The final three innings of the Royals-Tigers are on DVR, so maybe that game worked out well. KC’s starting pitching has been awesome and even Ricky Ankiel came through big on Wednesday!

I still have not locked into any type of regular employment, but am on the verge of, hopefully, hosting my own NBA Radio show in St. Louis. I actually hope to have a broadcast launch date by Friday, so stay tuned. At least I’ll have zero direct competition. I am excited about this possibility and ultimately hope this show can grow and prosper in an organic manner, with all local sponsorships and live broadcasts from local sites. I believe there is a niche basketball audience to tap into, so we’ll see. Much more coming soon …

I do think the Jazz-Thunder showdown on Tuesday night was this season’s best game. Kevin Durant was definitely fouled at the end of overtime, but it is impressive how he’s handled that in the media. He was revved up at the time, but did not make a scene and was calm and collected in subsequent interviews. Very classy and likable player. His tweets are also enjoyable to follow. For Utah, it blew an 11-point lead in the final three minutes. But Deron Williams was clutch through to the end; he scored those 42 points on just 23 shots while KD went 13-for-29 for his 45. Williams had just 1 turnover in 43 minutes.

I think it’s fair to say those teams would put on a great show in the first round. In the West, I’m hoping for: Lakers-Spurs, Nuggets-Blazers, Mavericks-Jazz,  and Suns-Thunder. I just do not want OKC to finish in the No. 8 spot as that would be awful. I want the Spurs gone, but at least they could beat up on LA for 5 or 6 games.

The Thunder announcers were out of line on Wednesday night for acting as if Carmelo Anthony was “playing possum” and just lying on the floor to exaggerate a foul non-call. He was obviously KNOCKED OUT! They did not even apologize or soften their point of view afterward. Why was J.R. Smith trying to drive around his unconscious body? Oh, because he’s J.R. Smith.

Q: Earl Weaver used to transition his young starting pitchers into the big leagues by using them as middle relievers and the Twins have had a lot of success doing the same thing with Francisco Liriano and Johan Santana. It’s not something the Royals have really tried in recent years.

A: I think it works. It can work. It depends on the individual. For some guys, it makes more sense to be in AAA pitching. Take Kyle Davies. We had this debate. Bobby (Cox) thought, ‘Well, transition him in. I’ll get him some work.’ But we felt (we should) send him to Richmond to pitch every fifth day. Two reasons. We thought it was best for his arm. And you’re always going to need another starter. If he’s pitching out of the bullpen and something happens, he’s not going to be stretched out so he can be a starter. Take Juan Bong. He was a two-pitch pitcher, a left-handed pitcher who Bobby could get regular work and Bobby was committed to using as a long man. He was put onto that team with that in mind. I’m very open to that. I think it’s smart. I think it makes sense. It just depends on the pitcher. Take Denny Bautista. It doesn’t do any good to use him in that role. He needs those side sessions.

According to Dick Kaegel of mlb.com, the Royals are at least open to the possibility of taking this approach this spring with Hochevar:

“There are a lot of organizations that break their guys in out of the ‘pen to get them acclimated to the speed of it and the hitters,” pitching coach Bob McClure said. “It never hurt, it’s only a plus doing that. I’m not saying we’re doing that, but it’s a possibility.”

We all know that as a No. 1 overall pick, the Royals need Hochevar to become a frontline starter. But if they are truly, open to using him as a reliever, this could be a great first step towards making that happen.

Algren was an interesting guy, a blue-collar type of author that sprang from the ugly sectors of Chicago and eventually cultivated a sort of tough-guy intellectual persona. His best known book, The Man with the Golden Arm, had nothing to do with baseball. No the hero of that tale was a hardcore junkie. Frank Sinatra played him in the 1950s movie version. It’s good stuff, as is Algren’s Walk on the Wild Side, Somebody in Boots and his paean to the city he loved, Chicago: City on the Make. Algren was friends with the Chicago literary elite, including Saul Bellow, and amazingly enough, had a long-running affair with Simon de Beauvoir.

