World Series 2014 Reaction

Growing up in the nineties and 2000s, the Royals would lose 100 games every year out of 162 in the regular season. These were not like the great teams of the seventies and eighties led by George Brett. Oh sure we had good players, but we were basically everybody’s AAAA team. Players would get good, and then want to leave for bigger markets. But finally we started getting good around 2013, and everybody on the current roster came up around 2012.

The epic nature of the wildcard game against our former team, the Athletics (moved from KC to Oakland in 1968. Then the Royals became an expansion franchise in 1969), was alone enough to write legends about. Especially after we wallowed in mediocrity for so many years.

Then the historian in me thought to himself, this has got to be our year, when Alex Gordon was on 3^rd base, with Salvador Perez up at bat in Game 7. All we needed was 90 more feet. It’s the scenario you dream up playing pickup baseball games with your friends in the backyard. Until Joe Buck’s new man crush Madison Bumgardner came in to save the day.

The San Francisco Giants may have won the World Series. Which they seem to do every other year under current management. But I personally think we put the baseball world on notice that the Royals don’t suck anymore.

I know it’s totally cliché in sports, when players and coaches say there’s always next year, but I really do feel like next year will definitely be our year. Sometimes, you learn more from defeat, then you do from victory.

2014 KC Royals Projected World Series Depth Chart

Well, after the marathon that is a baseball season, the Kansas City Royals have finally become no longer the punchline to bad jokes. To say I’m excited is an understatement! I’m going to try and temper my excitement as to not wear myself out by whenever the series ends. 

Once again, for the casual to non-baseball fan, there are 162 games in a season for each team. That’s one every day starting usually the 1^st Sunday in April, and going until the last day of September. Playoffs and the World Series are in October. There are 25 men on the roster. Whenever a game is rained out, or postponed due to lightning, they play what’s called a doubleheader to make up for the game that was lost the day before. So, for those days, teams are allotted a 26th man for the doubleheader. And the last month of September is when the roster is expanded to 40 for the month. The whole goal is to win a series at a time, against the team you play 3 or 4 times in a row until the end of the season. If you win more than 90 games total, you usually make the playoffs.
 
… Also, baseball is divided into 2 leagues with 15 teams each. They’re differentiated by the Designated Hitter in the American League (a position player only bats for the pitcher and never plays defense), and in the National League, the pitcher bats last in the batting order. Someday soon, I have a feeling both leagues will have a universal DH because the pitchers don’t practice batting very often and are always an easy out. I also believe, much like the DH, the 26th man will be permanent years from now.
 
I really hope we don’t just go to the World Series and fall flat on our faces. I hope we make it a great series for the Giants. I want it to be 1 of those World Series that people talk about for ages.
 
Here is my projected 2014 KC Royals World Series Roster:
 
Starting Lineup:
LF: Alex Gordon *favorite current KC Royal position player
CF: Lorenzo Cain
RF: Norichika Aoki
3B: Mike Moustakas
SS: Alcides Escobar
2B: Omar Infante
1B/DH: Eric Hosmer
C: Salvador Perez
 
2014 World Series Batting Order:
1. Alcides Escobar
2. Norichika Aoki
3. Lorenzo Cain
4. Eric Hosmer
5. Billy Butler
6. Alex Gordon
7. Salvador Perez
8. Mike Moustakas
9. Omar Infante
 
Bench:
OF: Jarrod Dyson
OF: Terrance Gore
1B/DH: Billy Butler
C: Erik Kratz
OF: Josh Willingham
IF: Jayson Nix
 
Starting Pitching Rotation:
1. James Shields
2. Yordano Ventura
3. Danny Duffy
4. Jason Vargas
5. Jeremy Guthrie
 
Bullpen:
Tim Collins
Brandon Finnegan
Jason Frasor
Kelvin Herrera
Wade Davis *Set up man
Greg Holland *Closer

Happy Jackie Robinson Day!

