According to this AP article, David Glass is saying that the Royals are going to contend for the AL Central in 2007.
The article also goes on to quote Glass as saying that he, along with the other owners, were berated by the commissioner lately because of the escalating salaries in baseball. Selig ought to be happy that teams like the Royals are trying to be competitive. If he wants to get on anybody's case for escalating salaries, he ought to give Steinbrenner a call. The evil Yankees had a $198.6 million payroll last season, compared to the $47.2 million the Royals spent.
Come back tomorrow for my interview with Royals first baseman Ryan Shealy.
5 comments:
I think the important question is: do you actually believe the Royal will contend? I can't say that I do, but maybe I'm missing something that you might see as a devoted Royal fan.
Fred, thanks for your comment. I really didn't include my opinion in this post. I was just passing along David Glass' thoughts.
My personal opinion is that the Royals are at least one full season away from contending in the AL Central. I think it comes down to starting pitching. I don't like Meche matching up against number ones on other teams. Bannister is a young talent, but certainly anything but a sure thing. Hudson had his moments last year, but who knows if he'll sustain it. De La Rosa wasn't impressive to me at all. And Perez hasn't put up decent numbers for quite a while.
If Meche stays healthy, and if Bannister were to step up big, and if Luke Hochevar made it to KC and pitched well, and if Hudson has a similar season, then who knows? But for now, I'm not as optimistic as Glass and others, like Keith Law (over at ESPN.com).
Thanks for answering my questions Lee! I just wanted to hear a view from someone who won't receive a prominent financial benefit from hype the Royals like Glass.
Thanks Fred. I will have to say this though...the buzz about the Royals since Dayton Moore took over is louder than I've heard in a long time. People are convinced he's stockpiling good young arms and everyone is curious to see what happens when all of these pitchers, and position players like Gordon, Lubanski, and Butler are on the major league roster together, which probably won't happen until 2008.
Oh, the Royals undoubtedly have a stockpile of young talent that should be blooming soon. Unfortunately, it seems like the past ten or so years for the Royals (ever since Glass took over) have been empty promises. I just don't trust that Glass will invest anything into helping the team develop into an actual contender.
Full disclosure: I'm an Indians fan, though I don't really harbor ill will towards any team other than the Yankees and occasionally the White Sox. Really, I'd like to see the Royals be good for the simple fact that so many more Indians games would feature good teams.
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