Anyway, Algren is a writer I’ve always admired and I’ve always wanted to be recognized in that contest. The story I’m submitting is called “The Spider, the Hare and the Moon.” It’s about a very confused young lady living in the vicinity of the Lake of the Ozarks area of Missouri.

Before I get back to all of that, I want to offer a plug for 2008 The Hardball Times Preseason Annual. This is simply a must-have for any thinking baseball fan and I say that not just because I wrote the chapter on the Royals. Dave studeman, David Gassko and company have put together something that you just can’t get anywhere else. In particular, I am psyched about the team-by-team fielding projections. Order your copy today direct from the publishers. No reason to cut Amazon in on the excellence. Fair warning: This is likely the first of many plugs on this publication that you’ll see on DooBros.

Moving on, most Royals fans who stop by here probably already know that Rany Jazayerli’s new Royals blog is off and running. We know what we’ll get here: Cockeyed optimism and plenty of excellent commentary. Royals fans with active cyberlives are truly fortunate.

Finally, an old KC Star colleague, Kevin Kaduk, has just moved into a position with Yahoo as their chief baseball blogger. ‘Duk, as he is usually called, has a truly irreverant approach to writing about the game and is always a fun read. His efforts there should go over well.

First, you usually have one or two standouts leftover from the previous season; then you have one or two underachievers back — due for a bounce-back season. Then you have a new guy, perhaps a rehabber, or a hot-shot on the Baseball America prospect list ready to break out.

In reality, the standouts regress, the underachievers turn out to simply not be that good and the new guy’s arm is shot or, if a prospect, isn’t ready. That’s without even considering yet-to-occur injuries. Projecting pitching is a bitch.

For the Royals, I sort of see my 2008 dream rotation shaping up thusly:

1. Gil Meche — a repeat of 2007

2. Brian Bannister — the same, only for a full campaign

3. Zack Greinke — rides hot finish to elite status as an AL starter

4. Luke Hochevar — pitches like you’d think a No. 1 pick would pitch

5. Bartolo Colon — a rehab story made good

Wow, on this wet morning in mid-January, with Kauffman Stadium currently in shambles because of the renovation and the team operating out of temporary offices on the Country Club Plaza, that feels like a heck of a rotation. Wait, let me sit back a moment and dream of the possibilities …

Yep, playoffs, here we come.

Of course there are potential problems with this rotation:

1. Meche overachieved

2. Bannister really, really overachieved

3. Greinke has only started 14 games over the last two seasons

4. Hochevar was not that good in the minor leagues last season and is probably a long shot to win a rotation spot out of spring training

5. Bartolo Colon is still a free agent — he doesn’t play for the Royals

6. I’d still like to see Joakim Soria in the rotation but I don’t think it’s going to happen in 2008

Yesterday, as mentioned, I went down to the Tiger Club meeting to listen to Dayton Moore speak. Great setting — small venue, about 25-30 overfed white Mizzou fans on their lunch hour, grumbling about recruiting and whatnot. Only disappointment was that in the restaurant with the best burgers in town, the bill of fare included veal cutlet, salad, pasta, meatballs and pasta sauce. Ugh.

The emcee of the gathering, Bill Blanck, recognized me from my Week Ahead mug shot and said hello. He also said he’d introduce me to the crowd, which struck me as a little silly and certainly embarrassing. But whatever. Sometimes it still dumbfounds me when I realize there are actually people out there who read what I write. Most of the time, I feel so utterly isolated that…well, that’s another topic.

As it turns out, Bill forgot to introduce me beforehand. The upshot of this is that it didn’t alert Dayton to my presence. I think some of the comments he made wouldn’t have come out if he knew a working member of the media was present. Of course, under those circumstances, I can’t repeat those comments. Sorry for the tease. There was even one newsy bit of info he shared but, alas, we haven’t even had it in The Star yet. Scooping my employer on my personal blog would be my quickest route to a freelance writing career but I’m not so sure that’s the best course of action. The powers that be take that stuff very seriously. Besides, I’m told that another Star writer will be addressing the topic very soon.

