Pop Quiz – It’s Time For Jose Guillen To:

A Quit baseball to tour the country providing Anger Management Seminars.
B Team up with Milton Bradley to lead a player-movement letting fans know how much they’re appreciated.
C Round up all the younger players in a rousing chorus of Cum-Ba-Ya.
D Go on the disabled list to rest his ailing groin, hip, knee, ego…

While playing hurt, he is not helping the team. He can’t: run out infield hits, take an extra base, run down bloops in the outfield, get into position to make a strong throw, show the fans how much he wants to win.

I kind of admire a player who will play dinged-up, but there comes a point where that begins hurting rather than helping the team. That time has come for Jose Guillen. Juan Gonzalez was just the opposite of Mr. Guillen, and for that I’m very glad to see Jose show the ability and drive to continue playing…

… but…

… It’s Time…

2008 Amateur Draft Update

OK, here are completely updated statistics for our 2008 draftees. This will be organized in order, from our highest to lowest signed pick in the amateur draft. Sorry no explanations or further background information are provided. I have provided some analysis and updates here. The Baseball America database has listed 29 players of 51 draft picks signed. Luckily, we have the vast majority of our first few draft picks signed. We have yet to sign #1 (Eric Hosmer), #4 (Tim Melville....although some BP sources have referenced that he has been signed), and #7 Jason Esposito. Last year, we signed 35 of 50 draft picks. I'd like to get at least 6 or 7 more draft picks signed. Obviously, it's imperative that the Glass/Moore administration follow through with our organizational direction and commit top dollar to Esposito, Melville, and/or Hosmer. Both Melville AND Hosmer have to sign in order for this draft to be a success, in my opinion.

Nonetheless, statistics are provided below.

1a. Mike Montgomery (AZL)
6 G, 4 GS, 1.65 ERA, 16.1 IP, 6 BB, 11 K, .189 BAA

2. Johnny Giavotella (Burlington, IA)
.299/.370/.422, 2 HR, 12 RBI, 147 AB, 37 G, 16 BB, 20 K, 8 SB: 5 CS

3. Tyler Sample (AZL)
6 G, 4 GS, 10.66 ERA, 12.2 IP, 20 BB, 19 K, .217 BAA

5. John Lamb (AZL)
Has not pitched. Broke his collarbone in a car accident in the spring. The organization wants to bring him along slowly. He is listed on the AZL roster but has not accumulated service time.

6. Alex Llanos (AZL)
.165/.226/.227, 16-for-97, 0 HR, 11 RBI, 5 SB: 2 CS, 6 BB, 23 K

8. Malcolm Culver (AZL)
1 GS/1 G, 2 IP, 1 H, .143 BAA, 0.00 ERA

9. JD Alfaro (Idaho Falls)
.259/.286/.464, 3 HR, 28 RBI, 29-for-112, 3 BB, 39 K, 4 SB: 0 CS

10. Mauricio Matos (AZL)
.241/.281/.276, 7-for-29, 1 BB, 4 K, 3 RBI, 0 HR, 0 SB: 1 CS

12. Allen Caldwell (Burlington, NC)
.195/.281/.333, 24-for-123, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 13 BB, 30 K, 1 SB: 2 CS

13. John Flanagan (Burlington, NC)
7 G, 3 GS, 0.74 ERA, 24.1 IP, 7 BB, 26 K, 0.99 WHIP

14. Chase Hentges (AZL)
7 G, 0 GS, 2.70 ERA, 10 IP, 1 BB, 6 K, 1.30 WHIP

15. Alberto Espinosa (Idaho Falls)
.160/.229/.210, 16-for-100, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 8 BB, 20 K, 1 SB: 1 CS

16. Derrick Saito (Idaho Falls)
9 G, 0 GS, 7.30 ERA, 12.1 IP, 12 BB, 19 K, 2.35 WHIP

17. Jacob Kuebler (AZL)
.240/288/.320, 18-for-75, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 4 BB, 7 K, 3 SB: 1 CS

18. Carlo Testa (Idaho Falls)
.188/.350/.313, 3-for-16, 1 RBI, 4 BB, 5 K, 1 SB: 0 CS (for Burlington, NC)
.200/.315/.333, 12-for-60, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 10 BB, 20 K, 2 SB: 1 CS

19. Miguel Moctezuma (Burlington, NC)
.200/.262/.309, 11-for-55, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 4 BB, 17 K, 0 SB: 0 CS

