Mailbag Friday | Kansas City Royals Podcast

it is Friday so let's answer some questions from the mailbag you are locked on Royals your daily Kansas City Royals podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day thank you for tuning in to this early edition of a mailbag Friday well it actually is Friday it's just early in the morning but as always I'm your host Jack Johnson and you can follow me on Twitter Rex Johny j15 that is at jny j15 you also can catch us on wherever you get your podcast that can be Spotify Apple podcast Amazon music Google podcast we're on Odyssey and we're on YouTube just be sure to hit that follow button and subscribe if you're a first time listener and you want to hear a little bit more about me and this show I'm based here in Kansas City I work at sports radio 810 whb doing some hosting some co-hosting and a little bit of producing as well but when it comes to this podcast when you click on this link you know that you're going to be getting 30 straight minutes of Royals baseball now Today's Show is brought to you by prize piix the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports go to prize.com lockon MLB and use code all lowercase locked on MLB for a first deposit match of up to $100 so this is going to be a little bit of a unique episode I am currently recording this on Thursday before game one between the Royals and the Astros unfortunately I'm going to be getting up early enough on Friday where I'm not going to have time to record an episode so not really a breakdown of what happens in tonight's game between the Royals and the Astros none of these questions will be based off of what happens tonight but that's kind of the beauty of a mailbag Friday is that we can have questions about the past we can have questions about the future about the upcoming series about next week's series it's kind of flexible in that way so if you watch this tomorrow morning and you're going why is no body asking about the game or why is Jack not recapping what happened that's because it hasn't happened yet when I'm recording this I usually don't like to do any pre-recorded episodes but unfortunately uh this is what we have to deal with and I did want to give everybody an episode on Friday considering I didn't have an episode on Monday just a live breakdown with my buddy Braden Turner so let's kick things off with question number one from YouTube this comes from Brandon uh what is it going to take to get us to the top seed in the AL Bullpen definitely the weakest piece of this team but realistically the teams ahead of us uh are starting to slow down um I do believe that the the quest here to getting the number one seed in the American League is a bit far-fetched um I don't think the Royals are going to be able to catch the Yankees they're not far behind it just doesn't seem like the Royals with their schedule left and what the Yankees have left that they'll be able to catch all the way up right now the focus needs to be on the division and also making sure that wild card St spot stays secure but if they are going to make a push for it I think it would come down to you know this Bullpen not just being stabilized or consistent but being lights out I mean the way they looked in that rain delay game on Wednesday that's the way they would need to look for the rest of the year for this team to just lock down any lead they had late but we even saw yesterday the Royals blew a five the two lead in the seventh inning so I'm not too optimistic in the Royals catching the Yankees for the top seed in the American League good question still from Brandon Elizabeth asked a question for this week's show who do you think the Royals will offer a contract to next I would love to see vineer Cole offered something what are your thoughts yeah I I do believe that the next guy to get an extension will be Vinnie I think the year that he put in is deserving of an extension I think it's also a contract the Royals could afford and they love to reward guys that put together a career year I don't see this being a h 100 doour type year where the Royals gave him a four-year deal Vinnie's still in his mid 20s doer was nearing his 30s at that point they gave him a four-year deal I think a four-year deal for Vinnie pasquantino this offseason makes a lot of sense but also Cole Reagan is a guy you need to get locked up that wouldn't surprise me uh if he was you know right there alongside Vinnie or maybe even the priority over Vinnie because he's a pitcher next question comes from looks like trying to scroll here up quickly on YouTube stalling the best I can Caleb asked this question what do you see is the ideal teams to play on a on the road to an ALCS appearance give me the teams you would want to play if we get a wild card and the teams we' want to play if we win the division I just started watching this podcast two months ago and is now what I put on every night before bed you do a great job well appreciate the kind words Caleb I'm glad you enjoy the show and I always uh take that to heart when everybody gives me the the good feedback and whether it's good feedback or negative feedback I try to make this the best podcast possible for Royals fans wanting episodes every single day but I think the teams they would want to draw in the wild card to me you're kind of you know you have your hands tied because every team has their strengths and it's a very good field in the American League this year if the Royals got