Uncustomed Heroes of 2023: Royals

 

The end of 2022 felt like the pieces were finally falling into place for the Royals. People like Michael Massey, Nate Eaton, Daniel Lynch, Vinnie Pasquantino and Brady Singer were looking like foundational pieces for the forthcoming years, and the team was looking like they'd at least be better than they were.

The Royals didn't lose 100 games, but they did this year. So uh, back to the ol' drawing board.

It is sort of interesting that the Royals are going with the 'build up the rotation with contracts' strategy for 2024, as it gives off the idea that they don't trust their homegrown talent anymore. And judging by this year, I sort of get it. Bobby Witt was good, that's for sure, but literally nobody else was as good as they were supposed to be. People like Freddy Fermin, Kyle Isbel and surprise addition Cole Ragans had to pick up the slack, and they could only do so much.

Going forward, this team needs to be far more than just 'Bobby Witt Jr.' And hopefully they can build on this and create something better going forward.

The Royals got Jordan Lyles for a similar reason that the Orioles got Lyles for 2022; they needed a veteran to build the rotation around. The thought was that Lyles would help people like Singer, Bubic and Lynch come into their own, and wouldn't be relied upon as much. Lyles made all 31 starts, and was the only starter to do so. In that time, Lyles went 6-17 with a 6.28 ERA. Meaning that two veterans in this rotation had ERAs over 5. However, Lyles did sport 3 complete games for the Royals, so that's not bad at all.

2024 Prediction: Does not lead the league in losses. In fact, improves in time for the deadline. 

Amid the may amusing rookies and second years making the Royals more interesting this year was Dairon Blanco, a 30-year-old Cuban defector who played his first full season in the majors this year. As an OF bench bat, Blanco did a lot for this team, hitting .258 with 18 RBIs and 24 steals in 69 games. Blanco is a speedy, versatile piece that could play a number of roles going forward for this team.

2024 Prediction: He will start for the first bit of the season, but I still think he's better off as a bench addition/pinch guy.

...then again, he's a lot more well-rounded than M.J. Melendez, the backup catcher who was better off in the outfield this year...and by that I mean he was better off leaving it to Perez and Fermin. Melendez is not a great defensive outfielder, and he only hit .235 with 16 homers this year. I'm beginning to think that the Royals really don't have much for this guy to do if they want to move past their current iteration.

2024 Prediction: A slight improvement but they give up on him midyear.

Nick Pratto getting called up last year was a big deal, as he was a big-time prospect that was doing some damage in the minors. In 95 games this year, Pratto hit .232 with only 7 homers and only 35 RBIs. Even if Bobby Witt  is living up to his potential, Pratto isn't there yet, and that's...concerning.

2024 Prediction: The year they'd been waiting for. 25 homers, .275 average, some actual leverage.

The other big 2022 second half rookie that was meant to make waves this year was Drew Waters, the outfield prospect that came over from Atlanta. Waters is nice defensively, but this year he hit .228 with 32 RBIs, 8 homers and 100 strikeouts. 

2024 Prediction: Steps up and cements a starting spot, but those strikeouts will still be an issue.

Coming Tomorrow- A surprisingly large amount of Detroit Tigers.