Royals Rumblings - News for March 21, 2025

By next Friday’s Rumblings, we’ll have seen real baseball

At the Star, Vahe Gregorian profiles Seth Lugo:

For instance, an aunt likes to tell the story of taking him to a Texas Rangers game when he was 4 or 5 years old.

“I was the only little kid that would sit there and just stare at the whole game,” he said. “I wouldn’t take my eyes off the field. I wasn’t going around eating ice cream or popcorn or anything like that. It was just locked into the game.”

Blair Kerkhoff writes about how Kansas City became a major league town 70 years ago:

By the early 1950s, a descriptive quality had been added to the portrayal of select U.S. cities.

Major league.

You either had been for more than a half-century, or wanted to be, a city with Major League Baseball. And not just for months of entertainment on the diamond.

Being major-league meant status, that your city was economically and culturally vibrant enough to support a team in the nation’s most popular sport.

Jaylon Thompson wrote about the MLB player survey that listed Witt as the second-best player in baseball:

Here is what one player noted: “It’s Shohei (Ohtani ranked No. 1), but I can see a case for Bobby Witt Jr,” a National League outfielder told MLB.com reporters. “He hit a homer against us one time and you’re mad, but you’re also like, ‘Man, he has so much aura.’”

And Pete Grathoff talked about the new food offerings at The K this season.

A two pack from Anne Rogers at MLB.com. The first is about the Royals catching duo of Salvy and Fermin:

“I have a lot of respect for Salvy,” Fermin said. “I see how he’s working. That makes me feel like, ‘Let’s go, Freddy. You got to keep working.’ I just want Salvy to feel good and comfortable that he’s got someone back there for him who can help him. If he needs rest, I’m there for him and for the team.”

The other is about the Spring Training battle for the last couple of roster spots:

“We really are going to be taking this down to the wire,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “... The handedness is part of it, the pinch-hitting ability, the on-base ability, the baserunning ability, all of those things we have to try to factor in and which one is going to make us incrementally better.”

Currently, the only lock for the Royals’ bench is backup catcher Freddy Fermin. Dairon Blanco is a heavy favorite for a spot because of the valuable role he filled last year, stealing 31 bases with 21 coming as a pinch-runner. The 31-year-old dealt with right Achilles tendon tightness earlier this spring, but Blanco is now back on a normal buildup schedule. The Royals just have to be certain he’s ready to go to fill that niche role that relies so heavily on his legs. If not, Tyler Tolbert might be able to step in.

How about a news Tweet, too?

At MLBTR, Steve Adams lists all 36 players with opt-outs:

Royals: C Luke Maile, RHP Ross Stripling

Maile is a glove-first backup who’s had a nice spring at the plate but has done so on a team with a healthy Salvador Perez and Freddy Fermin. His path to a roster spot doesn’t look great. Speculatively, his former Reds club, which just lost Tyler Stephenson to begin the year, would make sense if they plan to add an outside catcher. Maile’s .214/.294/.329 performance over the past three seasons is light, but he’s already familiar with the bulk of Cincinnati’s staff. He’s a fine backup or No. 3 catcher for any club, Kansas City included.

Stripling notched a 3.01 ERA in 124 innings for the 2022 Blue Jays, but it’s been rough waters since. He was rocked for a 5.68 ERA across the past two seasons, spending time with both Bay Area clubs, and has been tagged for 11 runs on 14 hits — four of them homers — with just two strikeouts in six spring frames. He’ll likely need a strong Triple-A showing, be it with the Royals or another club, to pitch his way back to the majors.

If you want to read some AL Central Previews, we have a couple:

• Matt Snyder at CBS Sports
• Jordan Shusterman at Yahoo Sports

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Blogs? We’ve got quite a few!

At Into the Fountains, Craig Brown does his final roster projection:

As such, it’s time for my final installment of a roster projection for Opening Day. Honestly, there’s been little to no intrigue to this exercise this spring. It seems like the competition for spots are found at the ends…Fifth starter, last bullpen arm, final bench bat. The only interesting question (for me, at least) is how manager Matt Quatraro and his staff will deploy the players defensively. At this point, that’s anyone’s guess.

David Lesky mailbags at Inside the Crown ($). This particular question was about his favorite Royal to cover:

So maybe it’s because of the time, but the answer has to be Danny Duffy. He welcomed me the first time I was in a clubhouse and I always had good chats with him whenever I had a chance to talk with him. But it was more than just good chats. He gave real answers. He took accountability when he stunk and he was excited about doing well when he did well. I don’t know if everyone feels this way, but robotic answers do nothing for me. I remember after a start in 2015 against the White Sox maybe that he struggled to get out of the third or fourth, he went through why each pitch failed him. That’s interesting to me. Be interesting!

At The Royals Reporter, Kevin O’Brien posts another entry in his series about fan experience at The K:

Opening Day at Kauffman Stadium is eight days away, but it feels like it will be here before we know it. In my opinion, Opening Day at the K is a Kansas City event that cannot be matched. It’s better than Opening weekend for the Chiefs, KC Current, Sporting KC, the Big 12 Tournament, or any celebratory parade (including the St. Patrick’s Day one, and I’m part Irish).

In my first post of the Royals Fan Guide, I discussed the different season ticket packages for the upcoming season. This second post will share my Top 10 seating sections at the K for fans. For context, a map of Kauffman Stadium includes all the seating sections available, which are shown below.