the last wild card spot they would either play the Orioles or the Yankees because those would be the teams that get the number one seed in the America or the number one Wild Card seed in the American leag you'd much rather draw Baltimore I think in that scenario than New York because I thought the Royals matched up much better with Baltimore than the Yankees if they got that wild card spot um if they get the second Wild Card seed they will play the Houston Astros because I believe that's who wins the American League West and that's not a hot take at all I've said before I don't really want to play Houston because something changes in October with them they always seem to hit their stride and they've not really they don't really have a lot of pressure on them kind of like the Royals know the Astros did damage in the postseason already they've gotten their World Series Championships even though one of them is tarnished a little bit bit they win a lot they're successful they won not too long ago and this team kind of came back from the dead so they've got no pressure going into it and that's a team you don't want to face and the same way teams look at the Royals they don't want to face a team that has nothing to lose there's no pressure on them uh but I think matchups wise you would want to avoid somebody like a Minnesota like a New York the teams you want to draw I think Baltimore could be a team you match up well considering they haven't played that well in the second half and the Royals hung around with them even though they lost uh the both of those Series in Baltimore and Kansas City they were right there they blew a handful of those games against the Orioles and I think it'd be a fun matchup and Baltimore is another team that has a ton of pressure on them considering you know they're in the middle of their window right now they need to start winning playoff series and last year they got swept by Texas after 100 win season they were the number one seed in the American League they didn't even win a playoff game so the pressure is absolutely on them so good question there coming from Caleb Cole ask in your opinion Jack do you think we have a chance to make a playoff push this year absolutely no doubt in my mind I think at this point I'll agree with the fan graph odds I'd put it over 90% that the Royals are going to be playing in the postseason the difference becomes is it a wild card birth or is it going to be a division championship from the American League Central side that'll be something that will uh be decided in these final 28 games next question comes from uh desert fan do the Royals need to consider resigning Paul D young for next year I think Paul D young is the perfect rental guy I think he is thriving because because you the Royals are catching fire and he's on a new team and he was on the white socks this year which had to have been depressing as hell I I think at this point in his career he's not really worth a one-year deal if anything I think Michael orenen is worth a one-year deal or a two-year deal going into next off season but D young he's he's kind of nearing in my opinion the latter stages of his career he's been great for the Royals but I don't think overall for an entire year he would be worth a one-year deal but you never know if you get him for one year five million that's fine for a bench bat if he can do the same thing he's been doing for you right now I think it's 100% worth it next question comes from I believe this one's another mailbag Friday yep Andrew Jenkins says uh just wanted to say I really enjoy your show thank you for the kind words Andrew it's been one of the things I look forward to to listen while I'm at work I do have a question for mailbag Friday if given a chance to play do you think Tyler Gentry can earn his spot on this team and maybe a playoff roster spot unfortunately no I I do not see Tyler Gentry you know being on this team much longer to be honest with you he might stay up uh really until Hunter Renfro gets healthy and I think Hunter Renfro will be back once that 15-day I stint is up I like Taylor Gentry a lot but I think his shot is next year Luke asked mailbag Friday question here what do you think the Royals need to do this off season try and sign a couple of good relievers a power bat in the Outfield I'd love to hear what you think I think the focus needs to be you know just stabilizing the bullpen you're going to have Lucas in back he's your closer John triver still has another year of control so does Hunter Harvey there's three guys right there uh you're also going to have Chris bich unless you want to move him to the rotation um and you're going to be parting ways with Chris Stratton you're GNA be parting ways with Will Smith and I think that you you want to go out there and get some high strikeout guys some high powerered high velocity strikeout guys and since you've got the majority of your Bullpen sorted out I mean there was four guys right there I'd be willing to spend a little extra cash to bring in somebody who had a damn good year in 202 24 not try to go out the scrap Heap and get a guy that nobody's really offering contracts to so Bullpen absolutely and I think I would try to go out there and sign another starter or two but for cheap a one-year deal6 million 7 million deal so you have a number six and number seven starter on the off chance somebody gets injured so that would be my focus and then never a bad thing to look into adding a