2012 Kansas City Royals Predictions
The Kansas City Royals dominated the American League from 1976 to 1985, winning six division titles, two AL Pennants and a World Series. Unfortunately, the Royals haven’t done much since. They haven’t had a winning season since 2003, finishing no better than fourth while winning no more than 75 games each of the last eight years.
The Royals finished fourth with a 71-91 mark in 2011 but showed signs that they could be a team on the rise.
Projected Pitching
Starting rotation: Jonathan Sanchez (L) – Consistency has been an issue for the southpaw. Some days he looks like an ace and others he looks like a bottom-of-the-rotation guy. The Royals are hoping they’re getting the guy who went 13-9 with a 3.07 ERA for San Francisco in 2012.
Bruce Chen (L) – Chen has middle-of-the-rotation stuff at best but was the best starter for the Royals in 2011. The 34-year-old went 12-8 with a 3.77 ERA. It’s hard to imagine he can sustain those numbers.
Luke Hochevar (R) – Hochevar has all the tools but is yet to put it all together. Still, the 28-year-old showed some progress last season. He went 11-11 with a 4.68 ERA. It was his best season in the bigs.
Danny Duffy (L) – The Royals are hoping for major improvement out of Duffy after watching him go 4-8 with a 5.64 ERA in 20 starts as a rookie.
Felipe Paulino (R) – Paulino has some upside because he’s only 28 and his fast ball averages 95 mph. He went 4-6 with a 4.11 ERA in 20 starts for the Royals in 2011 after coming over from the Rockies.
Closer: Joakim Soria (R) – I don’t think Soria quite gets the respect he deserves. Here’s a guy who has averaged 35.8 saves over the last four seasons.
Projected Lineup
Salvador Perez (Catcher) – The Royals believe Perez will be their backstop for years to come. He hit .331 while getting his feet wet last season.
Eric Hosmer (First Base) – Hosmer is a rising star. He batted .293 with 19 home runs and 78 RBIs in his rookie campaign.
Johnny Giavotella (Second Base) – He’s regarded as an offensive second baseman but only batted .247 with two home runs and 21 RBIs in 178 at bats a year ago. His numbers will improve quickly if he can become more patient at the plate.
Mike Moustakas (Third Base) – He got off to a really slow start but came on strong to finish with a .263 average. He had hitting streaks of 15 and 11 games last year.
Alcides Escobar (Shortstop) – He doesn’t have much of a bat (hit .254 in 2011), but he can sure field his position. I love watching this guy fire it from deep in the hole. He has a cannon.
Alex Gordon (Left Field) – The second player taken in the 2005 draft finally had a breakout year. Gordon hit. 303 with 23 homers and 87 RBIs and won his first Golden Glove after leading all AL outfielders with 20 assists.
Lorenzo Cain (Center Field) – The Royals will give Cain every opportunity to become the everyday center fielder after he hit .312 with 16 home runs at Triple-A Omaha.
Jeff Francoeur (Right Field) – After bouncing around for a couple years, it appears Francoeur has found a home in Kansas City. He batted .285 with 20 blasts and 87 RBIs.
Billy Butler (Designated Hitter) – He hasn’t been quite the home run threat the Royals expected, but he’s still a valuable run producer. Butler led the club with 95 RBIs in 2011.
Prediction – 4th Place AL Central: The Royals have the potential to finish as high as second in the division but where they end up hinges on a pitching staff that ranked just 27th in the league with a 4.45 ERA last year. The Royals are listed at +2000 to win the AL Central.