Anyway, back to the rotation. Dayton did make some comments I want to address here because they suggest something that might explain an statistical oddity I noticed a while back.

In the minors, Hochevar posted a disappointing 0.97 groundball-to-flyball ratio. Once he got to Kansas City however, that jumped up to 2.27. What was going on there? Well, he only threw 12 2/3 innings for the Royals in the Show so chalk up another one to sample-size shenanigans.

But then Moore talked about how the organization had pretty much barred Hochevar from throwing his best pitch — a sinking, two-seam fastball — while in the minors. The thinking goes that for young pitchers, the changeup is the last pitch to develop and they wanted Hochevar to concentrate on that. However, when he was recalled to KC, the Royals let Hochevar throw the two-seamer once again.

Perhaps I’m reading too much into to it, but when you find some sort of data blip AND you find a good reason for its existence, then just perhaps the sudden shift is somewhat sustainable. I don’t know that Hochevar can maintain a 2.27 GB:FB but you can be sure that will be the first column I check after every start he makes. Moore compared his stuff and style to Brandon Webb.

If Hochevar doesn’t make the rotation in the spring, I’m still in favor of using him in short relief at the big-league level to aid in his transition. Perhaps if Greinke continues to do well, the Royals will see the wisdom in such an approach as you could point to his time in the bullpen last season as helping him turn the corner.

After the luncheon, Bill Blanck introduced me to the crowd and I did the obligatory smile and waving thing. Then as the meeting broke up, I went over to Dayton to say hello. He chastised me for not getting to the ballpark more often. He’s right. I don’t get out there even remotely as often as I desire. But when you are chained to a desk in an office for five evenings a week, leaving the other two evenings as your only chance to spend time with your wife, it’s not really a schedule conducive to spending time at the old ballyard. Nevertheless, I’m going to make a more concentrated effort at getting out there this season, even if it’s just for the pregame media access. Besides, looking back at last season, I realize that the main reason I didn’t go out there more often was because I was pouting over the fact that I couldn’t go out there whenever I wanted. Pouting is never productive.

The Royals obviously had a number of holes to fill entering the hot stove campaign: two outfielders, middle relief, two starting pitchers. An upgrade at first base would be fine, as well. (Oh yeah, they needed a manager, as well. The consensus is that they got a good one. Yippeee.)

Moves to date

* signed Japanese pitcher Yasuhiko Yabuta, a 34-year-old sinkerballer with a career ERA of 4.03. I have no idea how to accurately project Yabuta’s performance. Well, here’s one way:

Hideki Okajima
Year	Team	Age	H9	HR9	BB9	K9	eERA
04-06	Japan	28-30	7.86	1.17	3.11	10.09	3.70
2007	Boston	31	6.52	0.78	2.22	8.22	3.25

Yasuhiko Yabuta
Year	Team	Age	H9	HR9	BB9	K9	eERA
04-06	Japan	31-33	7.06	0.67	3.51	8.31	3.51
2007-1	K.C.	34	5.86	0.45	2.50	6.77	3.19
2007-2	K.C.	34	7.56	0.72	3.75	7.77	3.78

—

The eERA listed here is a stab at a defense-independent ERA so the H9 listed doesn’t go into that calculation. Good thing, because I can’t see Yabuta’s H9 actually being better in the U.S. What I’ve done here is applied Okajima’s categorial adjustments to Yabuta — an iffy proposition being that the Major Leagues are tougher. Then I’ve applied a standard adjustment that is a little less severe than a AAA equivalent. So you get an general idea of what range Yabuta’s numbers could fall into. Of course, they could actually be a lot worse.

What makes you nervous is the strike out rate. I realize that strikeouts aren’t necessarily the metier of the sinkerballer, but when it comes to projecting stats from a minor league to the majors, the higher the strikeout rate, the better you feel about the translation.