At Farm to Fountains, Zac Miller projects the Omaha Opening Day roster:

Starting Pitchers (5): Alec Marsh, Noah Cameron, Luinder Avila, Chandler Champlain, Tyson Guerrero

This is a really intriguing group of pitchers. Marsh figures to be a frontline starter for the team as he builds back from the right shoulder soreness he experienced before spring training began. He may be the first call-up to Kansas City once he gets ramped back up. One of either Marsh or Cameron is likely to be the opening night starter, as Cameron came off a solid spring with the major league squad, holding a 3.60 ERA over 10 IP. Luinder Avila flashed big potential this spring, notching 98 MPH+ on the radar gun on his fastball and sinker. Chandler Champlain had an incredible 2023 season but looks to bounce back after a mixed bag showing in 2024. Lastly, Tyson Guerrero finished his season in Omaha last year with underwhelming results, albeit in only 20.2 IP. He will look to improve as he gains more experience at the Triple-A level. Kyle Wright figures to be in the mix once he recovers from a mild hamstring strain.

Blog Roundup:

• Darin Watson at U.L.’s Toothpick: This Date In Royals History—1985 Edition: March 19 - The Royals take advantage of a late home run to beat Montreal, and make some roster moves
• Patrick Glancy at Powder Blue Nostalgia: My 2025 NL Preview
• Mike Gillespie at KOK: Should the KC Royals be concerned about Lucas Erceg?
• Tremayne Person at KOK: The Jac Caglianone problem the Royals must solve immediately

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Last week, we started our Asian baseball previews with the CPBL. This week, it’s the KBO. Then a week off and then the NPB.

KBO - Korea Baseball Organization

Country: South Korea

Opening Day: March 22 (Hey, that’s today! ...if you remember that the Eastern Hemisphere lives a day in the future)

International Players: Notable names include Guillermo Heredia, Matt Davidson, Yonny Chirinos, Elieser Hernandez, Cole Irvin, Mitch White, Jake Cave, Austin Dean, Estevan Florial, Víctor Reyes, Patrick Wisdom, and Yasiel Puig. The number of 5+ year MLB veterans in the league is steadily climbing. Full list from MyKBOStats

Former Royals: I saw a round-faced pitcher in a blue cap named Denyi Reyes and my heart lept for a moment. Could the Big Sweat have reinvented himself and gone to Korea? Alas, no, the former Royal is now 47 years young. Meanwhile, Denyi is a former pitcher in the Red Sox, Orioles, and Mets systems and he was sporting a blue Samsung Lions hat on his head. That said, there is a former Royal in the league now! Reliever Tucker Davidson, who was with Kansas City in 2023 (gotta be honest: I don’t remember him or his 20 appearances), has signed with the Lotte Giants. Former Royals farmhand Ryan Weiss has signed with our Hanwha Eagles!

Last Season: Last year, the KBO said goodbye to Shin-soo Choo, two decade veteran and career pitching appearances leader Jung Woo-ram, and the oldest stadium in the league. For the Korea Series, from last year’s recap: “The Tigers finished the regular season at 87-55-2, 9(!) games ahead of the 2nd place Lions. These two franchises have combined for the most Korea Series championships with the Lions winning 8 and losing the series 10 times. And, while this feels like a misprint, prior to this year, the Tigers have been to the Korea Series 11 times. They are 11-0!” The Kia Tigers won a gentleman’s sweep, 4 games to 1, and took home their 12th title.

Rooting Interest: When Max did the official RR guide for the KBO in 2020, polls aside, it was decide by the commentariat that being Hanwha Eagles fans was our lot in life. In the last 30 years, the team has only made the playoffs once. In 2020, 2021, and 2022, the Eagles finished last. In 2023, they improved! Ninth place. 2024? Eighth place! It’s a pattern! As noted a couple of years ago: “But, hey, they won the 2023 equivalent of the Cactus League crown. Flags fly forever! Is there any doubt who our team is in the KBO? I think not.” That said, there is something for the Eagles faithful this year: Daejeon Hanwha Life Park, which will host the KBO All-Star game in July.

Random Nuggets:

• In the past, I’ve been able to link to KBO previews as I was writing this. In the past, I have had links to previews from the Korea Times and Korea JoongAng Daily. However, as I am writing this, they have not been posted. Once again, I’m going to assume the Eagles are picked to finish towards the bottom of the league. There was this one note: all 10 KBO teams will start foreign SPs on Opening Day.
• Last year I linked to an article that said the KBO would begin using a pitch clock last year (as well as ABS). But wiki and othersites say 2025 will be the first year for a pitch clock in the KBO. Other rule changes include minor adjustments to the ABS zone and ties declared after the 11th inning rather than 12th. That article also notes that changes are coming to the foreign player limit in 2026, which will allow for an additional player from Asia or Australia. The league also set a preseason attendance record so baseball appetites are up. So much so that the league signed a deal with a movie theater chain to show KBO games, apparently.
• As with all leagues, it’s getting harder and harder as we get away from COVID. KBO Reddit quasi-updated their guide on how to watch games (with VPN). Some games can now be seen on a service called SOOP (no idea). It also looks like all of the teams have a YouTube channel. However, all of this requires knowing Korean. A couple of years ago, I mentioned DreadROK (link to his YouTube channel), who does fun fan broadcasts of games. But, due to rights changes last year, he’s had to change up what he does. Prior to 2024, he showed the game and chatted alongside it. Now he can’t show the game so it’s some graphics that look like MLB Gameday while he chats along. I’m appreciative that he does these but it’s less fun than it was before.

Links:

• http://eng.koreabaseball.com/ - The Official KBO site has some parts translated into English
• https://www.reddit.com/r/KBO/ - KBO Reddit
• https://mykbostats.com/ - Good English stats website with a clean interface and lots of data
• https://koreatimes.co.kr/www/section_600.html - The Korea Times sports section usually has a number of KBO stories mixed in with other sports news

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Since yesterday was the start of the NCAA tournament, I thought I’d go with the March Madness theme. However, I apparently used that last year (the same week as the KBO preview, even). Since all the major local schools are done anyway, might as well just skip ahead to One Shining Moment.