power Outfield bat but good question there coming from Luke all right we're going to take our first break of the show when we come back still plenty more questions to get into next in this edition of a mailbag Friday on lockon Royals you are tuning to lockon Royals and the lockon podcast Network I'm your host Jack Johnson and you can find me on Twitter Rex at Johnny j15 want to give a shout out to one of the sponsors today in liquid IV it has been incredibly hot week here in Kansas City fortunately for the Royals they've not been in Kansas City they've been in clevel and then they start their series uh in Houston I I really struggle at times when I'm out there doing yard work or I'm playing beer league softball they just tell myself to be drinking water maybe you struggle with the same thing but liquid IV takes care of that you've heard me talk about them I I love promoting liquid IV because it's something I use every single day in the morning I just put a little a a uh a bag in there a little pouch in there whatever you want to call them put them in my water bottle put them in a Standley mix it up there it tastes incredibly good and then I just drink it on my way to work and I stay hydrated for a little bit then I probably put in another one when I get home from work and I'm not dealing with those dehydration headaches or anything like that it really makes you feel good makes you stay energized and of course makes you stay hydrated so there are no more thirsty Summers when you indulge in hydration with liquid IV get 20% off your first order of liquid IV when you go to liquid iv.com and use code MLB checkout that's 20% off your first order when you shop better hydration today using Chromo code MLV at checkout liquid i.com GNA hop over to Twitter here and get the next round of questions again it's a unique episode today because we're not talking about what happened in Thursday night's game this episode's coming out on Friday morning it's a pre-recorded episode so bear with me uh really Fridays are the only ones I can do pre-recorded episodes because they're just questions from you guys and we're not having to break down what happened in a certain game so I do apologize getting out on the road tomorrow morning very very early so I can't really stay up all night and record an episode right after the game uh but here is the first round of questions coming over on Twitter Twitter this one is from looks like Royals report is Adam Frasier a reliable everyday player going forward no I think he's a bench back guy and when there's a righty in the lineup and Michael massie's not playing you'll probably see Adam Frasier out there he's getting a little bit more run and Garrett hamson for that matter because Hunter Renfro is on the injured list once Hunter Renfro comes back I don't think we're gonna be seeing Adam Frasier out there in many of the Big Time series likely at this point a guy that can come in as defensive replacement if you pin somebody or he'll be used as a pin because M quero loves those righty Lefty matchups and for Frasier's case a lefty righty matchup missou bobbert asked are you more scared of Cleveland or Minnesota I do believe we will win the central who's in second well I love the confidence number one that it's a battle for second place between Cleveland and Minnesota but to me it's not close at all it's Minnesota uh the Royals do not match up well with them at all that is going to be a fun series next weekend in Kansas City but Minnesota's got the Royals number that offense you know always seems to pounce on Royals pitching and Cleveland is a team that's scuffling at this point they're on fumes Minnesota kind of on fumes and they've got their negatives as well uh they're 60 and 60 this year against the rest of baseball and 12- one against the White Soxs so they more so than the Royals have been the white sock Merchants because the Royals have a little bit better record against teams uh that are not named the Chicago White Sox but to me it's not close uh far more scared of Minnesota than I am of Cleveland will ask why can't our fans ever be remotely happy one of the biggest turnarounds in NLB history and all I see is bitching and moaning here's what I've got gathered and if you've never really seen me respond to negative comments and stuff after games is that once you get to you know April and May and you realize that some fans just live and die every single day it's not worth it to get into back and force on Twitter because baseball you play every single day and you might be mad about one game and the next day you win and then you're happy about it I think the reason you're seeing a lot of fans be negative at times is because this is the first time in nearly a decade baseball's mattered this late into the season and when it matters this late your emotion comes out you're invested you're excited and you're so let down and you're hurt when they lose and they lose in dramatic fashion but I I will always say this with sports fandom it is much better to have fans that are polarizing and wishy-washy or to have bandwagon fans than to not have any fans or fans that don't care at all and that's what it's been the last handful of years fans just don't care at this point in the season it's Chief's training camp it's college football and it's college basketball coming up in the winter you're not caring about the Royals in their 100 loss record at this point this year it's different and they're worth uh