Today is the day set aside to commemorate the life and legacy of professional baseball superstar Jackie Robinson. The United States had been playing baseball as a general sport since 1846. Before April 15, 1947, baseball had been segregated between whites and brown, or black skinned players of African descent, as well as Hispanic/Spanish/Latino descent since about the year 1867. Then in 1876, there was a gentlemen’s agreement between the owners that the players of color would not be permitted into baseball. Sure, there were great baseball players such as Fleet Walker of Toledo, who was the 1^st African-American player to play in a professional league baseball game in 1884. But because of prejudicial preconceived notions, they weren’t given the proper opportunity to showcase their talent. Because they were facing more, and more discrimination and segregation, the Negro Leagues were founded in 1920 by Rube Foster, and those leagues were in operation off and on up until 1960. That brings me to Branch Rickey. He was the general manager of the then, Brooklyn Dodgers (moved to LA in 1958), who was looking to break the color barrier that had been in place for 80 years. Enter the aforementioned Jackie Robinson, who had been playing for the Kansas City Monarchs, who were 1 of the winningest teams in the Negro Leagues. They were the equivalent of the New York Yankees in our more modern Major League Baseball (MLB) terms. Branch Rickey had kept it a secret as long as he possibly could. He knew there was an untapped reservoir of talent that was being kept down by the rest of society’s ignorance. Back then, even though it seems very foreign to us, it was very radical for the time when Jackie Robinson took his defensive spot at 1^st base. Shortly after Jackie, Larry Doby of the Cleveland Indians became the 1^st player of African descent in the American League, making the Dodgers the 1^st team in the National League to integrate, and baseball as a whole officially within the confines of how we think of baseball, which has been played since 1903. In 2004, the MLB decided to make a day honoring Jackie Robinson on April 15. Since 2009, all the players, coaches, and umpires wear the number 42 to honor Mr. Robinson. And the number 42 consequently has been retired from all of baseball since 1997.

Brad Freeman's All-Time Baseball Legends Team

My all-time baseball legends team:

LF Ted Williams (Boston Red Sox)

CF Willie Mays (New York/San Francisco Giants)

RF Hank Aaron (Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves)

3B Mike Schmidt (Philadelphia Phillies)

SS Cal Ripken Jr. (Baltimore Orioles)

2B Ernie Banks (Chicago Cubs)

1B Lou Gehrig (New York Yankees)

C Johnny Bench (Cincinnati Reds)

P Babe Ruth (Boston Red Sox/New York Yankees) *94 wins before all the homers

DH Pete Rose (Cincinnati Reds)

Try facing that lineup. What do you think baseball oriented friends?

2014 KC Royals Projected Opening Day Depth Chart

Even though I’m more football oriented, I thought I’d try to give my general baseball observation of my hometown Royals this year.

 

In the seventies and eighties, the Royals were a model franchise. They represented how you build a young team from the ground up. And then around 1994, we were cellar dwellers. Ever since then, the Royals have been uneventful.

With all that being said, there are 162 games in a season for each team. That’s one every day starting usually the 1^st Sunday in April, and going until the last day of September. Playoffs and the World Series are in October. There are 25 men on the roster. Whenever a game is rained out, or postponed due to lightning, they play what’s called a doubleheader to make up for the game that was lost the day before. So, for those days, teams are allotted a 26th man for the doubleheader. And the last month of September is when the roster is expanded to 40 for the month. The whole goal is to win a series at a time, against the team you play 3 or 4 times in a row until the end of the season. If you win more than 90 games total, you usually make the playoffs.

 

… Also, baseball is divided into 2 leagues with 15 teams each. They’re differentiated by the Designated Hitter in the American League (a position player only bats for the pitcher and never plays defense), and in the National League, the pitcher bats last in the batting order. Someday soon, I have a feeling both leagues will have a universal DH because the pitchers don’t practice batting very often and are always an easy out. I also believe, much like the DH, the 26th man will be permanent years from now.

 

I really like our young team this year. And even though we didn’t have a winning season in 2013, you could see us start to win some games. So, I hope we are at least really competitive this year.

 

Here is my projected 2014 KC Royals Opening Day Roster:

Starting Lineup:
LF: Alex Gordon *favorite current KC Royal position player
CF: Lorenzo Cain
RF: Norichika Aoki
3B: Mike Moustakas
SS: Alcides Escobar
2B: Omar Infante
1B/DH: Eric Hosmer
C: Salvador Perez 

Batting Order:
1. Norichika Aoki

2. Omar Infante
3. Eric Hosmer
4. Billy Butler
5. Alex Gordon
6. Salvador Perez
7. Mike Moustakas
8. Lorenzo Cain
9. Alcides Escobar
 
Bench:
OF: Jarrod Dyson
OF: Justin Maxwell
1B/DH: Billy Butler
C: Erik Kratz
IF: Danny Valencia
 
Starting Pitching Rotation:
1. James Shields
2. Jason Vargas
3. Jeremy Guthrie
4. Bruce Chen
5. Yordano Ventura
 
Bullpen:
Tim Collins
Luke Hochevar
Louis Coleman
Aaron Crow
Kelvin Herrera
Wade Davis *Set up man
Greg Holland *Closer

Positives to Cerebral Palsy

Positives to Cerebral Palsy: Don't have to shovel snow, or take the trash out. Also, since I would need special modifications to drive and don't have money to modify my van yet, everybody willingly and thankfully runs my errands for me. And lastly, since I've made more women blush than Revlon, when I find the few women who aren't intimidated by me, they usually drive to me. Haha!

Negatives to Cerebral Palsy: Honestly, none. The only thing not having it will do is prove to me what I already know, which is people are intimidated by what they don't understand. That's why I tell people all about me and my CP, when they ask, so they're not afraid.