Royals Rundown: A Kansas City Royals Podcast

Bobby Witt Jr. is an AL MVP finalist, and the Kansas City Royals have two other Silver Slugger finalists in Carter Jensen and Jac Caglianone, which is a pretty good problem to have in November. Jacob Milham and Jeremy Greco look at what helps and hurts Witt’s case, and argue about how the outfield and utility finalists got picked in the first place. The winter work starts with a new hitting coach, a former Giants hand with Kansas City-area ties. Then Jeremy and Jacob shop the free-agent market using FanGraphs’ crowdsourced contract estimates, weighing starters and relievers like Kris Bubic and Shane Bieber against contract length, injury risk, and qualifying offers. The question is where the Royals can find value without overpaying. Down on the farm, Angeibel Gomez, Zion Rose, and Justin Lamkin are headed to the Arizona Fall League’s Fall Stars Game, and the hosts break down what stands out about each. They also run through the minor-league free agents walking out the door, including Alec Marsh landing with the White Sox, and who might be worth adding as depth. If you want a full lap around the Royals’ offseason in one sitting, press play, then tell us who you would sign first. Need your Royals fix? Head to royalsreview.com for news, analysis, and to engage with Royals fans around the world! Follow us online: BlueSky – Jeremy Greco: @hokius.fromthehawkseye.com – Jacob Milham: @jacobmilhkc.bsky.social Twitter / X – Podcast: @RoyalRundownPod Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Eleven players with real cases, five spots on the ballot, and one Gold Glove result that still does not make sense. Jacob Milham and Jeremy Greco fill out their Royals Hall of Fame ballots on air, and they do not agree. Jacob goes with Greg Holland, Kelvin Herrera, and Wade Davis alongside Carlos Beltran and Lorenzo Cain. Jeremy takes Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, Cain, Davis, and Zack Greinke, and says he might still change his mind. Voting is open through Monday, Nov. 16 at midnight. The ballot is crowded because the 2014 and 2015 teams were that good, and Jeremy argues a team hall of fame should weigh two things: the numbers and what a player meant to the club. By that second test, almost everyone from those teams qualifies. They also get into what happens when the ballot thins out, and why Jarrod Dyson’s case worries Jeremy. Then comes the shortstop Gold Glove. Bobby Witt Jr. led baseball in outs above average and still lost to Taylor Walls, and Jacob walks through the defensive runs saved gap that may explain it. Jeremy has his own theory, and admits he is biased. The rest of the winter is on the table too: Japanese free agents racing a Dec. 1 signing deadline, a coming lockout, Rob Manfred’s salary cap comments, and Jeremy’s case that one mistake should not cost a manager his job. Both land on the same conclusion about Matt Quatraro. If you have a ballot opinion you are itching to defend, press play, then tell us who gets your five. Need your Royals fix? Head to royalsreview.com for news, analysis, and to engage with Royals fans around the world! Follow us online: BlueSky – Jeremy Greco: @hokius.fromthehawkseye.com – Jacob Milham: @jacobmilhkc.bsky.social Twitter / X – Podcast: @RoyalRundownPod Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Milwaukee Brewers are World Series champions, the first title in franchise history, which means the Royals now get to spend the winter wondering how Milwaukee keeps doing this. Jacob Milham and Jeremy Greco send the season off with William Contreras as World Series MVP and a bullpen-management debate that deserves a longer argument than it got. Then they turn to the Royals, and Jeremy brings the homework. Part Three of “Playing Picollo” is their full offseason roster build: a trade, free-agent signings like Taylor Ward, and the 40-man roster cuts that make it all fit. Jacob gets to be the skeptic, and the Royals’ new ballpark fan survey gets the same treatment, answered line by line, from concessions to the Crown Center ballpark district. There is also a 17-year-old in the Arizona Fall League who is moving faster than anyone expected, plus a defense of baseball on the radio after a former team executive said the sport does not need it. Both hosts disagree, loudly. If you want to know how the Royals’ winter could play out, and whether the ballpark survey deserves your honest answers, press play, then tell us what you would put on your own roster. Need your Royals fix? Head to royalsreview.com for news, analysis, and to engage with Royals fans around the world! Follow us online: BlueSky – Jeremy Greco: @hokius.fromthehawkseye.com – Jacob Milham: @jacobmilhkc.bsky.social Twitter / X – Podcast: @RoyalRundownPod Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Every cut is a small verdict on last season. The Royals just handed out several, and Jacob Milham and Jeremy Greco go through who is gone and why: Alex Lange, Mason Black, Connor Seabold, Alec Marsh, and Easton McGee. Jeremy looks back at the bullpen problems that made some of these decisions feel inevitable. Jacob digs into how the Royals evaluate players, what each of these arms did and did not show, and where they might land next. The harder question is the trade-off: when does letting go of familiar faces open the door to something better, and when is it a gamble on fresh talent that nobody has proven yet? If you want to know what the Royals are really planning for the next roster, start with who they decided not to keep. Press play, then tell us which cut surprised you most. Need your Royals fix? Head to royalsreview.com for news, analysis, and to engage with Royals fans around the world! Follow us online: BlueSky – Jeremy Greco: @hokius.fromthehawkseye.com – Jacob Milham: @jacobmilhkc.bsky.social Twitter / X – Podcast: @RoyalRundownPod Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Somewhere in the Kansas City Royals’ offseason plan, there should be a line that says “move first.” Jacob Milham and Jeremy Greco make the case that the teams who win the winter are the ones willing to take the swing, and that a looming lockout is about to shrink the window for everyone else. The timing is the hook. Free agents may rush to sign before any CBA shutdown, and trades could keep moving even if a lockout hits. Then an Orioles owner accidentally revealed how profitable MLB really is, which raises a fair question about payroll excuses and how fans should think about ownership. The Rays and Brewers show what that looks like in practice, building contenders through trades and accepting that a few moves will miss. Jeremy and Jacob revisit the outcomes from their trade series and see how the Baseball Trade Values model graded them. They also fill out ballots for the first-ever Athlete1 awards, from executive of the year to rookie of the year, with breakout seasons from Pete Crow-Armstrong, Mason Miller, and Kevin McGonigle in the mix. The Arizona Fall League gets the last word, with Angeibel Gomez, Zion Rose, and Justin Lamkin all pushing for a faster path to Kansas City. If you want to know why the winter may start earlier than you think, press play, then tell us which trade you would make first. Need your Royals fix? Head to royalsreview.com for news, analysis, and to engage with Royals fans around the world! Follow us online: BlueSky – Jeremy Greco: @hokius.fromthehawkseye.com – Jacob Milham: @jacobmilhkc.bsky.social Twitter / X – Podcast: @RoyalRundownPod Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.