Why not give Jirschele a playoff caliber roster?

Johnny Giavotella hit .338 with 9 HR and 72 RBIs
in 110 games for Omaha this season.
(File photo: Brad Williams Photography)

The Omaha Storm Chasers are poised to make the playoffs for the first time since 1999 – the team’s second year in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). 

They currently lead the PCL American North Division by five games with 17 games remaining in the regular season. And of those remaining 17 games, 12 are against NL affiliates (Omaha is 61-38 against those teams) and just five are against American League affiliates (Omaha is 10-17 against those teams).

But the truth is, with the latest round of call ups that included Salvador Perez and Johnny Giavotella, the Chasers lineup is extremely thin with guys like Lance Zawadzki (.242 average), Joaquin Arias (.212 average) and Kurt Mertins (.242 average) seeing so much playing time. Yamaico Navarro (.196 avearge) is not exactly tearing up the PCL either.

Suppan pitching in Omaha because he still loves the game

Jeff Suppan is 9-5 with a 4.60 ERA in 20

appearances (19 starts) for Omaha this season

(File photo: Gage Matthews / Kings of Kauffman)

Jeff Suppan’s performance Friday night at Werner Park is exactly what you would expect from him. He didn’t have his best stuff, but he pitched to contact, tweaked his game plan, gave up a lot of hits, and still found a way to keep the Storm Chasers in the game long enough for their offense to kick in.

Suppan picked up his ninth win of the season, which ties him for second in the PCL, while at no point looking to be in control of the game.

“To me, that’s what pitching is all about,” Suppan said after the game. “Knowing what’s working, knowing what’s not. Changing speeds, trying to work as fast as we can. It’s one of those days where my fastball really wasn’t how I like it to be – down in the zone. Getting on top of the ball, getting underneath it and the cutter a lot, so I was having to change speeds in different ways.

Gene Watson talks about the scouting process

Gene Watson, coordinator – professional scouting for the Kansas City Royals, was Mark Nasser’s pre-game show guest tonight. They had an interesting exchange about the process a scout goes through in evaluating talent.

Talk about evaluating players. I’m always fascinated by this for scouts because you might be in one place one day where a guy might either have a great game or a lousy game and you have to make evaluations based on just one game. That’s almost an impossible task.

You’ve really got to start with track record, statistical performance, what their draft status is, and then you begin to dig on the make up with your area scouts, finding out what kind of kids they were in high school, any people you might know in the other organization and really, you try to piece it all together and put it into one big melting pot and ultimately make your decision on the player.

Dayton Moore, the general manager, may call you at any second and say, “Geno, Player A. Yes or No?” That’s a lot of pressure.

That’s really the funnest part of the job and what you really have to do is, once you see a player, like a player, you’ve got to stay on track with him. How’s he doing? What’s his last month been? Six months? Year? Is he healthy? Is he taking care of his business off the field? What kind of teammate is he? That’s really, really the fun part of the job. I’ve learned the hard way sometimes, you better have an answer right away and you better be convicted of that answer.

Hosmer gets the call to Kansas City

The videogame-esque numbers that Eric Hosmer has put up this season were just too much for Dayton Moore to overlook. So he called Hosmer up to the big leagues yesterday and sent Kila Ka’aihue to Omaha.

Hosmer hit .439 with a .525 OBP in 26 games for Omaha. As crazy as those numbers are, the big left-handed hitter was even better against lefties (.500/.568/.813) in Omaha than righties (.409/.506/.470). He consistently drove the ball back up the middle for base hits. And the only question at this point has been his power (3 HR against lefties/0 HR against righties), but the theory is, his power will increase as he gets older.

Ned Yost says Hosmer will go into the lineup in Kansas City immediately.

Historic night at Werner Park ends with a Storm Chaser victory

George Brett, Bob Gibson and Jeff Suppan chat in the
Storm Chasers' dugout before the game.

The Omaha Storm Chasers got a strong effort from their starting pitcher Danny Duffy and got just enough offense to win their inaugural game at Werner Park 2-1 against Nashville in front of 6,533 fans.

Duffy was on a strict pitch count limit (he threw 76 pitches), so he had to be removed one out shy of qualifying for the win (he pitched 4.2 innings). His final line was impressive though: 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB and 7 Ks.

Everett Teaford, Luis Mendoza, Blaine Hardy, Jesse Chavez and Luis Coleman combined to only allow one earned run over the final 4.1 innings. Chavez got the win. Coleman picked up the save.

Storm Chasers' roster coming together

Mike Moustakas in action last season
(Photo: Omaha Storm Chasers)

Mark Nasser hosted the annual Omaha Storm Chasers’ Preview Show yesterday on KOIL-1180 AM. He spoke with Dayton Moore, Mike Jirschele, Martie Cordaro, Alex Gordon, Tim Collins and J.J. Picollo about the upcoming season and the minor league farm system.

