Sam Mellinger

The Kansas City Star

What a freaking week, huh? All-Star game, Joe Paterno‘s legacy, David Glass debate, Jonathan Sanchez’s continued suck….we’ve had a lot to talk about, so maybe it’s fitting that this is probably the biggest Twitter Tuesday since we started this silly experiment.

Programming note: I’m going to be traveling to the Olympics next week and might not be able to do Twitter Tuesday. Also, if we do this while I’m in London, it will have to be quicker.

One more programming note: Hey, Time-Warner and ABC, can you get your crap figured out?

As always, thanks for your help and this week’s food recommendation: the cannelloni at Osteria Il Centro.

Let’s get right to it, even if we’re starting at a predictable place:

@EricHe1091 TT: could you pitch better than Sanchez?

Well, I literally could not have done worse against the first five batters last night. And, since the Royals were facing what is effectively the American League’s worst hitting team, it’d be fun to give it a try sometime.

Sanchez’s “production” for the Royals this year looks like something you’d see from a Little Leaguer who walks off the mound crying a lot: 1-6, 7.76 ERA, 44 walks, 36 strikeouts and 2.044 baserunners by either a walk or hit per inning (WHIP).

Since 1901, among pitchers with at least 12 starts, that is the 12th-worst WHIP^, 20th-worst ERA, and 24th-most walks per 9 innings. He is giving up a .425 on-base percentage, which is the 12th-worst since 1901 and is 11 points higher than Joe Mauer and David Ortiz, who are tied for the AL lead right now. Sanchez is giving up a .937 OPS which would be 10th in the American League, ahead of Paul Konerko and 15 points behind Miguel Cabrera.

The Royals simply cannot let him make another start.

^ Fun fact: Roy Halladay has the all-time record for worst WHIP with at least 12 starts: 2.202 in 2000. No, this is not an argument that Sanchez needs more time.

@GrayDustin How many donations of $10 -$20 would it take to buy out his contract so the Royals cut him?

Around 270,000 donations of $10.

@MIZ__Judy “You were like a son to me, a tiger son” #TT

If you don’t love this commercial, I kindly ask you to stop reading.

@rdcramer if you were kuball why would want to be associated with kufball? Destroys the brand.

And … this is a pretty good indication of the challenges Charlie Weis has in front of him.

@EdBartel Had an amazingly good #Royals question for #twittertuesday but decided to send it to #goldbergkc instead.

I’m not mad at you. Some people like to shop generic.

@Speck60 I’ll give you the joke, you give me the punch line: # of wins for kU football this year?

Four. I think they can get to four.

@tdbest is it Hosmer’s 0.292 OBP keeping him in big leagues or his bobblehead night on 8/18? Or his face on billboards?#Royals #marketing

Eric Hosmer’s struggles — we’re past the point of small sample size, and he’s hitting .225 with .297 on-base and .359 slugging percentages — are the most pressing immediate issue the Royals face.

Long-term, it is still far more important that David Glass take his increased support of the Royals to the next level and that the franchise somehow navigate perhaps the worst TV deal in baseball.

But in the short-term, it is more important to fix Hosmer than it is to maximize Jonathan Broxton’s trade value or Jonathan Sanchez’s historical suckitude or even find a trade partner interested in Jeff Francoeur, so the Royals can save at least most of the $10 million or so he’s owed and see what Wil Myers can do (more on him later).

There is still too much talent here for me to believe he’s not more Carlos Beltran than Bob Hamelin, but there is too much struggle this season to trust this will just work itself out. He is no longer hitting balls hard and just running into bad luck^.

^ Though his batting average on balls in play still indicates some bad luck, and his strikeouts are slightly down and walks slightly up. He’s hitting significantly fewer line drives, and hitting for significantly less power.

There’s nothing to suggest his plate discipline has fallen off too far, he’s just not squaring balls up.

Maybe this is one of those things that you can find if you look hard enough, but it seems like you can see the struggles in his body language in a way that didn’t exist earlier in the season. Sounds crazy, but it wouldn’t be the worst idea in the world to test out how well that Lasik surgery is holding up.