In any event, Yabuta may be that eighth inning guy the Royals project. But it’s far from a sure thing. (And we’re assuming that Joakim Soria can be as effective as the closer as he was last year — no sure bet. Should have put him in the rotation, I still maintain) Based on what we know about projecting bullpens (which is that reliever peformance is flaky), the Royals need to bring in one or two low-cost alternatives and then sort out the options within the organization.

* signed Jose Guillen to a 3-year, $36 million contract

In a vacuum, it’s pretty easy to see that Guillen is an upgrade over what the Royals had in the outfield last season. It’s the money that’s troubling. A three-year deal isn’t tragic because that still leaves a cushion to extend Alex Gordon and Billy Butler down the line. But the money is something the Royals can’t get back. Guillen probably isn’t a $12 million player this season, he’s be less of one the year after that and, the third year, ouch.

Here are Guillen’s numbers for the last five year, expressed as a percentage of plate appearances and translated to Kauffman Stadium:

Year	Ag	PA	1B	2B	3B	HR	BB	SO	RC600
2003	27	534	18.2%	5.6%	0.4%	6.2%	4.9%	17.8%	120
2004	28	620	18.4%	4.8%	0.5%	4.5%	6.3%	14.8%	100
2005	29	611	17.8%	5.7%	0.3%	4.4%	5.6%	16.7%	99
2006	30	268	10.8%	6.0%	0.4%	3.7%	6.0%	17.9%	65
2007	31	658	19.6%	4.6%	0.3%	3.8%	6.7%	17.9%	95

—

The decline is power is very real. Whether it’s age or some illicit substance, he’s clearly at a different plateau when it comes to hitting for extra bases. The plate discipline numbers are holding steady, such as they are, but aren’t good. The dip in doubles and spike in singles is what troubles me. That could be a fluke. Or it could indicate that the Royals have just signed a $12 million, singles-hitting corner outfielder.

I’d guess that Guillen is likely to produce around 90 runs per 600 plate appearances this season. That’s less than a five-run improvement over what Emil Brown gave them in 2005 and 2006. And that number is only going to go down. This dire picture doesn’t even include the possibility that Mark Teahen will be shifted to first base, where his already faltering value would be almost entirely negated. He’d be Doug Mientkiewicz without the Gold Glove.

Where we stand

That’s it — that’s the sum total of Dayton Moore’s efforts this fall. There’s still over two months until spring training, so the offseason could still pick up. The Royals have been rumored to be making a run at every free agent on the market. But their options are dwindling, especially after Andruw Jones reached an agreement with the Dodgers. I fear that what Moore may be battling at this point is Kansas City itself — even with more dollars on the table, the top free agents don’t want to come here. They’ll have to win first and so you end up in a chicken-and-egg sort of quagmire.

The latest name to crop up is Aaron Rowand. Nice player. Not worth five years and $50 million, though. When you look at the up and down nature of his career, factor in that he’s hitting the age of 30, take him out of Citizen’s Bank Ballpark, what you’re left with is only a nominal upgrade over David DeJesus. Kosuke Fukudome is an intriguing prospect but the price on him is escalating and it sounds like the Cubs feel pretty good about getting him to the Windy City.

Another outfield prospect on the market is Pittsburgh’s Jason Bay. But that would require a trade and the Royals are flat out short of trade bait. That’s why is was so disheartening to see Delmon Young, Elijah Dukes and Carlos Quentin (not to mention Miguel Cabrera) change teams in the last week without the Royals being in the conversation. Plus, most of the players landed in the AL Central.

Sigh. All of this patter probably should be irrelevant anyway. I’m not so sure the Royals should be making a run at contention — not for next season, not in this division. I think I’d really rather see them focus on low cost, higher risk types to keep the payroll down. You can always spend money — unless you’ve already spent it.

