Games » Chicago White Sox
Sep23When it all comes together
Lee Judge
The Kansas City Star
Last night was Frank White’s last broadcast of the 2011 season. I’ve learned a lot of baseball by listening to Frank and I’m sorry to see him finish up the year. As the game was winding up, he said something that Royals fans might want to take to heart: this is what it looks like when it all comes together.
The Royals are 13-7 during September. Yeah, some of their opponents appear to be mailing it in, but the Royals could do the same and haven’t. The last five games against the White Sox the Royals have 79 hits and in the last 11 games the pitchers have put up a 2.30 ERA. (That comes from Ryan Lefebvre, so it must be true — as long as I wrote it down correctly.)
Anyway, Frank’s point is that when the Royals get pitching, this is how good this team can look. They’ve hit the ball well all season, they’ve gone from being the worst defense in the league to having five legitimate Gold Glove candidates on the field and they’ve improved immensely on the base paths. Give them some pitching and this is what it looks like when it all comes together.
Game notes
Jeff Francoeur got his 20th home run to go along with his 20 steals. Frenchy said he wanted to make it to the 20-20 mark and hit .280. Now that he’s got 20 dingers, it makes hitting .280 more likely. (He won’t be over-swinging — maybe.)
Jeff had another accomplishment: after letting him hit me in the arm to see how hard those walk-off win punches really are, I now have a fist-shaped bruise on my right bicep. (Gee, maybe he’ll sign it!) Don’t tell him, I’ve been pretending that it really didn’t hurt and he’s got no punching power.
Eric Hosmer said that after that walk-off double the other night, he thought Frenchy was running up to hug him. Instead Jeff smoked him with a punch to the midsection. That’s why you saw Hos cracking up as he lay on the ground.
Doug Sisson told me they were going to run on Juan Pierre’s arm any chance they got, and they got it in the 8th inning. Melky Cabrera walked and Billy Butler doubled down into the left field corner. Melky scored from first without a throw. Keep watching for them to challenge Pierre’s arm.
Everett Teaford told me how he planned to pitch against the White Sox Saturday night. He then asked me not to reveal too much of the game plan. I told him I didn’t think Paul Konerko was one of my readers, but you’re still going to have to wait for the game to be over before I can talk about what he told me.
Apparently, A.J. Pierzynski doesn’t throw all that well (which seems fair, he’s killed the Royals at the plate). Don’t be surprised if the Royals are running a lot during this series. On the other hand, if the Sox do what they have to in order to shut the base stealers down, don’t be surprised if they have some pretty good at-bats. (When a pitcher uses a slide step, watch to see if the pitch is up in the zone.)
Either way, the running game will have an effect. As Doug Sisson told me, the point is not to steal bases, the point is to win games. If stealing bases helps you win a game, great. If the threat of stealing bases helps you win a game, that works, too.
The Royals didn’t steal a base in this game, but being up by seven after four innings may have had something to do with it.
Almost forgot: Sisson said that Chicago wets down the base paths in order to slow down the Royals running game, so that may factor in also.
Alex Gordon got sick with the flu, so Lorenzo Cain got a shot in center field. (Dude is fast, as he demonstrated scoring on Billy Butler’s sac fly.) Melky shifted to left, which wasn’t that big of a surprise: I’ve been told Cabrera does not have true center field range (I have no idea if that’s true) and is more suited to a corner.
They were playing Paul Konerko to pull in the outfield. There’s a gap between Frenchy and the right field line and I’m sure the Royals wouldn’t mind Konerko taking advantage of it. At least he wouldn’t be going over the shift into the cheap seats like he did in the 7th inning.
Do I need to tell you Bruce Chen pitched great?
Oh, %$#*!
A few games back Mitch Maier had a great slide at home plate and got around a tag when it looked like he was going to be out. I asked if Gordo had been doing his job. Alex was the on-deck hitter and he was supposed to signal whether Mitch needed to slide and, if he needed to slide, to which side of the plate.
Mitch said Alex did his job, but then added that the on-deck hitter also lets the runner know how close the play is going to be by how panicked he looks. I asked Mitch what Gordon’s demeanor made him think. His answer? “Oh, %$#*!” That’s how Mitch knew he was going to need a great slide to be safe.
What struggle?
Mike Moustakas and I were sitting on the Royals bench, staring out at the field last Wednesday afternoon, shooting the breeze. I mentioned what he had gone through after coming up to the big leagues and Moose corrected me. He said that people who talk about his slump don’t know what it’s like in the minors.
