Kansas City Royals
 

When the Royals were an AL powerhouse in the 70's and 80's, they were driven by players who came up through their farm system.  Players like George Brett, Frank White, Willie Wilson, Bret Saberhagen, Dan Quisenberry and Dennis Leonard were the engine that powered those Royals teams to 6 division titles from 1976-1985 and a world championship crown in 1985.  Led by great baseball minds like Whitey Herzog and Dick Howser, they dominated the West until the Canseco/McGwire A's eclipsed them in the late 80's. The Royals are again building a team with formidable talent from their farm system.  The big question is will they have the leadership to recapture the glory from 20 years ago.
 

Offense

The Royals scored nearly 900 runs last year, good for 5th best in the AL.  That's an amazing fact considering they hit the second fewest home runs in the AL, tied for 2nd fewest doubles and were dead last in total walks.  The only categories in which they were amongst the leaders was stolen bases (2nd) and stolen base percentage (1st), which begs the question: how important are stolen bases.  Apparently, if you do it well, very important.  Their leadoff hitter from a year ago, Johnny Damon, is gone via a trade that brought bullpen help.  So, they'll likely rely on second baseman Carlos Febles to start things off for them.  Febles had an off year in 2000 in the power department but should rebound to produce as well as division rival Ray Durham, giving the team 10+ homer power, 25 or more steals and an on base in the .350-.360 range.  Behind him will be a quartet of good young hitters - outfielders Jermaine Dye, Mark Quinn and Carlos Beltran and DH/1st baseman Mike Sweeney.  Each is capable of hitting 25-30 homers and 30-40 doubles a season.  Sweeney and Dye both possess discerning eyes at the plate.  Quinn and Beltran are still young enough to improve in that respect.  The other spots in the order are filled by journeymen veterans, who kicked around for a few stops before finding the right situation in KC.  Joe Randa is a base hit machine at third, averaging over 190 a season for the last 2 years.  Even though he has below average power for his position, he's still dangerous in the line-up: he has a knack for hitting in the clutch.  He had the lowest slugging percentage of any player who had 100 RBI last year.  Rey Sanchez was brought in for his defense at short, but came up big in the clutch hit department last year.  All the dramatics aside, he's still not much more than a glove.  Greg Zaun is one of the few switch hitting catchers in the majors.  He has decent power but his best asset on offense is his discerning eye at the plate.  In three of the last 4 years, he has walked more than he has struck out.  Dave McCarty was one of the top prospects in baseball coming up through the Twins system.  But similar to what happened to Todd Walker, they de-emphasized his power in favor of making contact.  It looks like it took him several years to get that kind of thinking out of his system and back to hitting the way he's capable.  If last year wasn't a fluke, the Royals will have another 25+ homer threat in the line-up.  However, it may be a bit much to expect him to show dramatic improvements in walks at this point of his career.  The Royals also have young Dermal (Dee) Brown ready for action.  Brown's build and game are similar to that of Cardinal Ray Lankford.  If he continues to show promise this spring, the Royals would be well served to put him in the outfield and move Quinn, average with the glove in the outfield, to first.  RATING: 65
 

Defense

The Royals won't hurt themselves on defense.  Sanchez is one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball, both in range and consistency.  Randa, Quinn and Beltran all rate above average with the glove.  Febles has decent range, but has some trouble distinguishing between plays he can make and plays that are impossible to make.  He'll learn with more experience.  Dye has a good arm in right but struggles with his reads off the bat.  Zaun is a tad below average in fielding percentage, throwing out runners and catcher's ERA.  RATING: 60
 

Starting Pitching

The Royals' young starting staff is still recovering from the abusive workloads at the hands of Bob Boone.  Jose Rosado will probably never be the same.  He'll probably begin the season on the DL, still recovering from the shoulder surgery that wiped out most of last season for him.  With Rosado questionable, 26-year old Jeff Suppan will be the most veteran of the starters.  He will likely benefit from the taller strikezone this year as his best pitch is a sharp-breaking curve which he can now throw up in the zone.  Dan Reichert might also see hitters offer more at his frisbee-like slider.  Chad Durbin struggled last year with command but has been brilliant this spring.  He's not overpowering - his mediocre fastball is set up by a devastating change-up - so it remains to be seen if he can carry over his spring success into an environment that should favor power pitchers.  Hard throwing Makoto 'Mac' Suzuki might thrive with the higher zone as soon as he's fully recovered from the offseason arthroscopic surgery on his pitching shoulder.  Brian Meadows and Blake Stein are 4th starter types who depend on location for any success.  The Royals also have highly regarded Chris George, who finished last season at AAA.  He'll probably pitch there most of this year as well before getting the call-up for good this September. RATING: 40
 

Bullpen

The Royals big acquisition this winter was closer Roberto Hernandez.  Disturbed by the fact that the Royals blew 26 of 55 save opportunities in 2000, acting GM Allard Baird decided to get a proven, veteran closer.  Hernandez has a good record of shutting the door when the 9th inning rolls around, but at 36, one has to wonder how much he has left.  The Royals will probably only need one year out of him, as Shawn Sonnier has the look of a successful closer. Veteran Doug Henry will assume the majority of the set-up duties but Sonnier may eventually be worked into the role.  Also in the pen will be hard throwing Orber Moreno, who is also a candidate to eventually succeed Hernandez as closer.  It won't be soon however as he is still recovering from elbow surgery and will probably be out until June.  Brett Laxton will probably get the long relief job.  Some may remember his awesome 15K shut-out performance as a sophomore in LSU's College World Series victory over the Darren Dreifort led Wichita State Shockers in 1993.  Too bad he hasn't been the same since.  RATING: 60
 

Management

Manager Tony Muser must still think we are playing in a deadball era.  His teams bunt, squeeze, steal and hit and run more than just about anyone in baseball.  He also leaves his young pitchers out to throw almost as many pitches as his predecessor Bob Boone did.  Neither of these bode well for the Royal's fortunes.  Before Baird, Herk Robinson was GM and... well, to put it kindly, he was not viewed with the highest regard by the KC faithful.  Baird is probably reluctant to make many moves for fear of becoming the next Herk.  But if his big trade this winter is any indication, he's well on his way.  Look, I don't have any problem with a team trading away an everyday player for a good closer if that's what the team needs and they have extra everyday players to give.  But trading Damon (who's in the prime of his career) because they don't want to pay him for Roberto Hernandez (who's in the twilight of his career and making $6 million a year) is just plain silly, no matter how good you think Dee Brown is gonna be.  Instead, trade Damon for a young shortstop who can field AND hit (like the Yanks' D'Angelo Jimenez) or some hard throwing young starters.  And it's not like the Royals don't have 2 or 3 young guys already who have the skills to close.  At least get a few years out of the guys you're gonna get.  RATING: 35
 

Conclusion

The Royals have the core of good young players they'll need to compete for the next decade.  They just don't have the braintrust to guide and improve it.  Bottom line: this team will hover around .500 until either someone comes along who knows how to run it (in which case they'll give Cleveland and Chicago some serious heartburn), or all the really good talent leaves via free agency (in which case they'll look like the Orioles do this year).