Perhaps Dayton Moore has a few tricks up his sleeve. I hope so, because this hasn’t been a good week for the franchise. At least they’re bringing back the powder blues.

The stuff about hard work sounds pretty good to Kansas Citians as well. See, we’re pro hard work around here. Hard work is good — especially as it applies to lazy athletes. Throw in some discipline and bible citations and our sensibilities turn to melted butter.

So the reaction I’ve gleaned about the new skipper has been universally positive. Hillman’s not a Republican political candidate (he just plays one in press conferences) but if he did declare for an office, I’m sure he’d be leading the polls today.

If I sound cynical about this whole thing, I’m really not. It’s strictly a personality thing with me. And it’s strictly something that has to do with the type of person I typically find appealing: Individualists. Rabblerousers. Boat rockers.

Those are not the kind of persons that land high-level positions with Professional Sports Franchises in mild-mannered Midwestern cities. We’re the heart of the nation. We feed the world. We suppress the “I” for the betterment of the “we” under the gentle guidance of the Lord Almighty himself. Amen.

This is just my reality, being a person who looks up to the Henry Millers, Charles Bukowskis and Hunter Thompsons who also happens to be a rabid sports fan in the 21st century. The two worlds just don’t mesh. For goodness sake, would I really want Hunter Thompson running my baseball team?

Strangley, the answer is yes. But that’s no matter. Things being the way they are, I’m ready and willing to climb aboard the Dayton and Trey Crusade — as long as it culminates in plenty of digits under the “W” column. Because I am, after all, a sellout above all else. I am perfectly willing to abandon my personal beliefs if it means a postseason berth for the Kansas City Royals. I might even try speaking in tongues.

Highlight of Hillman’s introductory press conference: That half-assed little man hug he shared with Dayton Moore after being introduced. That was pretty amusing. These are really a couple of stalwart, executive types. But you get the feeling that hugging their fellow man isn’t the most comfortable thing in the world for them. That’s not a criticism — it’s exactly the way I hug my dad. And, of course, if they’d really gotten into that hug, people would be talking…

Anyway…

What got lost in yesterday’s festivities was what constitutes Hillman’s core philosphies of game management, roster building and player usage. You know, the baseball part. There was very little discussion of baseball in the press conference. No surprise there — nothing of substance is ever discussed at those things. Yet people cling to every word uttered and use it to extrapolate an ideal future.

He did talk about “divesifying” the offense, being open to different ways to score runs and pointed to the LA Angels as an example. This doesn’t freak me out. All indications from his body of work in America was that he has a preference for the “big inning” which means he values the sanctity of an out. That’s all I ask. When you have a team with no real offensive strengths like the Royals’ roster he’s inheriting, suppressing the ego could mean lots of bunting. But it could also mean taking pitches, working the count, doing whatever it takes to get on base.

Who knows? These questions are all up in the air — we’ll find out the answers when the real games begin.

My feelings about Hillman? Geez, who the hell knows? As Commander Data might put it, I am neither happy nor sad at this occurence. I have no feelings at all.

We can only judge big-league managers who have managed in the big leagues. That’s not to say that I think the Royals should have gone with a recycled skipper. Someone has to give the next Joe McCarthy his first job and who’s to say that’s not Hillman? I’m just glad he’s not named Baker or Girardi.

Terry Collins was the other candidate whose name surfaced over the last couple of days and if that’s accurate, it marks the second time that Collins has served as the bridesmaid in a Royals’ managerial search in the last half-decade. When I constructed my managerial rating system (WAMMERS) two or three years back, it identified Collins as the most-viable candidate who’d managed in the big leagues and was at the time unemployed.

But I don’t know if my system was really worth a damn so take that for what it’s worth. I do know that Collins has a reputation as a task master and as an idealist myself, I tend to like those types to be in charge on my teams.