The Royals announced that several players were assigned to minor league camp, including pitchers Louis Coleman, Luis Mendoza and Zack Miner; and infielders Lance Zawadzki and Irving Falu. All but Miner will probably begin the season with Omaha. Miner is recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Right-handed pitcher Vin Mazzaro, who is expected to be the number five starter for Kansas City, was optioned to Omaha because the Royals won’t need a fifth starter until April 16.

Kansas City fires Trey Hillman

Photo: Keith Allison

The roar from Kansas City has been getting louder over the past week.

“Trey Hillman must go.”

Those who wanted to see it happen got their wish Thursday afternoon after the Royals defeated the Cleveland Indians 6-4 when Kansas City general manager Dayton Moore announced that Hillman had been fired and was being replaced by Ned Yost.

It’s only mid-May, and as has been the case in so many recent seasons, the 2010 campaign was already beginning to feel like a wash, given that the Royals are 12-23. The team was riding a seven game losing streak going into the game on Thursday against Cleveland. And the Royals recently completed a 3-8 road trip – that didn’t help Hillman’s cause.

At the press conference in which Moore announced the managerial change, he answered the why question.

“Just the overall – just the overall play of our team,” Moore said. “This last road trip obviously was incredibly disappointing. Nobody feels that worse than Trey. And the first couple of games here, back home – it just became evident that we probably needed to move forward and that’s what we decided to do.”

Some fans believe they saw signs of the team quitting on Hillman. Others questioned the way he used his players. And still others scratched their heads over the way he bucked traditional baseball wisdom while also seeming to shun the value of statistics.

In the end, it came down to wins and losses and there just weren’t enough wins.

At the press conference, Moore grew emotional when speaking about Hillman.

“I love Trey Hillman,” Moore said. “I really do. I love him as a – ”

Moore couldn’t finish the sentence without dropping his head slightly and pausing for 27 seconds while attempting to regain his composure.

After Moore’s comments, Hillman chose to address the media – even going so far as to field questions about the game first and then sticking around to answer all of the media’s questions about his firing.

Hillman thanked nearly everybody affiliated with the organization – including the PR staff, the grounds crew, the promotions staff, and the alumni – saying he understands how hungry the community is to see the Royals win and that sometimes difficult decisions need to be made.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a classier exit in all my years of watching sports – especially from a guy who has been asked to leave.

The thing about being a fan of this game is that it is easy to get caught up in the numbers while forgetting that there are people – good people – who are doing everything they know to do turn those numbers in our favor. Some of the things Dayton Moore said to me last week when I interviewed him in Omaha reminded me of that. Hillman drove the point home again today.

I know that some have mocked Moore’s comments from the interview I did with him when he answered my question about what he meant when he said he wanted to surround himself with people who have a critical eye and not a critical spirit. I found that ironic.

Some even perceived his comments as a swipe at fans, and to some degree I understand why they might think that. Last season, the relationship between Moore and the fans became contentious for several reasons and I think fans had a right to feel slighted. But I think he learned from that. The guy I spoke to last week couldn’t have been more humble.

In reality, Moore wasn’t talking about fans when he answered my question. However, I do think his distinction between a critical eye and a critical spirit probably could apply to and benefit all relationships. Instead he was talking about the need to surround himself with staff who are willing to say what needs to be said for the betterment of the team.

Presumably, that included Trey Hillman. Judging by Moore’s reaction this afternoon at the press conference, I feel safe in making that presumption.

That type of relationship works both ways. And over the past 24 hours, Moore said the hard thing that needed to be said to Hillman. And it did need to be said.

Ultimately though, both men exhibited civility, sportsmanship and common human decency when dealing with one another. And while none of those characteristics guarantee a winning record, I wouldn’t want to be a fan of an organization that wins without those characteristics.

Q & A with general manager Dayton Moore

Kansas City Royals general manager Dayton Moore is in Omaha to watch the Triple-A team play. He answered questions from the press yesterday about Alex Gordon being optioned to Omaha. Then he spoke briefly about the current state of the Royals and the organization’s minor league affiliates.

The first question (and subsequent answer) you see here was asked by another reporter. The rest of the questions and answers were a continuation of the conversation I had with Moore one-on-one in the Omaha Royals dugout on Tuesday afternoon.

Is the organization making a turn around?

Our team is better and our organization is better. You know, three years ago, we had no left-hand pitching prospects in our system. We didn’t have one catching prospect in our system. We have very little speed at all in the organization and as you know, our ballpark demands that if we’re going to be successful, we need speed and athleticism out there. All those components are put in place right now on the minor league level, and it takes time. It’s a process that you go through to get your organization turned around to be successful.

