then I don't see why a no hitter in a 7 inning game should be treated any differently than one in a 9 inning game.

because you only have to pitch 5 2/3 to get a win.


A no hitter is 27 outs, no hits.

a perfect game is 27 up, 27 down.

[Chiefspants]

The only reason this is a debate is because Manfred is a dip**** who has no business restocking a portapotty, much less making decisions that have significant ramifications for the game of baseball.

[ChiefsCountry]

Manfred getting heat for Fay Vincent's decision.

[KChiefs1]

Originally Posted by KChiefs1

https://theathletic.com/2521640/2021...-making-a-run/

MLB POWER RANKINGS: APRIL 19, 2021

17. Kansas City Royals
Record as of Monday morning: 9-5
Last Power Ranking: 21

Every winter there is some half-conceived team with no real shot of competing but are in that sweet spot of six-to-10 good players for them that gets declared as “fun” by national observers who have no intent to watch this team more than a dozen times in a six-month span. In a similar vein, there is always a solid cadre of veteran free agents who are neither difference-makers nor on the upswings of their career but are productive enough that they deserve a job somewhere, so we can all say “good pickup for the Jacksonville Jamokes” before forgetting where they signed 15 minutes later.

This spring in Kansas City, these two forces have joined up like a Voltron to produce a hot enough start to make them the current kings of the AL Central. The magical area where Kansas and Missouri meet is the only remaining territory where good, non-superstar players over 30 are not immediately fenced for prospects. Thus it’s the only place where Whit Merrifield and Salvador Pérez could be carrying the Royals with monster starts that, you know, probably won’t last. But they’re helping to keep things positive in Kansas City as we all try to suss out if Jakob Junis’ big turnaround is legitimate, and flip-flop on whether to descriptively refer to Brad Keller as the Opening Day starter or a former Rule 5 pick on a start-to-start basis.

Other teams of note:

1. Los Angeles Dodgers
Record as of Monday morning: 13-3
Last Power Ranking: 1

8. Chicago White Sox
Record as of Monday morning: 8-8
Last Power Ranking: 7

9. Minnesota Twins
Record as of Monday morning: 6-8
Last Power Ranking: 5

11. New York Yankees
Record as of Monday morning: 5-10
Last Power Ranking: 4

13. St. Louis Cardinals
Record as of Monday morning: 7-8
Last Power Ranking: 10

19. Cleveland Indians
Record as of Monday morning: 8-7
Last Power Ranking: 16

27. Detroit Tigers
Record as of Monday morning: 6-10
Last Power Ranking: 26

30. Colorado Rockies
Record as of Monday morning: 4-12
Last Power Ranking: 28

12. Kansas City Royals
Record as of Monday morning: 13-7
Last Power Ranking: 17

The Athletic’s Andy McCullough, who claims to be a “national writer” but still moonlights as a Kansas City Royals beat guy, recently shared this factoid following the Royals’ thrilling 9-8 comeback win against the Rays last week (which, by the way, had very eerie parallels to their 2014 wild-card win):

The Royals are 10-7. Here is the team’s record the past few years when reaching its 10th win.

2020: 10-14

2019: 10-20

2018: 10-22

This Royals team has indeed taken a step forward this season. And they’ve done it without getting much production from guys like Andrew Benintendi and Hunter Dozier. They may not hang onto first in the AL Central for long with the White Sox gaining on them, but they’ve got a tight grip on the lead as the “most fun team to watch, non-contender division,” and they don’t look like a group that intends to loosen it. In fact, Royals writer Alec Lewis described this young team as having “a certain will, regardless of circumstance.”

It’s really a win-win season for Royals fans. They can enjoy the no-pressure entertainment value of the current MLB group, while still dreaming of what this club can do when top Royals prospects Bobby Witt Jr., Asa Lacy and Daniel Lynch join the fun.

13. St. Louis Cardinals
Record as of Monday morning: 11-10
Last Power Ranking: 13

Look out, here come the Cardinals. Fresh off a sweep of the spiraling Reds, St. Louis now owns a winning record.

When the Rockies forced the Cardinals to rob them of yet another superstar, we all pegged St. Louis to win the NL Central. After all, it’s a division filled with teams, albeit several of them solid, who did little to get better over the winter. Meanwhile, the Cardinals got Nolan Arenado for free.

Last week, the Cardinals got closer to looking like that favorite. A rotation led by Jack Flaherty and Adam Wainwright got its act together. A scroll through the lineup’s stats reveals several hitters, especially Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt, who have yet to turn it on. They will. There is no version of this Cardinals team in which Yadier Molina leads the team in OPS.

St. Louis is chasing the white-hot Brewers right now, but they probably have more talent overall. We could end up going all 162 games — and maybe 163 — before any NL Central team truly pulls away from the pack.

[TomBarndtsTwin]

After the Dodgers loss in extra innings tonight, the Kansas City Royals now have the best record in Major League Baseball.

Bet NO ONE predicted that after nearly one month into the season.


Let’s keep this train rolling into Pitt. Struggling Twins after that. Let’s pad this lead while we have the soft part of the schedule.