20. Shawn Griffin (Idaho Falls)
.282/.379/.419, 35-for-124, 2 HR, 14 RBI, 19 BB, 35 K, 3 SB: 4 CS

21. Jacob Theis (AZL)
1 G, 0 GS, 27.00 ERA, 0.1 IP, 0 BB, 0 K, 12.00 WHIP

22. Blaine Hardy (Idaho Falls)
10 G, 0 GS, 6.23 ERA, 17.1 IP, 7 BB, 13 K, 1.67 WHIP

23. Dale De Schepper (AZL)
Has not accumulated service time.

24. Jason Morales (Burlington, NC)
.208/.291/.312, 16-for-77, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 7 BB, 19 K, 1 SB: 1 CS

25. Carson Bryant (Burlington, NC)
8 G, 3 GS, 6.11 ERA, 17.2 IP, 4 BB, 19 K, 1.58 WHIP

26. Ryan Morgan (Idaho Falls)
7 G, 3 GS, 5.03 ERA, 19.2 IP, 13 BB, 20 K, 1.93 WHIP

27. Tim Huber (Idaho Falls)
3 G, 0 GS, 18.00 ERA, 3 IP, 2 BB, 4 K, 3.33 WHIP (in Burlington, NC)
3 G, 0 GS, 0.00 ERA, 6 IP, 3 BB, 5 K, 1.17 ERA (in Idaho Falls)

28. Greg Billo (AZL)
2 G, 1 GS, 1.2 IP, 10.80 ERA, 1 BB, 2 K, 1.20 WHIP

34. Brett Richardson (AZL)
9 G, 0 GS, 10.2 IP, 1.69 ERA, 2 BB, 5 K, .256 OPPBA

38. James Thompson (Idaho Falls)
11 G, 0 GS, 3.31 ERA, 16.1 IP, 7 BB, 20 K, 1.41 WHIP

40. Pernell Halliman (Burlington, NC)
7 G, 1 GS, 9.24 ERA, 12.2 IP, 8 BB, 9 K, 1.97 WHIP

47. Stephen Gilgenbach (Idaho Falls)
11 G, 0 GS, 13.86 ERA, 12.1 IP, 16 BB, 12 K, 3.00 WHIP

O NO

Hey catchy title or what ? Wait a second isn't that the name of that there* skater in the Salt Lake Olympics ? Apollo Ono ?

(Guess so I don't think it's Shaq)

Back to the subject at hand the Royals just got done getting swept by the Tigers and I want to draw a parallel from that series to the start of the 12 game losing streak. If you recall Boston's Jon Lester no hit KC in the startish~ of the streak and now we were almost no-no-ed by Armando.

But the good news is we weren't and therefore I look at no more then an 8 game losing streak at the most. O wait I'm getting something..................

Mitch Maier !!!!

Yes thank you !! YAHOOOoo !!!! As we all know a Mitch Maier stops any losing streak !! Even against the Rays, hey thats me. So just remember I predicted the Royals win today and let's hope they do because I don't want to log back on and put up a disclaimer&.

*Country talk so I can speak in a native language to the citations outside KC like myself

~ A new word look for it on Rany's blog in the future others came up with Mexecutioner I came up with this

& Disclaimer just in case though it's doubtful we lose since we've got an M&M

Interview with Greg Schaum of 610 Sports (Part I)

Greg Schaum is the Royals postgame color analyst of the Royals post-game show. He is an avid baseball fan who - get this - has connections toward the Royals *and* Cardinals organization, although the ties to the former are much more fierce and run much deeper than the latter. I used to intern for the Entercom Studios' 'Rock Block', KQRC 98.9, KRBZ 96.5, and KYYS 99.7, three rock stations located in Kansas City, Missouri. Inside the same building reside several different local stations, including Kansas City's KCSP, 610 Sports. It is here that I began holding brief conversations with Schaum. Ironically, he is also a frequent customer at my workplace, where we have also engaged in many conversations about the Royals. His passion and knowledge of the game - and the Royals - are truly second to none. He frequently contributes to the Royals blogosphere, most notably Royals Corner, the Royals' affiliate of Scout.com. Schaum and I have also interacted frequently on the postgame show itself, as I call in as frequently as possible, posing questions and raising topics of discussion that I find intriguing. I recently had the opportunity to catch up with Greg and discuss many things Royals. I hope you enjoy!

Below is part one of the Interview with 610 Sports' radio sales and postgame show analyst Greg Schaum.

*****

Royals Nation: Tell us about your background in baseball. How did you become a Royals fan? Are the rumors of your original Cardinal devotion true?