paying attention to and they're worth getting this invested into but I understand the frustration because I've had those clashes between the positive and the negative fans in my comments uh throughout the entire season from April 1 to uh even today Scott asked should we claim Tommy fam and DFA hamson I think that the Royals are going to hang on to the veteran they've had all season long I just I haven't gotten any feel that they are going to be picking up anybody on waivers if they do I would love for it to be somebody like a Taylor Rogers who was DFA by the Giants great numbers this year great left-handed arm good strikeout numbers I think he makes perfect sense but there might be other teams out there ahead of the Royals to place a claim on him I wanted Tommy fam back at the deadline now I just don't think it makes too much sense considering I don't think he would play a lot and Garrett hampson's fine as a defensive replacement he's much better defensively than Tom fam Kate asked with Lucas IG being dominant the last outing was tough do you think he'll bounce back and and a side note Kyle Isbell homered off of ersc in the O Ser of coffin Stadium I do remember that yeah Lucas ersc didn't look that good against the Royals at the Coliseum back a couple months ago but he's been a much different guy since joining Kansas City I absolutely think that he's going to bounce back that outing on uh Wednesday afternoon didn't bother me in the slightest because on that Wednesday afternoon game Lucas ERS got to death he didn't get hit hard he was throwing strikes the the Guardians just poked a few singles into the Outfield that found some green and there's nothing you can do about it I think he's going to come back out next time around and Pitch very well maybe it'll be tonight in Houston uh when he does get the ball in a save situation but no I'm not worried about Lucas ersing I don't get worried about guys until it's three or four bad outings in a row and they all look pretty much the same KC Sports connoisseur asks when is Harvey going to be back and when is it that we can assume Stratton is gone maybe Wishful thank him but I don't think I can stomach watching him pitch anymore uh when Hunter Harvey returns which he was supposed to re or start throwing again on Friday and that was last Friday I don't know how that went to be honest it's been pretty quiet so I don't know if that's a good sign or a bad sign but I'd imagine he's going to need to go on the rehab stint but when he does rejoin the team assuming he does in the regular season Chris Stratton will be the odd man out I do think he'll be the one to get DFA so you can get some more power in the back end of that Bullpen uh this comes from short bam what difference do you notice between this team and the 2015 team there's some obvious ones like one team's Bullpen is being a little bit better but other than that uh what is there wish you safe travels and I love your show well thank you for the kind words again you guys are you know gassing me up a lot in this uh this mailbag Friday which I love it I do this show for the listeners and people that love Royals baseball and anytime you guys say that I truly do appreciate it a lot uh the difference I would say uh with this team compared to 2015 yeah you pointed out the bullpen is the obvious one here to me though I I think it's being a more well-rounded lineup the 2015 team just had great hitters it felt like you know one through about eight the only weak spot in that lineup was Alex Rios and even Alex Rios came through a handful of times in the postseason this Royals lineup is very topheavy and the big difference there is the 2015 team had nobody that was close to Bobby with J even Lorenz o Kan who was the best player on that team you know Bobby Jr takes them miles ahead of or this team miles ahead of where they would be without him of course Salvador Perez is better this year than he was in 2015 and Vinnie pasquantino is comparable um to somebody like Kendry Morales and I think he's going to come pretty close to what Kendry final numbers were in 2015 so this group a little bit more topheavy the 2015 team a little bit more well-rounded with their lineup but do love that question there from short bam Dynasty lethal protector asked if the Royals don't take the division do you think they could take the first wild card spot and would that give them any advantages the advantages it would give them is that they would have a home series for the Wild Card Series so they're two games back at Baltimore going into Thursday night's game and Baltimore uh I think is going to have a little bit more Firepower to get to the end and hold on to that number one wild card spot but the Royals are going to have a really good chance um if they do make the wild card spot it's not the worst thing in the world to be the final wild card team that that's I either want to be the first wild card team or I want the Royals to be the number one wild card team or the number three because the number two wild card team has to go to or excuse me I would rather it be the number one Wild Card seed or yeah the number three because the number two would go to Baltimore the number three wild card team would go play the Astros and I guess that goes against what I was saying earlier about not wanting to play the Astros but the Astros have one of the weaker records in the American League it's more so so about they're the boogeyman for everybody in the American