While I don’t really have any specific opinion about Hillman, there are some speculative points that I might as well float out there:

* This link from the Baptist Standard reveals that Hillman is a pretty religious fellow. Back when the Rangers were looking to replace Jerry Narron after the 2002 season, then-GM John Hart had a strong interest in Hillman, who’d already entered a verbal agreement to manage in Japan. After mulling it over, Hillman decided to keep his agreement:

“I could honor the agreement with the Japanese or stay here and work with my hometown team, which had always been my dream,” Hillman said. “But it came down to believing in my heart that God wouldn’t have allowed the Rangers to permit me to talk with the Japanese had it not been a part of his timing. I believe God has a reason for his timing.”

To me, that’s complete and utter gibberish. What does this mean in baseball terms? Nothing. What it does mean is that Hillman and I won’t be hitting any strip clubs together any time soon. Which is too bad.

Dayton Moore is very big on identifying “character” in all those he brings into the KC organization. That doesn’t mean that he’s necessarily trying to create baseball’s version of the Christian Coalition. But as Moore is pretty religious himself, it goes to follow that religious beliefs would be a strong element in his assessment of person’s “character”.

But more than anything, Moore is a very smart baseball man and it’s exceedingly likelty that Hillman’s faith played little more than a subconscious role in Moore’s general comfort level with him.

On the field, none of this has any relevance. It just means that, for me personally, it makes the team a little more annoying to follow. Overtly religious people make me nervous.

* Hillman has been very successful in his managerial career in the Yankees’ system and in Japan. In 2006, he led the Nippon Ham Fighters (why fight ham?) to their first-ever title. He won three Manager of the Year awards in the minors.

* As a longtime manager in the Yankees’ system, I suppose it means that he might have assimilated some of their organizational philosophies and I don’t mean the one that mandates a $200 million payroll. What those philosophies might be, I don’t really know.

* Hiring Hillman might give the Royals some inroads to the Asian talent pool from which I can only recall Mac Suzuki ending up in KC. Presumably, a successful manager like Hillman will have some pretty solid relationships over there. Of particular interest is a 21-year-old righty of Iranian/Japanese descent named Yu Darvish. Of him, Hillman has been quoted as saying, “”I think he can be the best in the world, I think eventually he has an opportunity to bypass a guy like Matsuzaka.”

Of course, Boston fans might tell you that really isn’t saying much.

* I am very happy that Moore’s choice has never been affiliated with the Atlanta Braves. This fact once and for all assuages my concern that Moore was a little too comfortable dealing with his former employers.

* The fact that the Yankees, if they had been able to get their shit together, might have targeted Hillman is pretty sweet. Have fun with Girardi or Mattingly, you long-suffering Yankee fans.

In the end, it’s yet another new chapter in Royals history. And with each new beginning, there is hope. For me, on a beautiful fall afternoon, that is all I really need to be content.

Update

By the time I finished writing this, I got the press release from the Royals making it official. The introductory press conference is Monday. Perhaps I’ll attend and try to slip at least one stats-related question in there. As far as a lengthy Q&A goes, I’ll probably take a pass on that.
A couple of generic press release quotes:

From Dayton Moore:

“I am delighted to announce that we have hired Trey Hillman as our manager,” said Dayton Moore, Senior Vice President and General Manager. “He is an exceptional person with a great passion to lead. He is the perfect choice for our organization.

“Trey has spent the last five seasons turning the Nippon Ham Fighters into one of the top success stories in Japanese baseball, including three trips to the post-season,” Moore added. “In fact, the reason we are unable to introduce Trey today is because his club has just advanced to the finals of the Japan Series, where they will resume play on October 27. We also want to respect the fact that the Indians and Red Sox are in a battle for the American League title and we don’t want to do anything to detract from the excitement of that series.”

From the new skipper:

“This is a wonderful blessing and a great opportunity to build a winner in Kansas City,” said Hillman. “I’ll be joining an organization with tradition and pride while working with individuals that share my vision for success.”

Some exciting stuff there.