Schaum: Well, I have been a member of the following ball clubs; Aero Plastics, Shawnee Kawasaki Honda, Roeland Park Merchants, and the Shawnee Northsiders. Basically I have kicked it around ball fields since I was a tike. I have played at the old 3&2 Baseball fields on Pflumm and the still existing 3&2 fields on 87th. I played High School baseball at Shawnee Mission North and was able to play some college baseball at a very good NAIA school in Riverside, California. Baseball runs in my family. My relationship with my grandfather will lead into the next question about the Cardinals. My grandfather was a huge Cardinal fan and I visited my grandparents every summer. He would take me up to Kirkwood Park and hit me fly balls and pitch to me for hours. He would tell me about his friend Joe "Ducky" Medwick and the "Gashouse Gang" and how they played the game the right way. My dad still tells me about the great Bob Gibson. So, I do appreciate the St. Louis Cardinals. However, I was born at Research Hospital and am a born and raised Kansas Citian and Royals fan. My dad faced his truest test in 1985 and cheered for the Royals, so he is a Royals fan, too. I grew up cheering for my favorites like John Mayberry, Amos Otis, UL Washington, and Willie Wilson.

Royals Nation: Discuss your background in radio and broadcasting. How did you become an employee of 610 Sports? How did you work your way up to broadcasting/analyzing for the Royals' post game show?

Schaum: I moved back to Kansas City after spending eight years in Los Angeles. I did not think I was going to stay in Kansas City and was preparing to take on a life in baseball. At the age of 33, I was looking at becoming an executive at the minor league levels and attempt to prove my worth. I was working my connections and also taking a class through Sports Management Worldwide (SMWW) specifically designed to teach you about scouting and becoming a baseball executive. Out of nowhere, an opportunity came up to work at 610 Sports. I took the job but was still finishing up my work with SMWW. I realized that I had a great opportunity with 610 Sports and after spending most of my adult life in limbo pursuing an acting career in L.A., I decided that a little security could not hurt. Last summer, 610 Sports had about 3 people pass on doing the Willie Wilson Classic at Community America Ballpark (home of the Kansas City T-Bones) and I told them I could do it. Having already established myself as a walking baseball encyclopedia around the office, they gave me the opportunity. Since I originally went to college to pursue a broadcasting career and also spent 4 years studying improv in L.A., I think my past training and instinct just took over. I think I turned some heads and when the opportunity to do the post game show came up, I was pretty relentless in my pursuit of it. I have to say that, as a kid, I used to play baseball outside with my buddies and I would always do the play-by-play of the games, complete with introducing lineups as each time you batted you became a Major League player and providing statistics.

Royals Nation: Besides on-air analysis, what are your duties at 610 Sports?

Schaum: I was hired to do radio sales and that is my official position at 610 Sports. I love providing creative marketing strategies for my clients and making them a part of our Royals broadcasts has been a great part of my job.

Royals Nation: You originally worked at 610 Sports in a position not on the airwaves. Did you find the transition to the microphone difficult?

Schaum: As I said above, I am a busy man. I do sales during the day. I am also getting married July 24th so I don't have a lot of time to rest. Fortunately, as many people in sales know, I am able to have time to do my prep work and spend time with my fiancee and her 6 year old daughter, Lilly.

***

Editor's note: Thanks to Greg Schaum for taking literally hours out of his busy workdays (and evenings) at 610 Sports for taking part in this exclusive interview. Schaum is currently on a honeymoon with his wife in the Dominican Republic, but will return next week for 'part deux.'

What Goes Around, Comes Around

Like many aspects in the game of baseball, questionable umpire calls can come around in YOUR favor. After a couple bad calls helped the White Sox take the first 2 games of the previous series... we seemed to get one back in the opening game of the Mariners series.

The issue is more related to how the game plays out after an umpire’s bad call, as much (if not more) than the call itself. Felix Hernandez was dealing! He had allowed only one harmless double through 4 2/3 innings. After a Ross Gload single, Hernandez threw an 0-2 pitch just off the plate. After the First Base Umpire called no swing (Buck obviously went around), the pitcher fell apart. He was visibly upset and turned his back to the umpire to hide his displeasure.

A couple of things happened as a result of that bad call. Just coming off the Disabled List, Hernandez was on a pitch count. Instead of the inning being over, he had to make more pitches to get out of the inning, shortening his outing. Then out of his frustration, he began over-throwing his pitches. Instead of making those amazing pitches… breaking off the plate as Royals batters swung and missed, Hernandez’s pitches were all over the place. Buck easily walked and Gathright actually lined a ball out of the infield! That plated the go ahead run and put runners on first and second. After a wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, the Royals had MLB’s best hitter with runners in scoring position at the plate. David DeJesus smashed a line drive over Ichiro Suzuki’s head to drive in two more runs.

If Felix Hernandez would have held his composure over the “no swing” call, the game may well have turned out differently. Instead, he imploded after the bad call.

Did I say, “bad call”?

I meant good call… DAMN good call!