League side for the playoffs having the number one Wild Card seed is doable there're only two games back going into Thursday they were only two games back going in Thursday and that would mean them either hosting Baltimore or going on the road to play Baltimore that's what it would mean at this point in time but the focus has to be on winning this Division and I know the Royals are set on winning this Division and they'll have plenty of opportunities to make some ground next week against the Guardians at home and the Minnesota Twins at home we're going to take our final break of the show before we do that thank you for making lock on Royal your first listen today for your second listen enjoy the locked on MLB podcast host Pat Sullivan AKA suly is here daily to provide National expertise with this trademark humor W get ready for the MLB playoffs here in the dog days of summer prepare for the fall classic with suly who has it all covered every single day on locked on MLB available on YouTube or wherever you get your podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day when we come back we will wrap up our final set of questions on a mailbag Friday next on lockdown Royals you are tuning to lockon Royals and the lockdown podcast Network I'm your host Jack Johnson and you can find me on Twitter Rex at Johnny j15 want to give a shout out to our final sponsor in prize picks is America's number one daily fantasy sports app with over 5 million active members it's also the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports and unlike other apps on prize picks it's just you against the numbers all you do is pick more or less on two to six player stat projections and watch the winnings roll in get it on the daily action with your friends and become part of the prize picks community today you can now win up to a 100 times your money on prize picks with as little as four correct picks and you can turn $10 into 1,000 sign up today and get $50 instantly when you play $5 you don't even need to win to receive the $50 bonus it is guaranteed so download the prize piix app today and use code locked on MLB and get that $50 instantly when you play $5 that's code locked on MLB on prize picks to get $50 instantly when you play that $5 you don't even need to win to receive the $50 bonus it is guaranteed prize picks run your game the final round of questions here on a mailbag Friday and if you are you know jumping back and forth with what questions you want to listen to again I know a couple of times I've referenced Thursday night going into Thursday game because that's when we're recording uh we are recording this before game one of the Royals and the Astros because I'll be heading out of town so hopefully this episode's been good enough for the questions that were sent into to me both on YouTube and on Twitter but we're going to kick things off in our final segment with Ben we still have 100% faith in ursing to close any game right agreed with that in a perfect scenario Lucas ERS is going to be this team's closer but there are going to be scenarios in the rest of the gauntlet the rest of the season and hopefully in the postseason regardless of where the Royals play where the biggest situation in the game is not the ninth inning it may be the seventh inning or maybe the eighth inning and your goal is to get Lucas ERS in there and then worry about the nth inning as long as Lucas ersing can keep that lead intact so he is the fireman they would like for him to be the closer but that also comes down to John shrier James MacArthur Chris bich Sam long all of those guys uh being able to bridge the gap in the sixth seventh and eighth inning and if they can do that you can save ERS for the ninth inning but there should be no confidence you know wavering from people because of the way Lucas ersc looked on Wednesday afternoon against the Guardians Nate asks when we make the playoffs who is your most comfortable first opponent there's really not any comfortable first opponent in in a perfect world if the Royals got the two seed by winning the American League Central that would put them in a spot of facing I believe let's see the number one seed would get to play the winner of the final wild card team and the Astros so that would be the Astros and at that point I would say the guardians or Minnesota which would leave you the Oro and Minnesota so if the Royals got the two seed they'd play let's say the winner of actually it'd be the Guardians and Baltimore so you'd want Cleveland I think that would be your most comfortable opponent considering how well you've played against them this year you're seven and three and that might be the only team that you'd feel comfortable about because the American League is loaded this year the good thing for the Royals three of the teams from their division are going to be playing in the postseason so they've got plenty of familiarity with a lot of the teams that are going to be in it half the postseason on the American League side or in the bracket side would be from the central which is crazy to think about considering how the Royals had to earn a playoff spot this year by being in such a tough division walk a season ask any waiver pickups you think the Royals should make Rogers comes to mind Savant pig is an amazing it would be a much better option than Straton or Smith yep I I agree with you there I think Taylor Rogers would be the guy to go after got good strikeout stuff from the left