[TribalElder]

https://www.espn.com/mlb/standings/_/group/overall

first place overall today

[duncan_idaho]

I don't buy that this team is this good. BUT some things in their favor:

1) The ball is deadened from previous years. This plays up teams that focus on speed and defense like Kansas City does. (It also has turned Jacob deGrom into an unhittable god because his stuff is so good he can just pound the strike zone with it and no one can touch it).

2) The SP has been strong, even with Keller struggling. It will even out some, but there's help on the way, too (Lynch, Lacy).

3) The bullpen has been excellent and has depth and a lot of high-powered arms.

4) In addition to Lynch and Lacy, there are potential upgrades on the way in Bobby Witt, Jr. and Adalberto Mondesi coming back. Adding both to a lineup that already is pretty deep could push it to 8-9 deep.

Merrifield - 2B
Santana - 1B
Perez - C
Soler - DH
Benintendi - LF
Mondesi - SS
Dozier - RF
Witt - 3B
Taylor - CF

That's not only a deeper lineup, you're considerably upgrading the dynamic nature of it with two guys who have enormous upside and potential.

It's going to be a lot of fun to watch. And what more can you ask for than that?

[TomBarndtsTwin]

Waking up to the Royals with the BEST record in MLB!!

It’s early, but boy that is something!

[smithandrew051]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I don't buy that this team is this good. BUT some things in their favor:

1) The ball is deadened from previous years. This plays up teams that focus on speed and defense like Kansas City does. (It also has turned Jacob deGrom into an unhittable god because his stuff is so good he can just pound the strike zone with it and no one can touch it).

2) The SP has been strong, even with Keller struggling. It will even out some, but there's help on the way, too (Lynch, Lacy).

3) The bullpen has been excellent and has depth and a lot of high-powered arms.

4) In addition to Lynch and Lacy, there are potential upgrades on the way in Bobby Witt, Jr. and Adalberto Mondesi coming back. Adding both to a lineup that already is pretty deep could push it to 8-9 deep.

Merrifield - 2B
Santana - 1B
Perez - C
Soler - DH
Benintendi - LF
Mondesi - SS
Dozier - RF
Witt - 3B
Taylor - CF

That's not only a deeper lineup, you're considerably upgrading the dynamic nature of it with two guys who have enormous upside and potential.

It's going to be a lot of fun to watch. And what more can you ask for than that?

Agree with all of this. This is a fun season with little pressure. Definitely feels like the team is ahead of schedule.

The best part is the talent in the minors that will be helping out before long. We already have a nice foundation. If Witt is a star, then we’re legit contenders.

[PHOG]

No matter what happens, it sure beats being out of it by the time May rolls around.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by BigCatDaddy

BWillie just kicked his dog

Love the Royals. Just don't think they are going to win the Central or win a Wild Card spot. Amazing how people don't understand fandom and reality are two different things. It's like the K-State fan who picks their team to win the NCAA Tournament when they happen to make the tournament and squeak in as a 11 seed.

[Prison Bitch]

Originally Posted by BWillie

Love the Royals. Just don't think they are going to win the Central or win a Wild Card spot. Amazing how people don't understand fandom and reality are two different things. It's like the K-State fan who picks their team to win the NCAA Tournament when they happen to make the tournament and squeak in as a 11 seed.

No, it’s not like that at all. Royals have a 24% chance of making the playoffs and KSU never had even a 1% chance to win the NCAAT.


You are a poor contrarian. In order to be a good one, you need to present good analogies and an element of truth to your claims. Usually found in data or objectivity.

[ChiefsCountry]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I don't buy that this team is this good. BUT some things in their favor:

1) The ball is deadened from previous years. This plays up teams that focus on speed and defense like Kansas City does. (It also has turned Jacob deGrom into an unhittable god because his stuff is so good he can just pound the strike zone with it and no one can touch it).

2) The SP has been strong, even with Keller struggling. It will even out some, but there's help on the way, too (Lynch, Lacy).

3) The bullpen has been excellent and has depth and a lot of high-powered arms.

4) In addition to Lynch and Lacy, there are potential upgrades on the way in Bobby Witt, Jr. and Adalberto Mondesi coming back. Adding both to a lineup that already is pretty deep could push it to 8-9 deep.

Merrifield - 2B
Santana - 1B
Perez - C
Soler - DH
Benintendi - LF
Mondesi - SS
Dozier - RF
Witt - 3B
Taylor - CF

That's not only a deeper lineup, you're considerably upgrading the dynamic nature of it with two guys who have enormous upside and potential.

It's going to be a lot of fun to watch. And what more can you ask for than that?

And the Wildcard is Sherman's ownership. I don't think they would be afraid to add payroll if meant getting a player to push them over the top at the trade deadline.

[Old Dog]

Originally Posted by BWillie

Love the Royals. Just don't think they are going to win the Central or win a Wild Card spot.....

For ****'s Sake, nobody I'm aware of is trying to proclaim that they're going to do either of those things at this point. Can we not just enjoy this as long as it lasts?