Slump or no slump, Mike was in the big leagues and that was his dream. He gestured to the field and said, “I’d play here every day for the next 10 years and be happy.” And he meant every day. Moose just thinks there’s nothing better than being a big league ballplayer and a slump is a small price to pay for being in the majors. Earlier, he told me he wanted to play baseball so bad he would’ve signed for a bus ticket and a Pepsi.
“Should I mention that to Dayton?”
He started laughing and said, “Go ahead, I already cashed the check.” So when you watch these guys on TV and think it looks like they’re having fun, you’re right: according to Mike Moustakas, there are no bad days in the big leagues.
(Or bad nights: Moose had a four-hit game.)
Baseball humor
Last Sunday, about two hours before game time, Luke Hochevar yelled across the clubhouse, “Hey, Billy, what time is the game today?”
Billy, falling for the gag, answered, “1:10.” That sent Hoch and several other pitchers into fits of laughter. The point was this: Billy was completely dressed for the game about an hour earlier than anybody else. Of course Luke knows what time the game started, it was his way of giving Billy a hard time about being dressed so early. My son Paul watched the scene and cracked up. “That’s why I love ballplayers, they’re all such smart asses.” Paul’s right, baseball humor is based on putdowns and jabs that you better be prepared to answer.
One day I was talking to Chris Getz and Billy yelled, “Hey, Lee, why don’t you come over and talk to a starter?” Getz responded that Billy was not a starter, he was a DH, at best, half a starter. Billy said the Getzie’s main job now seemed to be blocking the dugout steps, getting in the way of people who actually went out on the field. Chris responded that anyone who could swing the bat four times and call it a night was stealing money. This stuff is constant and part of what makes hanging with baseball players so enjoyable, but you better be prepared to defend yourself.
Which gets me to a recent email I received from someone in the sabermetric community that complained about my attitude. My attitude is this: I’ve said it about 99 times and I’ll make it an even hundred — numbers are fine, but they don’t tell you everything. A great deal happens in the game that numbers don’t reveal.
And if I can say that Jason Kendall looks like the head of meth lab security or Chris Getz will be a better ballplayer once he reaches puberty or Jeff Francoeur has the same personality as a dog (think about it, if you took Jeff for a drive he’d want to hang his head out the window) or Mitch Maier would probably be a leg-breaker for a Detroit loan shark if he wasn’t playing baseball, I’ll probably crack jokes about people in the sabermetric community.
It’s baseball humor.
(And feel free to ridicule me, nobody is more deserving.)
Seitzer’s stats
Once again, Kevin Seitzer supplied me with the hitting statistics he keeps. These aren’t the final numbers (obviously), but it gives you an idea of where people are going to end up.
Quality plate appearances includes hits, walks, hard hit outs and 8+ pitch at-bats. Anything over .400 is considered excellent and here are the guys who achieved that.
Perez .457
Butler .452
Gordon .437
Maier .433
Hosmer .424
Navarro .423
Cabrera .422
Francoeur .407
Team .406
Situational hitting includes moving the runner over from second with 0 outs, driving a runner in from third with less than 2 outs, sacrifice bunts and hit and runs. Succeeding in those situations over 70% of the time is considered excellent. Here are the team leaders.
Getz .767
Hosmer .742
Gordon .721
Team .658
By the way
Fortunately for me, I generate a lot more material than I can use on the website. So for the last few games, I’ll probably post some of that extra material. Some of it was written weeks ago, but I guess it’s better late than never.
Royals catcher Brayan Pena on communicating with the pitcher
Royals catcher Brayan Pena shows The Star's Lee Judge how he communicates with the pitcher during a game. 9/22/11 (Video by John Sleezer/The Kansas City Star)
Chen
Escobar
Perez
When he game first started I was concerned. It appeared that the ump was going to squeeze Chen. Chen needs those edge pitches to be effective. Chen handled it well and as the game progressed the strike zone opened up a bit. I find I do not watch the little details as much when we have a slug fest like tonight. Just set back and enjoyed it.
some people are concerned that this is just another September that gets our hopes up. However we are playing .500 ball since July 19th. This is not just a one month wonder. Ned has said he has not had to motivate these guys this month to play hard. Ozzie has tried to motivate the Sox. I believe it has to be the players that motivate themselves in the long haul. Manager can probably give a rah rah speech and get results for one game. Could see early on this year these guys are different. In years past it was obvious that once the team got behind they would mail it in and try to make their dinner date rather than try to win. Used to be the 8th and 9th were 6 fly outs. With this team it can be bottom of the 9th, 2 outs and they are still convinced they can win.
