So I said that I would do this every few days, but I am bored and just itching to keep moving through the reports so today I am going to discuss First Basemen.

Fighting for a Big League Spot:

Let’s start with Mike Jacobs, because out of all the first basemen in camp I would say it is pretty clear that he is the most assured of a roster spot going into the season. Jacobs was acquired this offseason in a trade that was originally intended to send pitcher Carlos Rosa to Florida, however, after Florida backed away from Rosa due to injury concerns, the Royals shipped set up man Leo Nunez out to Miami for the left handed slugging first basemen Jacobs. This move has been heavily scrutinized in the media, considered Jacobs lack of on base percentage. While Jacobs OBP scares me, I am going to say that anytime you can acquire a 30+ home run guy for a right handed set up man, then it is a deal that you should pull the trigger on. Especially if you are a GM that seems to have a knack for putting together strong bullpens, which Dayton Moore appears to be.

 Next there is 22-year-old Billy Butler. Butler has yet to live up to the hype that has surrounded him as he arose through the Royals’ minor league system, but at the same time he is still only 22. Going into the season it seems that Royal fans have all but given up hope for Butler to figure out how to use a glove, however, sources have said that Butler thus far has played a more consistent first base than Mike Jacobs. Combine that with the fact that Butler has previously said that he feels more comfortable at the plate when he is playing the field, and that Jacobs has no problem with being a full time DH, then one could come to the conclusion that Butler will go into the year as the everyday first baseman and Jacobs as the everyday DH. I think this would be the ideal situation for the Royals as long as Butler could play average, or close to average defense. I also, expect Butler to have a very strong showing this year and flirt with a line of .295/.345/.450. Butler is one of the wild cards for the Royals this season (along with Gordon and Greinke) and if he breaks out could mean the difference between wins in the upper 70s, or getting up into the 80s and being in a playoff hunt.

Ross Gload is a gritty, hard-nosed player that does all the little things that a team needs to do to win a baseball game, or would say the Royals coaching staff. When I see Gload I see a consistent player and can provide above average defense at first base, but has one of the worst bats in the league when it comes to first basemen. (Actually there is statistical evidence to show that last season Gload was the worst among everyday first basemen.) Gload will most likely make the team again this season and provide a late inning defensive replacement, and occasional corner outfielder. This is fine by me, although I would much rather have this role, solely belong to Teahen. But Teahen can’t provide the Defense at first that Gload can, and I seriously doubt the coaching staff would even consider going into the season without the assurance of a strong glove at first.

Mark Teahen is also a possibility at first, but currently the Royals are giving him a shot at second base. But if Butler or Jacobs were to be injured and the Teahen at second experiment fails, I could see Teahen sliding to first to take up the full time job.

Ryan Shealy came to Kansas City a couple of years ago, in a trade with Colorado that sent Denny Bautista and Jeremy Affeldt to the Rocky Mountains. Shealy came with loads of promise and in some ways continues to have the same promise. For example last September when Shealy hit 7 home runs in just 73 at bats. However, Shealy has been injury prone and is out of options. The word on the street also is that GMDM is actively trying to find a trade partner to give Shealy an opportunity elsewhere. If no partner can be found, Shealy will most likely be claimed off waivers before the season starts.

Kila Ka’aihue last season won the Royals Minor League Player of the Year award after posting a line of .314/.456/.628 and being second in the minors in home runs with 37. The brass of Kansas City would like to give Ka’aihue more time in Omaha before making him a regular in the Majors. But if Jacobs or Butler go down Ka’aihue should be the first option down on the farm as a replacement.

Pinch Fillers:

With the depth of first basemen that the Royals have that are expected to make the Major League roster, the only real option in AAA will be Ka’aihue. Even if Jacobs or Butler go down with an injury, the Royals may elect to go with either Ross Gload or Mark Teahen at first before they make the call to Omaha for some Hawaiian Punch.

