Should baseball do more to help small market clubs like the Mets?
Royals Rumblings - News for November 18, 2015
Andrew Simon at Sports on Earth looks at who should sign Ben Zobrist.
1. Kansas City Royals Zobrist just won the World Series in K.C., then gave his new baby daughter "Royal" as a middle name. But a return makes sense for more than just sentimental reasons. As things currently stand, the reigning champs probably would be trying to defend their title with Omar Infante at second base, and Jarrod Dyson and Paulo Orlando in the outfield corners. Clearly, that's not sufficient. There have been indications that the Royals are more likely to bring back Zobrist than his fellow free agent, left fielder Alex Gordon. That makes some sense, as Zobrist could come at about half the total cost of Gordon while giving the Royals the ability to move him around between all three positions, based on whom else they acquire or how other players perform during the season. Especially considering Infante's past two seasons (.596 OPS, -0.3 FanGraphs WAR), Kansas City has the greatest need for Zobrist, who meshed so well with the club last season.
Meanwhile, Ben Zobrist may be too expensive for the Mets.
Attempting to get back to the playoffs and this time win a World Series, the Mets are making another run at Zobrist, but a source who confirmed the Mets have reached out to the free agent cautioned that the market for the 34-year old utility man will be robust and may be too costly for the National League champions. An industry source said Monday they expect Zobrist, coming off a World Series championship with the Royals, could command at least a three- or four-year deal worth $40 to $50 million.
At Pine Tar Press, Kevin Scobee cares not for the future and wants to win again now.
By not signing Gordon now when the next two years are far more likely – on paper – to be successful seasons, the Royals are bringing their 4th best reliever into a tie game in the 9th on the road, and leaving their best reliever in the bullpen for the possibility of a save later. Windows of Opportunity exist, whether you’d like to believe that or not, and it takes time and a lot of good fortune for small market teams to have as many good players on the roster at the same time as the Royals do now.** Perhaps those players could overcome the loss of Gordon because they are good and are relatively young, but taking that chance when there’s a more guaranteed option is needlessly risky.
Verdict: screw 2018
John Viril at Kings of Kauffman wonders if Dayton Moore can have sustained success in Kansas City.
The Kansas City Royals have high-end prospects like Kyle Zimmer, Miguel Almonte and Raul Mondesi still in the system. Yet, minor-league analyst John Sickels suggests players like Cheslor Cuthbert and Bubba Starling profile as contributors rather than main pieces at the major-league level. He also sees the KC Royals system having a lot of "C+" prospects rather than future stars. In short, the Royals system could use an infusion of high-upside talent in the near future.
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