The Royals can fulfill their hopes without Hosmer becoming an All-Star, but it would be a major blow. Might even get Kevin Seitzer fired. They’ve got to get this figured out.

@OurTimeKC How stoked are you that Season 4 of Breaking Bad is on Netflix now? Food & drink recommendation while watching? #TT

This is my favorite show of the last five years or so, no question. Loved 24 and Lost, but Breaking Bad is holding up much better five seasons in than either of those did, in my opinion.

And, yes. I did say five seasons in. I’m watching live.

Also, I don’t have a DVD player. Isn’t that weird?

@ClintT13 Tickets to see Sporting KC in the U.S. Open Cup are going for almost 2x as much as the last ever MU-kU football game. Thoughts?

I’ll give you four thoughts.

First: the last-ever MU-KU football game has not yet been played.

Second: interest in last year’s MU-KU football game was ruined by Turner Gill’s incompetence.

Third: Sporting KC has a terrifically passionate fan base that should be the envy of most pro sports franchises.

Fourth: Wish I could be there, but I’ll be out of town.

@lazyscience can you find a reason for Myers still being in AAA that isn’t either really stupid or really cynical?

You won’t like hearing this, but I talked with a scout-type the other day who said, and I quote, “Wil Myers isn’t as good as people think he is, and he’s not as good as he thinks he is.”

Now, to be fair, this man thinks a lot of Myers. Thinks he’ll be a very good hitter in the big leagues, likes his strength, quick hands, all of those things. But he also points to Myers’ strikeouts — 90 of them in 87 minor league games at last count — as a bit of a red flag and something that will get exposed in the majors. My guy also said Myers’ rep defensively is pretty shaky, particularly with some Magellan-type routes on fly balls.

I do believe two things about Myers: he’s earned a shot in the big leagues, and he’s benefiting from the backup quarterback syndrome right now.

Also, this might go without saying, but always keep in mind that if you gathered 10 scouts and got their evaluations of one player, you’d hear 10 sometimes very different opinions. Would be the easiest thing in the world to get a scout to go all Steven-Tyler-on-American-Idol^ and talk about how great Myers is.

^ Yes, I watched the last season with the Lady. Don’t judge me.

Also, I thought you’d be interested in this quote from a scout who saw Sal Perez a lot in the minors: “You’ve got a Latin Johnny Bench.”

@mitchopkins What’s your anticipation of the upcoming Poskanski book and your opinion of the criticism he’s received in the last week+?

I hope I’m not straddling the fence too much when I say I share the concerns of many, but think some of the criticism is premature. What I mean by that is I’m both looking forward to it and unsure how it can be pulled off, that I’m skeptical of a lot of what is out there about the process but want to read the book before I have an opinion about it, even while being sickened by what we know about Paterno and the scandal.

I also think that Jeff Pearlman knows a thing or two about writing good biographies, and made a lot of sense here:

“…there is no possible way, one month removed from a report that details Joe Paterno’s knowledge of a pedophile roaming the Penn State campus (and his refusal to do anything about it, when he clearly could/should have), a proper biography can be released. No. Possible. Way.”

@ChicagoKirk7 if we can agree that PSU tragedy was enabled to protect the institution of PSU fball, how can colleges not call for #deathpenalty

Well, Jim Weber make a lot of good points here, especially about the NCAA’s definition of institutional control. There is no precedent for something like this, at least not that I’m aware of, but the NCAA sets new precedents all the time.

My general feeling is that Penn State should not receive the death penalty. This was an enormous failure by men, not a system, and while the context of big-money football and a sports obsession that makes us lose our minds too often we should still expect people not help cover up child rape. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.

But if you argue that Penn State should stop playing football for a while, I won’t argue back with too much passion.

@mblaze524 when are people going to give Alex Gordon the credit that he deserves? #royals #twittertuesday

It’s because he’s not hitting home runs, got off to a rotten start, and the team hasn’t been good enough for people to focus much on the positives.

But you’re absolutely right that Gordon is having a terrific season that a lot of people seem to be missing. Baseball-Reference has Gordon 17th in the American League in Wins Above Replacement and Fangraphs has him 11th.