Keep Your Eye On:

Eric Hosmer: Hosmer was selected with the third overall selection in the 2008 draft and signed for a club record bonus of $6 million. Depending on the publication Hosmer is rated either 1st or 2nd among Royals prospects and according to Jim Callis is the 12th best prospect in all of minor league baseball. According to baseball America Hosmer is the best pure and power hitter in the Royals organization. Unlike most power hitters his age, Hosmer already has the ability to hit bombs to the opposite field. Hosmer could start the season the same place that Mike Moustakas did a year ago, Burlington Iowa in the Midwest League, or the Royals could send Hosmer to Wilmington in the Carolina League to catch him up with Moustakas, Giavotella and others.

Clint Robinson: After tearing up the Pioneer League at Idaho Falls for a .336 average and 15 homers in only 253 at bats, Robinson was sent to the Midwest League for the 2008 season. There Robinson hit .266, but continued to show decent pop by hitting 17 home runs with a .472 Slug. Unfortunately Robinson is a little old (24) for his level to be considered a strong prospect, but nonetheless if Robinson can continue to post strong numbers he could be a fun name to watch.

Jason Taylor: The other first basemen for Burlington last season, Taylor was a second round pick in 2006. Taylor is rated as the 17th best prospect in the minors by Baseball America and if not for some suspensions would probably be rated much higher. (Taylor will begin this season by serving a 50 game suspension.) Taylor has a .372 OBP in his minor league career and last season swiped a total of 40 bases while clubbing 17 home runs. Taylor is 21-years-old and hopefully can get back on the right track and be a productive player someday for the big league club.

Kansas City Royals pitchers Luke Hochevar and Jimmy Gobble both had a night that they don’t want to remember.  Hochevar was charged with seven runs in only five innings while Gobble was charged with ten runs in only one inning of action.  A lot of people are probably thinking how in the hell does Gobble give up ten runs?  Well he was out there to take one for the team pretty much.

I should mention that Robinson Tejeda also gave up two runs as he pitched in between Hochevar and Gobble.  Yeah, it was a terrible night to be a Royals pitcher as they struggled on the mound.

Joey Gathright had a rbi single in the 8th inning and then scored on a wild pitch.  Billy Butler then added on a two run single in the 8th as the Royals scored all four runs in the inning.  It really didn’t matter how well the offense hit tonight because the pitchers were that terrible.

So was this the worst performance you have seen out of the Royals lately?  Leave us a comment and let us know!

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It was a frustrating ugly game for the Royals saturday at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals 6 game winning streak was ended tonight by the Cardinals by the score of 5-1. The Royals struggled to get anything offensively and looked like the pre-interleague play Royals with 1 run and 5 hits in the game. Kyle Davies pitched well in the first few innings before the Cardinals scored the first run of the game on a throwing error by Mike Aviles that looked like an easy double play ball but Aviles threw it into the dirt and the ball bounced away from 1st baseman Ross Gload.

Aviles bad throw was not the only defensive play that cost the Royals. Joey Gathright lost a ball in centerfield that dropped amd scored a run. Miguel Olivo made a pretty horrendous error by dropping the ball after tagging out a runner at home. No it was’nt a ball jarring collision at home that caused Olivo to drop the ball, he just dropped it. But the Royals lost this one not entirely because of these mistakes but more because they could never really put anything together. They never had a rally the whole game. In the 7th inning it looked like a rally was beggining but on a run scoring hit Olivo was sent home by 3rd base coach Luis Silverio. Olivo was thrown out by a mile by Cardinal catcher Yadier Molina.

Billy Butler was called up from triple-A Omaha today before the game but was not in the line up on saturday night. After struggling at the major league level recently Butler was sent down and hit very well. Alberto Callaspo was placed on the 15 day DL after he was arrested for running a red light late at night and was charged with a DUI. It is unknown whether the arrest has anything to do with the arrest.

Zack Greinke pitched seven strong innings to pitch the Kansas City Royals past the Los Angeles Angels by the score of 9-4.  Greinke picked up his fourth win as he improved to 4-1 on the season.