The Royals fell to the White Sox 5-2, dropping them back into the AL Central cellar. The boys in blue need to finish out this season strong if for no other reason to maintain the good will built up with their fan base this season. I get a sense that people really believe the team is trending upwards. I believe that, too, though there is plenty of work left to do. Meanwhile, the same day this appears in the KC Star, this news comes down from the Royals. Coincidence? Seriously, I’m going to have to send them a bill for my standard consulting fee.

Chiefs ink LJ

The Chiefs signed Larry Johnson to a monstrous contract. In my humble opinion, this was a massive error on the part of Carl Peterson. However, it’s quite likely that the Chiefs will be better this season with LJ than without. And since Carl Peterson, you would think, is winding down his tenure as Boss, perhaps he doesn’t care about the last 3-4 years of that deal that may well paralyze the roster. Ah well. With Brody Croyle apparently on track to start at quarterback, a thin receiving corps and a potentially crappy offensive line, I put the over/under on Johnson’s yards per carry at 3.4. That’s what Edgerrin James posted for Arizona last season.

Ten RBI!

Last night, we sat around the office at the paper watching the 18-5 Angels’ blowout of the Yankees with unusual interest for such a lopsided affair. For, you see, Garret Anderson had 10 RBI. When the bottom of the eighth rolled around, the Angels needed to get two baserunners for Anderson to get another chance. A Jeff Mathis double and a four-pitch walk by Reggie Willits did the trick. So not only did Anderson get another at-bat, but he was a longball away from breaking the record for RBIs in a game. For whatever reason, I’ve never been much of a Garret Anderson fan. I guess I just don’t like the Angels in general because it sounds like Anderson is an all-around good guy. I suspect my dislike of him extends back to a gnawing feeling that he’s overrated — he’s one of those poor plate discipline hitters whose high-RBI totals have exagerrated his stature in the eyes of the mainstream. Nevertheless, I found myself rooting for a home run. Alas, Anderson grounded out up the middle, settling for just the sixth 10+ RBI game in the Retrosheet era.

I pulled up the list of highest RBI games last night on the play index at Baseball-Reference.com and a couple of things jumped out. First, Anderson’s performance was the 77th game of eight RBIs or more since 1957. Three of those players managed the feat in a losing effort: Lee Thomas in 1961, Mike Epstein in 1970 and Jason Bay in 2003. Also, of those 77 performances, one player drove in all nine runs for his team: Mike Greenwell drove in all nine runs for the Red Sox in a 9-8 win at Seattle in 1996.

Davies: The Royals had to move Dotel. There was no scenario that made sense involving Dotel finishing the season in KC. But what happened to all the rumors involving about good, young corner outfielders or tasty Dodger prospect Chin Lung Hu? Well, that’s rumors for you.

Davies is only 23 which is his currently his best trait because as a big-league starter, he’s walked nearly five men per nine innings. He’s a flyball pitcher with average strikeout rates. While his velocity is fine, his best pitches are his offspeed stuff — not sure if the problem is location or lack of movement on his harder offerings.

Dayton Moore continues to deserve the benefit of the doubt, especially when it comes to Atlanta prospects. If previous GMs had made this deal, there might be some ranting and raving. But with Moore, you have to assume it’s a solid pickup.

One concern: You’d hate to think that Moore is overly comfortable with Braves prospects at the expense of possible higher-upside guys from other systems.

Balentien: What’s not to like? The Royals had to move Dotel. There was no scenario that made sense involving Dotel finishing the season in KC. They needed a starting-quality corner outfielder with power heading into next season and there was no one in the organization who fit the bill.

Balentien is unproven in the majors but his raw skills are ready to be tested. He has exceptional right-handed power and, over the last two seasons, has somewhat discovered the wonders of plate discipline.

The picture isn’t all rosy. Baletien strikes out a lot and while that in and of itself is no great cause for alarm, it does raise concern about his ability to adapt to big-league pitching. But if he can make regular contact, he should be fine. Either way, this was a worthy gamble in exchange for a player who was essentially found money.