Tomorrow, February 14 I am celebrating Love. NO, not Valentine's day were I am being told to, one day a year, spoil E with flowers and chocolate and teddy bears. No, the love I celebrate will be the pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training and the beginning of a long summer of baseball, good (Red Sox), bad (Mets) and ugly (Royals). Fortunately, I have found myself a fan of good and ugly. Yes, I root for the Kansas City Royals. The past few years that means a pain, hurt, confusion, and depression. And that's just from the players!! Although I want to put a nice *j/k* there, I can't when your Ace pitcher demands a trade. Being a Royals fan hasn't been pleasant for the majority of my life. Of course I was alive when they won their only World Series, but in 1985, I was only 4. Thankfully, I can remember the days of George Brett and how my hatred of the Yankees started with the brutal battles against KC and of course the "Pine Tar Game". If you don't know what that is, just go to here.
Each off-season, I try to get excited. I mean, hope springs eternal, right? Although Dayton Moore, KC's general manager has usually disappointed with his Free Agent signings, the Royals minor league system has never been stronger than right now. There is potential that the top two bats (Hosmer and Moustakas) will see time in KC this year, with Mous getting there around June 1. That on top of the possibility that Wil Myers is even better than both those guys is very exciting since Mous and Hos are top 10 prospects according to multiple prospect lists. Those three on top of 7 left-handed pitchers that all have the potential to make any MLB rotation leave me drooling the future in KC.
I have learned to temper my expectations for the Royals, and 2011 will be no different. EXCEPT if someone isn't performing, we have players in Omaha that can take over. Spring Training always gets me excited, though. Even when Jose Guillen was our RF and "Power" guy. Not that Francouer and Cabrera are legit power bats, but with Butler another year older and Ka'aihue given plenty of PA's, I am excited to see what happens.
The Red Sox had a HUGE off-season, having spent the most $$ in Free Agency. I know...people are starting tho think of the Red Sox like the Yankees, but if you have the resources to get better, you have to use them. When they sign Gonzalez long-term, they will be close to the amount of players making 20+ mil. a year, but I like the age at which we signed those players. Gonzalez and Crawford will be with the Red Sox in their Peak ages and both project well in Fenway. I love the Red Sox because of the vicious rivalry with the Evil Empire (NY) but also because the are a storied franchise, and believe me, if you get the chance to watch a game in Fenway, you can't help but pull for Sox! Plus they have a lot more homegrown players than the Evil Empire that have impacted the team at higher levels.
Needless to say, I am excited to start watching baseball again! "Play Ball!"
Nice. But not a word about the Elephantes? Surely they'd fit somewhere among "good, bad and ugly."
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