SURPRISE, Ariz. — After terminating a 29-year playoff drought and winning the American League championship in 2014, the Royals are getting little love outside of Kansas City on repeating.
Few so-called experts are picking the Royals to win the AL Central or even to earn a wild-card spot.
While the Royals won 100 games last year — 89 during the season and 11 in the postseason — there are concerns about the offense. They won despite hitting a major-league-worst 95 home runs. In the AL, only Texas, Boston and Tampa Bay had worse slugging percentages than the Royals’ .376.
But the Royals do not beat teams with power.
“We’ve got a lot of ways to beat you,” manager Ned Yost said. “We’ve got a lot of weapons. We don’t have to rely on power, even though it’s nice to have. It’s almost like a luxury.”
The Royals’ major weapon is a lockdown bullpen. With hard-throwing right-handers Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis and Greg Holland at the end, the Royals are difficult to beat if they have a lead going into the seventh inning.
Speed is another firearm in the Royals’ arsenal. They stole a major-league-high 153 bases last season and swiped seven bases as they rallied to defeat the Athletics in extra innings in the wild-card game.
The Royals also have three Gold Glover defenders: left fielder Alex Gordon, first baseman Eric Hosmer and catcher Salvador Perez. Center fielder Lorenzo Cain may be the best of all. Alcides Escobar is one of the better shortstops in the AL. Third baseman Mike Moustakas is solid.
The questions entering spring training won’t be answered until deep into the season.
Can free-agent signees Kendrys Morales and Alex Rios bounce back after having a down 2014? Can Moustakas, who hit a club-record five home runs in the playoffs, and Hosmer take what they did in October into 2015? How much will James Shields’ 200-plus innings and clubhouse leadership be missed?
The Royals are not without blemishes, but they do have ways to win. To rule them out in 2015 — saying last season was nothing more than an anomaly — would be foolish. If they remain relative healthy, the Royals should be in contention again for a playoff spot.
ROSTER REPORT
ROTATION:
1. RHP Yordano Ventura
2. LHP Danny Duffy
3. RHP Edinson Volquez
4. LHP Jason Vargas
5. RHP Jeremy Guthrie
While Ace Ventura has electric stuff to be a No. 1 starter, the Royals will miss RHP James Shields, the Opening Day starter the past two seasons who provided 200-plus innings and leadership. Ventura clearly demonstrated his readiness to take over the top rung in the rotation with seven no-hit innings March 27 against the Seattle Mariners.
Vargas had a bumpy March, giving up four solo home runs in a March 30 start to the Rangers and yielding seven home runs in 18 2/3 innings in Arizona. Duffy’s goal is to throw 200 innings, but injuries have set him back. Volquez, coming off a good year with the Pittsburgh Pirates, was signed to solidify the rotation. Guthrie could win a dozen-plus games as the No. 5 starter.
BULLPEN:
RHP Greg Holland (closer)
RHP Wade Davis
RHP Kelvin Herrera
RHP Jason Frasor
LHP Franklin Morales
RHP Chris Young
LHP Brian Flynn/RHP Ryan Madson
The Royals refer to the back end of their bullpen as HDH or the “three-headed monster.” Holland has logged 93 saves the past two years, and he had a 1.44 ERA in 2014. Davis was 9-2 with a 1.00 ERA and three saves. Herrera had a 1.41 ERA in 70 innings. It will be difficult for HDH to duplicate those numbers, but no bullpen in the majors is better.
The Royals retained Frasor, who had a solid spring. The bullpen took a hit early in March when LHP Tim Collins underwent season-ending elbow surgery. That opened a spot for non-roster invitee Morales.
Young will be the long man and the next man up for the rotation if a starter gets hurt or falters. His fly-ball pitching style suits Kauffman Stadium well. The Royals are still debating on whether they will open with an eight-man bullpen, but manager Ned Yost said he prefers seven to start the season.
LINEUP:
1. SS Alcides Escobar
2. LF Alex Gordon
3. CF Lorenzo Cain
4. 1B Eric Hosmer
5. DH Kendrys Morales
6. RF Alex Rios
7. C Salvador Perez
8. 3B Mike Moustakas
9. 2B Omar Infante
Escobar has a career .299 on-base percentage, not exactly a number associated with the typical leadoff hitter. Gordon, whose 19 home runs topped the club last season, did not bat second last year.
Cain, Hosmer, Rios and Morales combined to hit 26 home runs last season. Yost must somehow avoid the temptation to write Perez’s name in the lineup 150 times and wear him down by August. Infante’s balky right elbow might require more rest.
RESERVES:
1F Christian Colon
C Erik Kratz
OF Jarrod Dyson
OF Paulo Orlando
Colon drove in the game-tying run, stole a base and scored the winning run in the come-from-behind wild-card victory over the Oakland Athletics. He hit .333 in 21 games and can play all the infield positions. If Infante’s right elbow spur becomes a problem, Colon could log plenty of time at second base.
Dyson has four straight seasons of 30-plus stolen bases and can be a used as a pinch-runner late in games. He also covers a lot of ground on defense. Kratz has power and Yost needs to find a way to play him more, giving Perez more rest.
Whether the Royals keep a fourth bench player will depend on whether they go with a seven- or eight-man bullpen. Orlando, who can play all three outfield positions and has excellent speed, likely would be kept if the Royals go with seven relievers.
MEDICAL WATCH:
–RHP Luke Hochevar, who had Tommy John surgery last March, will start the season on the disabled list. He will begin the season rehabbing in the minors but should be ready to return by early May, if not before. Hochevar pitched effectively in spring training but just requires more time to be used in back-to-back games and continue to build up endurance and arm strength.