David DeJesus led the Royals with three RBI as he hit a three run home run in the second inning.  Alex Gordon had two RBI in the game as he hit a two run home run in the fourth inning as well.  Billy Butler, Ross Gload, John Buck, and Tony Pena Jr. all had one RBI in the game.

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The Kansas City Royals used three runs in the first couple of innings to beat the Los Angeles Angels 3-2 on Wednesday night.  Gil Meche pitched an outstanging ballgame for the Royals who improved their record to 9-6 on the season with the win.

Meche picked up his first win of the season after pitching six inning and giving up six hits and two earned runs.  Meche said he finally put away batters unlike his last few starts.  Joakim Soria picked up his fifth save after closing the door on the Angels in the ninth.

Billy Butler and Alex Gordon had one RBI each for the Royals.  Nice to see the two young stars contributing and putting runs up on the scoreboard.

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The Kansas City Royals fell to the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night by the score of 11-6.  Usually when your pitching staff gives up eleven runs, you are going to lose the game just like the Royals did. 

John Bale took the loss the for Royals and is now 0-3 on the season.  Bale only lasted three inning as he gave up seven hits and three earned runs.  The Royals relievers really weren’t much better as Hideo Nomo gave up four earned runs, Ron Mahay and Yasuhiko Yabuta both gave up one earned run.  Terrible job by the pitching staff against the Mariners…

At the plate for the Royals, Tony Pena led the team with two RBI’s.  David DeJesus, Billy Butler, Alex Gordon, and Ross Gload all had one RBI each.

The Royals record is now 8-6.  Lets see how long they stay above the .500 mark.  Any guesses?

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What a start for pitcher Zack Greinke in 2008!  Greinke now has a 3-0 record after the Kansas City Royals defeated the Seattle Mariners 5-1.  Greinke has to have a lot of confidence, and the whole Royals team has to have a lineup as they have got off to a great start this season.

Greinke pitched all nine innings and only gave up five hits the entire night.  The one earned run came off the bat of Ichiro when he grounded into a fielders choice.  Greinke was top notch and hopefully he will throw the ball the same way during his next start!

At the plate for the Royals, Miguel Olivo and Billy Butler both hit home runs.  Olivo’s home run was a two-run homer, and Butlers was a solo shot.  David DeJesus hit a sacrafice fly in the 7th inning and John Buck had a RBI single in the 8th inning.

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The Kansas City Royals were not able to extend their record to 4-0 on the season as they lost to the Minnesota Twins by the score of 4-3 on Friday evening.  Now the Royals record stands at 3-1, but I think if you ask any Royals fan, they would take that record in a second!

Jose Guillen, Billy Butler, and John Buck each had one RBI for the Royals, but they just couldn’t get that big hit to put them over the top.  I still like the way they are hitting the ball, and good things will come if they keep putting the ball in play.

John Bale picked up the loss for the Royals.  Bale pitched 6.1 innings giving up four earned runs.  He didn’t pitch too badly, just a couple of mistakes that he will need to learn from and hopefully they won’t happen in his next outing.

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Brian Bannister and the Kansas City Royals held down the powerful Detroit Tigers once again on Wednesday.  With the win, the Royals move to 2-0 on the young season.

Bannister threw seven shutout innings.  He only allowed three hits, which all came off the bat of Edgar Renteria.  Bannister struck out 4 while not allowing a walk.  You gotta love that!

Billy Butler lead the Royals at the plate with two RBI’s while Jose Guillen and Mark Teahen had one RBI each.

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The Kansas City Royals couldn’t muster up enough run support to defeat the Texas Rangers as they dropped their first spring training game by the score of 6-1.

Billy Butler did well at the plate as he had a single as well as walk to reach base during both of his at bats.

Starter John Bale allowed one run in two innings. He was replaced by Luke Hochevar, who retired six straight hitters. Brian Lawrence gave up two runs in the fifth.

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