FROM KINGS TO PAUPERS
ROYALS’ SLIDE HAS BEEN SWIFT
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Drop into just about any bank, supermarket or sports bar in the Kansas City metro area these days, and there’s a good chance you’ll see one of several photographs from just a few years ago hanging on a wall.
It might be Yordano Ventura unleashing a fastball. Or Eric Hosmer sliding into home plate at Citi Field in New York. Or Wade Davis with his arms thrust high into the air, his blazing fastball having just closed out Game 5 of the 2015 World Series to make the Kansas City Royals champions. More than likely, you’ll find the now-iconic photograph of Union Station, where an estimated 400,000 people turned out to celebrate the club’s first title in three decades.
Those photos are reminders of better times — and lessons on how quickly things can change.
The Royals, who were indeed baseball royalty three years ago, are now neck and neck with the Baltimore Orioles for the worst record in baseball. They’ve traded off their star closer, their best players are struggling and the prospects that might one day raise them from the abyss are years away from joining the club.
“The record is what it is. The hitting is what it is. The pitching is what it is,” said Royals manager Ned Yost, who presided over the rebuild that led to back-to-back World Series appearances. “I have to continue to lead. We have to make sure this year has not been a waste.”
How did things fall apart so quickly?
To start, the Royals doled out big contracts to players who have not produced. Left fielder Alex Gordon consumes 14 percent of the payroll in the third year of a $72 million, four-year deal, but he’s hitting just .247 with five homers and 15 RBIs. Right-hander Ian Kennedy consumes 11 percent of the payroll in the third year of a $70 million, five-year deal, and he’s 1-8 with a 5.11 ERA.
The few stars who remain on the roster have likewise struggled to produce. Salvador Perez’s streak of five straight All-Star games is likely about to end. The catcher, in the third year of a $52 million, sixyear deal, is hitting .255 with 11 homers and 33 RBIs.
Good luck winning many games that way. The Royals were 25-61 heading into their off day Thursday and had lost 24 of their past 28 games. They need to go 38-38 the rest of the way just to avoid the ignominy of 100 losses.
Making things worse: The Royals are losing that many games with a payroll of about $144 million.
Another reason for the precipitous slide was year after year of poor drafts. Only one of their 13 first-round picks since 2010 is currently on the 25-man roster — Hunter Dozier is hitting .223 in 44 games as he struggles to lock down an everyday job.
“As a young guy, you know you’re going to fail, and in some ways we want you to fail because that’s how you’re going to get better,” said Yost, who is going through the same slow learning process with infielder and erstwhile top prospect Adalberto Mondesi.
The son of longtime big leaguer Raul Mondesi, he is hitting .214 in 42 at-bats this season.
“We also don’t want to heap too much on their shoulders,” Yost said, “so it’s a balancing act.”
Maybe that’s why the Royals have been slow to gut their roster in favor of a complete rebuild, even if that appears to be coming. They’ve already traded utility outfielder Jon Jay to the Diamondbacks and star closer Kelvin Herrera to the Washington Nationals, getting five prospects in return, players the Royals hope will help restock a farm system that remains one of the worst in baseball.
More moves could be coming, too. The Royals are hopeful of trading third baseman Mike Moustakas, who signed a one-year deal when no longterm offers materialized last offseason. Versatile infielder Whit Merrifield could be worth a few solid prospects, and left-hander Danny Duffy and even Perez might be made available, though both have torpedoed their value with poor seasons.
The combination of an old roster and poor results has been made even worse by the fact the Royals are largely boring. They don’t hit an abundance of home runs. Their starting rotation includes the first two pitchers to 10 losses in the majors this season. There are no young stars yet worth watching.
As a result, the Royals are drawing an average of 20,283 fans to Kauffman Stadium, a drop of more than 7,000 from last season and more than 13,000 from their championship year.
Still, for all the gloom, the typically irascible Yost has taken a decidedly optimistic approach. He has been through these long and painful rebuilds and come out the other side.
“There’s a lot of things to look at that you’re happy with, even though the record is what it is,” he said. “There is progress that you’re going to see on the back end, in the light, just as we did in 2013 and 2014, when we turned the corner the last time.”