Is Dayton Moore on Thin Ice?
If you've been around the Royals long enough, you won't be unfamiliar with Tweets or posts from angry Royals fans demanding the Royals fire Dayton Moore, mostly after they lose because one of the free agents or trades from the offseason muffed a throw or gave up a walk-off homer, or because they're not satisfied with the results of a trade. And most of the time, it's tossed aside. But after watching the team slowly flounder in the past two years, I'm beginning to think that their points might actually have some validity. After some boneheaded trades and free agent signings, largely from this winter, and some very poor drafting in recent years, I can't see Dayton Moore as our general manager five years from now, barring a major turnaround. Of course, it goes a little bit deeper than that, so allow me to do some elaborating on why I think Dayton Moore might not be our GM for many more years.
Failure to Maintain Success
Because of how quickly the farm system has dried up to poor scouting, Dayton Moore has failed the test of general managers that separates the wheat from the chaff: to build a successful team, and maintain the success with a rich, or at a minimum, serviceable farm system. Being able to build a team that wins the World Series is only the first test for a general manager, one that any GM with a couple of wise investments can pass. It's how the general manager maintains the success that separates the merely good general managers from the greats, such as Theo Epstein, Branch Rickey, and John Scheurholz. Three consecutive draft failures in Christian Colon, Bubba Starling, and Kyle Zimmer, all in the first round, have eviscerated the team's farm system, causing it to plummet from one of the best to one of the worst in baseball. A mere two year window of contention is a sign of failure in the scouting department, which is ultimately controlled by Dayton Moore. If this keeps up, especially given the dreadful condition of the Royals farm system, I think we might see a couple of changes in our front office within the next few years.
Boneheaded Moves in the Last Two Years
It all started with Ian Kennedy. Don't get me wrong, Kennedy has been able to put up some decent numbers. But a $70 million contract is far too much for a pitcher that had an ERA around 4 before joining the Royals. The contract with Alex Gordon was understandable, because of what he brought to Kansas City. Despite the horrendous offensive stats he has put up since the new contract, his defense has remained spectacular, so he's managed to squeeze out some worth in his contract. Joakim Soria had an awful first year with the team, but he's managed to do a lot better this year. However, that's about where the good moves end. Signing Brandon Moss and expecting him to replace Kendrys Morales was idiotic. Moss has always had paltry contact and issues with striking out, which render his power as almost worthless. He's already struck out almost 40 times, has played on an irregular basis, and is struggling to pass the Mendoza Line in late May. This is unacceptable for a replacement to Morales, and I could see these issues coming from the moment we signed him. I seriously want to ask what Dayton Moore was thinking when he signed Moss, because it's looking like an idiotic move. The failures of Travis Wood are understandable due to how unpredictable baseball is, but the numbers are atrocious. It's much too far into the season for him to have an ERA above 10.00 and a WHIP above 2.00, especially for one of his caliber. I honestly think he could be injured, which would make a bad, but understandable signing look much worse. But that's not the worst move he's made.
Trade for Jorge Soler
If Dayton Moore gets fired in the next few years, I can point to the trade for Jorge Soler as one of the reasons why. Yes I know hindsight is 20/20, but even back when the deal was made, I believed the deal was ridiculous. I don't care how many years of control Soler has on his contract, we gave away our best relief pitcher for a bust. Despite that he can hit the ball onto I-70, his contact skills are, and always have been, either mediocre or poor, which renders his power worthless. His issues with striking out are still prelevant, which even further hampers his ability to be an offensive threat. Moreover, his defense is horrendous, turning singles into triples. I know that it's possible that he could improve, but it's too far into his career to say he'll make any major change. At this point, Jorge Soler has demonstrated everything he can do, and it's far from enough. You might disagree with what I'm saying and believe that he will be a late bloomer and that I need to have more patience with him. All I can say in response is that Jorge Soler has had four years to prove himself in the majors, which he has yet to do, therefore it is highly likely that he is going to end up as a bust. His contact and fielding are much too poor to make him a star, and will severely hamper his potential. Giving away Wade Davis–who, by the way, has yet to give up an earned run and has over 20 strikeouts–for this is unacceptable. Relief pitchers are in crazy high demand, and Dayton Moore sold our best for much too low. And the consequences of it show. If we kept Wade Davis and he continued to put up über-dominant numbers, yet we were in the same position we are now, we could get a king's ransom of prospects in return for Wade Davis, due to the condition of the market of relievers. And here we are, stuck with a bust that can't field or hit. If I were in his position, I would have demanded a younger, brighter prospect in Albert Almora Jr. or Ian Happ, or the deal isn't happening.
Concluding Thoughts
I'm not saying that Dayton Moore is going to get fired in 2022, but if his decline as GM is going to start anytime, it starts here. Unless he finds a way to get the team back to greatness somehow, there's a chance we'll get a new GM someday, most likely five years from now. I just wanted to leave this post behind to offer the people here at Royals Review something to think about, to evaluate how Dayton Moore has been doing as of late. At the minimum I can say that KC sports fans are going to lose their collective patience with Moore if this failure keeps up into next year, but it could someday spiral into something much worse. Just saying.