side uh my brother lives in San Francisco as a Giants fan and I went to a handful of Giants games this year and got to Taylor Rogers pitch and I remember him a lot in Minnesota that is an absolute upgrade over what Will Smith can give you or even what Daniel Lynch can give you so I'm wondering if the Royals put a claim on him we might find out before this podcast episode releases but yeah I'm with you there I think Taylor Rogers would be the most intriguing candidate to go out there and get Brody asked what is your power rankings for our Bullpen arms right now Lucas IG would be number one I would say Chris bich would be number two number three would be John shriber number four would be Sam long five would be MacArthur six would be Hernandez seven would be Lynch and eight would be Chris Strat I think those would be the eight right there unless I'm missing somebody I don't think I am sometimes I get uh twisted up with uh the number of Bullpen arms out there but I believe that's all eight uh that are on the team right now Blake asks do you believe in a playoff game with Cole on the the mound that he consistently reaches 998 to 100 do you think he will sit around 93 95 I think he would be a little bit amped up uh we've seen that a few times this year that in front of big crowds that velocity can get up to 97 98 but I also think it's a part of his strength that he can go anywhere from 93 to 99 because you're already worrying about his devastating change up his cutter his slider his curveball and then his fast ball is tough to you know figure out a little bit sometimes it comes in at 93 some times he ramps it up to 98 99 for a strikeout pitch I don't think he'll be sitting 98 to 100 in a playoff game but I think I would expect anywhere from 95 to 96 in a soldout stadium with the playoffs you know on the line there and if it's elimination game or game one I'd imagine that he would be pretty pumped up to star in a game like that because we saw an opening day at a soldout Coffman Stadium he was hitting 97 998 99 uh this one comes from Jeff this is a two-part question but thanks for always doing these first with 13 games is the over under I'm assuming that means for wins and second what should the Royals record be uh in the last 15 games so I would put the over at six and a half for the Royals because if then go seven and six you're fine with that but I also think it's going to come down to a few games over 500 or a few games under 500 for how these next 13 games go but I would set the over under at six and a half and I'm going to take the over uh on that win total for the Royals in these next 13 games then what should they go in the final 15 well if they go seven and six in their next 13 games that would give them 82 wins and I think they need to get to 88 so as long as they get to six wins I'd probably put it a little bit more at eight I'd say eight and seven of the last 15 because you always want to play a little bit over 500 when you're just trying to hold off some teams that are chasing you so I'll go eight and seven in those final 15 games and lastly this one comes from Matt has MJ done enough in the second half his second really good second half in a row to convince you that he deserves another shot at everyday left field job next year do you think Renfro Ops in or Ops out at the end of the season for Renfro pretty easy for me I think he opts in for next year because he's been banged up a few times and he started so slow to begin the year and I don't think he's going to be getting any big contract in free agency and as for MJ I think MJ thrives in a role where he doesn't play every day I think he only faces righties yeah you'd love to see him you know hit well against left and he's been better of late but I like him more as a platoon option I think the Royals need to go out there and find themselves an everyday left fielder if Hunter Renfro is coming back and Kyle isbell's coming back but to me I think MJ can be that guy off the bench that plays three to four times a week faces righties and crushes him and I think that takes a lot of pressure off of him and it takes a lot of pressure on the Royals or takes a lot of pressure off the Royals and trying to force him to be an everyday player because I just don't think he is I think he is fine in playing three to four days a week so those are my thoughts there on MJ Melendez well that's going to do it for another edition of a mailbag Friday on lockon royals here on the lockon podcast Network I've been your host Jack Johnson catch us on wherever you get your podcast that can be Spotify Apple podcast Amazon music Google podcast Ron Odyssey and run YouTube just be sure to hit the follow button and subscribe thank you for making lockon Royals your first listen today now go check out the locked on MLB podcast and prepare for the fall classic with suy who has it all covered every single day you can find the link to locked on MLB in the description so you don't need to search part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day well we're going to be off all the way until Monday so we're going to be bringing you an episode either late Monday night or it'll be early on Tuesday morning we'll definitely be having five episodes next week so you won't need to worry about that but I'm gon to be hitting the road hope you enjoyed this episode and hope you enjoy this series against the Houston Astros at Med made Park but until next week you take it easy Kansas City