The Kansas City Royals have needed drastic changes for some time.
That became even more evident this season. The Royals had expected to contend, only to once again find themselves fighting to stay out of the AL Central basement. A need for change became even clearer once it was learned that ten members of the team were not vaccinated when they went to Toronto. Whit Merrifield, one of those ten, said that he would not be opposed to getting the vaccine if he went to a contender, undercutting the optimism of the front office. Naturally, when he and Andrew Benintendi were traded at the deadline, both players got the vaccine.
Changes are coming to Kansas City Royals
Finally, enough was enough. Dayton Moore was fired after 16 years with the team with JJ Piccolo taking over as president of baseball operations. Sherman also made it clear that more changes were coming when he stated that he was not only tired of losing but that he was tired of having one of the top picks in the draft year after year. That will not change with the same mindset.
Part of that will be to modernize their approach. Sherman said that the Royals will become more data driven going forward when it comes to their decisions. This change could mean that more changes will be coming to the player development side, even if Piccolo is staying on board.
Those changes could be coming to the bench as well. The Royals’ pitching staff has been a disaster while far too much playing time has been given to underperforming veterans. Both manager Mike Matheny and pitching coach Cal Eldred, at minimum, could find themselves on the unemployment line shortly after the season ends, if not before.
The changes should not stop there. Sherman needs to do his part as well. While the Royals have an intriguing core with Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino, MJ Melendez, Salvador Perez, and Brady Singer, they need more major league caliber talent. Bargain bin free agents and hoping that Kris Bubic and Jackson Kowar can suddenly become useful or that Adalberto Mondesi will be healthy will not lead to a winning franchise.
Firing Dayton Moore is only the first step for the Kansas City Royals. If they are serious about wanting to win, a lot more needs to change.