Lee - how about the idea of considering Cain or Melky for 2B? I know that Getz is one of the players you most admire, so I don't want to make you defensive, but as I look at our lineup, Gio seems to be the only one still struggling, Melky seems like a great player for us including the chemistry, so if Cain truly does turn out to be a great player, could either he or Melky play a good 2B (which would not take the utility spot away from Chris)?
Larry: Good noticing. When Bruce went 3-0 on the first batter and at least two of the pitches looked like they could be called strikes, I thought he might be in for a tough night, also.
As I've pointed out before (since it was pointed out to me), Bruce needs to get the corners. An umpire that forces him into the middle of the zone will get Bruce whacked.
But Chen figured it out and had a fantastic start.
Larry: Hey, two guys named Larry that look exactly alike...what are the odds?
Anyway, Frenchy made the point last night that the Royals have been doing it mainly against legitimate big league pitchers, not September call-ups.
And I agree about team chemistry: managers set the tone, but after that it's the players. The Royals are a happy team. Happy teams play hard, they don't get down and start bitching.
Before I ran teams, I thought team chemistry was BS used by losers to explain losing. I no longer think that. Team attitude plays out on the field: teams in a good frame of mind are always looking for something good to happen. The other kind of team is always on the lookout for something negative.
When professionals analyze players, they'll often throw in a line like, "He's good in the clubhouse."
They know how much difference attitude can make over a long season.
Steve: Just where the hell do you get off suggesting I'm the kind of person who gets defensive?!
(I now refer you to the section on baseball humor.)
But you're right, I'm a big Chris Getz fan. Two things: Giavotella has shown a lot of ability at the plate, but it hasn't translated into a high average...yet. Keep in mind how long Gordon, Moustakas and Escobar had to struggle before figuring some things out. I wouldn't write off Johnny just yet.
The second thing is shifting to the infield after a career in the outfield isn't impossible, but it's damn hard.
Things happen in fractions of seconds and you need years of practice to react correctly. Look at how much Aviles struggled going from short to second or how much work Getz is having to put in going from second to to short.
It's just not that easy and it seems doubtful that Cain or Cabrera could do it without a lot scuffling if they could do it at all.
Should Gio continue to strugle offensively and the rest of the lineup continue to develop, that might put Chris back in the picture at second.
If everyone around you is providing offense, they need less from you. The Royals might be able to live with a guy who hits .250 without power, but does everything else well.
(By the way, nobody has said that to me, so my speculation about Getz is just that: speculation.)
Great column Lee. One of the things I will really miss after the season is reading this blog every day. Besides just learning a lot, it provides a lot of fun and genuine humor. Having played a lot of sports over the years (albeit poorly), I appreciate the chance to get the "clubhouse" feel again.
Lee
You are absolutely right. These guys could have rolled over and mailed it in the second half of the season and haven't. And so what if the other teams seem to have given up? The Royals really struggled against teams with losing records this year and the experience the young guys are getting is just paving the way to big things down the road.
Devan
P.S. I've been out of town and missed a couple of your articles earlier this week, so I apologize if you're covered this. What do you think Eric's chances of winning the AL ROY award are?
I would love to see Chen come back next year. Because of the type of pitcher he is, I expect him to get better with age and not fade. Hope something can be worked out. I think he can add a lot of stability to the rotation and leadership for the young guns.
Lee, it is always a pleasure to read what you have! This has truly been a fun year and the future is great! It is nice truly going into an offseason and KNOW we have a legit chance to contend. BTW- As much as you are going to miss Frank on broadcast, I'm going to miss your column when the season ends! GO ROYALS!
Joel: Thanks, I'm glad you've enjoyed the site and your particpation has added a lot.
When I started it, my first goal was to bring the conversations players have in the clubhouse and dugout to fans. I'd been lucky enough to be in on some of those and I thought true baseball fans would love to hear how the players and coaches think about the game.
I also wanted to bring some of the humor these guys use to express themselves. Baseball is one of the few sports where you see competitors laughing together during a game.
And I'll be interested to see what happens with Bruce. He's been called the Jeff Francoeur of the pitching staff: someone who mentors the younger pitchers and helps them along.
Sometimes what a player brings to the table is also reflected in someone else's numbers, not just their own.
Devan: No, I haven't covered Hosmer's Rookie of the Year chances, but I don't know that my opinion is worth much.
I pretty much exclusively cover the Royals and I'm only dimly aware of what other players and teams are doing.
Guys who should know, think it will probably go to someone else for two reasons: Hosmer didn't play all season so his totals won't be as impressive and Hos is not playing for a contender, some other ROY candidates are.