When Terry Ryan took over for the Minnesota Twins in ‘94, they already had a built farm system and six straight years [they had] 87-97 loses and in year seven they were .500. In year eight, they went to the playoffs and won their division, and they already had a farm system that was built. So, not making excuses, [it’s] just the way it is. That’s the way it works in baseball.

We’re never comfortable and satisfied with where we are, but we know we’re better.

Seven of the nine guys in the lineup for Omaha a couple of nights ago are former Northwest Arkansas Naturals. That’s different from what we’ve seen in the past here in Omaha.

That’s a good sign. Last year, our Northwest Arkansas team was comprised of home grown talent. This year it’s the same and hopefully that’s a sign that we’re doing things the right way. That’s not to say that there won’t be gaps from time to time, because there will, but you want the nucleolus of your ballclub to be homegrown players.

And having them come up through the system together – that’s a good thing, right?

Yeah, it is. It is. That’s a good point. You want them to win and play together.

You’ve certainly faced your share of criticism over the past season or two. In your first year, I heard you talk about needing to surround yourself with people who have a critical eye and not a critical spirit. First, explain the difference. Second, tell me what that looks like.

I appreciate you bringing that up. The people who work with me closely are all very outspoken and my management style encourages them to speak their mind.

People with a critical eye – you know that whatever criticism or opinion that they have, you know it’s for the best of the Kansas City Royals; not what’s best for me or them. It’s what’s best for the Kansas City Royals.

People who look at you with a critical spirit – they want you to fail.

They are rooting for it, in a way.

Yeah, they want you to fail.

I want to be the type of person who looks at things with a critical eye and not a critical spirit.

With what we’re doing in Kansas City – we knew what the challenges were going to be – I remind all our people when they come here or to stay here when we’ve extended them to be a part of the organization, this is the toughest challenge in all of sports in my opinion.

Where the Royals were, what we’re trying to do, and the economic conditions of baseball and the challenges – again it’s an eight to ten year deal to try to get this thing turned around. If everything goes perfect, it’s eight to ten years because, you take a guy like [Eric] Hosmer in the draft – it’s three to four years before they get to the major leagues and then it’s another three to four years before they become a good major league player to help your team win.

We’re not perfect people, but the group we have are passionate about getting this thing right in Kansas City.

The year [2006] the Royals took Luke Hochevar in the draft, a guy like Tim Lincecum gets passed up by nine teams and Evan Longoria was passed over by Kansas City and several other teams too. Talk to me about the hit and miss factor of the draft. But also talk about dealing with the signability factor.

Our first draft was 2007. You can look back on the same situation in that draft. [Jason] Heyward is a guy we passed on. [Matt] Wieters and [Rick] Porcello were two guys we couldn’t afford. Our budget was $6.5 million that year. Porcello signed for $7.2 million. Wieters was asking for $10 million and he signed for $6 million. We couldn’t afford them. That’s just the way it is – that’s the structure we’re under. But Heyward signed for $2 million or $2.1 or something like that. We gave [Mike] Moustakas $4 million. But that’s the nature of the draft. Moustakas is going to be a good player.

That’s why you’ve got to stay aggressive. You can’t back off. You just stay aggressive and it’ll work out. We had a good draft in ’08. We had another good draft in ’09. And we expect to have a good draft here in 2010. Internationally we’re being more aggressive. We’re doing some good things. It’s costing us more money than we’d like because of the nature of the bonuses. It only goes so far, but we’re getting our share.

Talk to me about how you view your role as the general manager of the Royals. There is a segment of the fanbase that is quite passionate about the Royals but some of them have grown skeptical in recent years.

I’m very passionate about the Kansas City Royals. They were my boyhood team. I’m very passionate about baseball. I care deeply the people who work with us. I care deeply about the players who commit to be a part of this organization because it’s all about the players at the end of the day.

I’m concerned about the impression that people have about the Kansas City Royals. I want every young boy and every young girl to grow up loving the Kansas City Royals. There is a generation of people who saw nothing but winning and now there’s a generation of people who have seen nothing but losing.

For the baseball family – or that dad or that grandfather who grew up loving the Royals and seeing them perform in all their glory days to now have a grandchild or a son or a great grandson, in some cases, who have never seen the Royals win and they root for the Phillies and they root for the Red Sox and they root for the Yankees because those are the teams that win, or they root for the Braves because those are the teams that have won, it’s got to be in a way – it’s probably not heartbreaking – I probably take it a little more serious than it actually is, but there’s some disappointment.

It’d be no different than, you know – we’re in Nebraska and [having] a family [who loves] the Nebraska Cornhuskers and suddenly somebody’s rooting for KU.