Last night, Frank White said if some of these teams drop out of contention, maybe the focus will shift to Hosmer.
I hope so. Tim Bogar called Eric the most exciting young player he'd seen in the American League in the last 7 or 8 years.
Plus Hos is a very nice guy.
Jeff: Glad you enjoyed my efforts...and I'm also looking forward to 2012.
"The second thing is shifting to the infield after a career in the outfield isn't impossible, but it's damn hard."
I think I originated the idea, so blame me. It began as a gentle dig against the "offense first" folks willing to accept Dan Uggla's fielding in exchange for his bat, so I took it to the logical extreme, but do think it makes some sense, figure out a way to keep Melky on the field and add Cain, a superior defender in CF. Melky's athletic, quick, and has good reflexes. My second choice was to convert Clint Robinson to 2B:)
As for Giavotella, I'm not as close as you are but what I'm seeing is slider bat speed and being overmatched by major-league fastballs at this point. Three of his doubles I saw were ground balls down the first base line, fastballs he couldn't get around on, and his homer and one of his doubles were on hanging breaking pitches. I think the rest of the league has noticed that, so we'll see how it plays out, but I'ld bet he sees a lot of fastballs down and away.
"Last night, Frank White said if some of these teams drop out of contention, maybe the focus will shift to Hosmer."
With his recent surge, I think Hosmer wins it. He may the best known current Royal nationwide and he has produced an incredible rookie season in all phases of the game.
Jim: I don't know enough about Giavotella's struggles to know the source. Seitzer told me Johnny's short arms were an advantage and pitchers had a hard time getting inside on him.
He also said Gio was quick and short to the ball and saw Johnny going down the right field line as evidence of him hitting the ball where it's pitched, but Gio's clearly scuffling at this point and I haven't talked to Kevin about him in a while, so maybe something's changed.
I'm just going on what I've seen, so may be jumping to conclusions. Bad habit of mine.
Well he just drove a changeup to the wall in left, so you might be right.
Jim: I'm trying to be very careful to say I don't know when I don't know and be clear when I'm speculating.
You may have spotted something I missed.
Interestingly, to me anyway, Melky's ultimate zone rating is better in center field than either corner. But the numbers show his range as merely adequate. If he hits like he did this season, he is very much an asset in center field and would be an above average corner outfielder. If his bat slips to his career norms, that is when there would be trouble.
It seems a no-brainer to exercize our right to arbitration on Melky this winter. He's had a 3.7 WAR season so far, which matches what my eyes have seen - he's been solid, makes every routine play and a fair few excellent plays without eye popping range. And he has had a career year at the plate, all the more notable since offense is down in general.
But as for the team as a whole, I am very leery of analysis about stretches of a season. This is a team about to finish 20 games below .500 again. And sure, if you take out the six weeks where they were just absymal, then their season looks a whole lot better. But those games counted, too. And eighteen weeks of pretty good and six weeks of terrible still add up to fourth place in a mediocre division. I see us headed in the right direction. I also see us as roughly the fourth most likely team to win the AL Central next year.
Curtis: Once I was told that UZR does not account for where the player was standing when the play started, it didn't seem like a very useful stat.
But if the numbers say Melky has merely adequate range, then that corresponds to what I was told about him as a centerfielder.
Doug Sisson thinks Melky has improved that range by better positioning and jumps as the season has progressed.
And, as always, you have to look at what a player does on both sides of the ball and Melky's 2011 offense has been very good.
As for the Royals in 2012: I can see that they're a better team than they were last season. Better at the plate, on the base paths and especially on defense, but of course that leaves out pitching, the most important element.
I try not to get into the predicting business. I have no idea what other teams are doing and how the Royals will compare in 2012.
And you're right: the media's tendency to pick out stretches of performances to make a certain point and ignore the season as a whole when it suits their purpose, can be misleading.
"This is a team about to finish 20 games below .500 again."
I would respectfully disagree. The team that we've been fielding the last few months with Gio, Perez, Moose, and even Paulino, Duffy, and a healthy Master Chen is much different than the team which started the year. That gives some validity to weighting the later part of the year more heavily than the total year. In the infield only Escobar is an incumbent, the starting pitching has two new bodies even before the shutdown of Hoch, Francis, and Duffy. This isn't the same team, which highlights the weakness of using an aggregate statistic to judge an evolving situation. Start the year with Hosmer, Moose, and Perez and without Kyle Davies, Sean O'Sullivan, Kila, Betemit, and Aviles and things might have been better, as I expect them to be next year.
Jim: OK, now you're making a good point: this IS a much different team than started the season and I should've pointed that out in my last post.