You don’t need to know the nerdy ins and outs of that stat; you just need to know that this means Gordon is having a hell of a season and — despite what you might hear or read in some places — living up to that big contract.

Gordon’s value comes subtly, I suppose. He’s a terrific defensive player, an outstanding baserunner, takes his walks, is leading the AL in the entirely un-sexy category of doubles … basically, the guy is doing tons of things to help his team win but few things to help himself get noticed.

@markmksu to add to last week’s Bacon discussion: Baconaise (Bacon flavored mayonaise) is gross. I was hopeful, but, gag. #TwitterTuesday

What a country.

@GabeDeArmond Where does Mizzou-UGA at night rank on your list of local sporting events you need to see this fall?

Well, it’s the No. 1 college game this fall — ahead of any of Mizzou’s other games, and ahead of K-State vs Oklahoma or West Virginia or TCU or Texas or anyone else.

I’m not sure how, exactly, to rank it with Chiefs games. The NFL is so different, one game isn’t exponentially more important than another, like in college, but that’s because they’re all really important^.

^ We are using the word “important” in a sports context here, of course.

The Chiefs have some interesting games. At New Orleans. Against the Ravens. At Pittsburgh on Monday night. Two against Peyton Manning and the Broncos — the one in Denver is the season finale and could very easily decide the AFC West.

But as far as ONE game, with everything we’ve seen and talked about the last few years, yeah, I think Mizzou opening its SEC life at home against Georgia under the lights … I probably am looking forward to that more than any other single game.

Also, I just realized … I’m moving that weekend. Crap. This is when it’s good to have a very cool wife, I suppose.

@CosmoHopHead did u ever try @Boulevard_Beer love child 2? If so, did u like it?

I did, and I gotta be honest with you: eh.

I mean, I liked it. But I didn’t LOVE it, and my expectations for Boulevard have grown to be fairly ridiculous. Tasted a little too much like wine to me. So, since you didn’t ask, my five favorite Boulevards in order: Saison-Brett, Tank 7, Bob’s 47, Pale Ale, Wheat.

@BrettSchoenfeld Sources have confirmed #royals are in serious discussions, with mystery team, to trade David Glass for an owner to be determined

Brett sets ‘em up…

@RRB4KU @BrettSchoenfeld Knowing our luck, it’s probably the Mets.

…and Rick knocks ‘em down.

This was, of course, in response to my column the other day on David Glass’ defining moment which, if you haven’t read by now, what the hell?

@Tscrutch if you chose to fight crime and injustice in the world, what would your superhero name be?

The Natural Disaster.

No, that’s dumb. Any suggestions?

@tjwhited Mayor Kevin Johnson wants the Sac Kings out of town. What are the chances of the franchise returning to KC and the Sprint Center?

Same two things to keep in mind here as always:

1) Kansas City needs an uber-rich someone or someones^ willing to lose a little money to bring a team to town.

^ Hi, guys.

2) AEG will provide no help, but I’m guessing will do just enough spin to get in the photo op.

@BRuss7 What’s the deal with #DBowe?? Are we really gonna lose him after this season???

Well, as Babb writes here, the entire thing was rather predictable.

Without knowing intimate details about the negotiations, and with a growing track record of understanding the Chiefs’ moves better and better the more and more I think about them, I still think the Chiefs are making a mistake.

There is risk either way, of course, but there’s really no risk in saying this: the Chiefs are diminished if Bowe is gone and they have to rely on Jonathan Baldwin to be a No. 1 receiver. No long-term deal now means the franchise tag next year, if they use it on Bowe, will be significantly more expensive.

I get the Chiefs’ desire to keep as much motivation as possible on Bowe’s side, but I also think the narrative of Bowe as a loose cannon — especially by NFL receiver standards — is a bit outdated and worn out.

But bottom line: Chiefs only lose flexibility and some money long-term by not signing Bowe to an extension before yesterday’s deadline. They can keep him at least through 2013 if they want.

@MPrece chiefs fans keep down playing manning’s role this year in the division. 70% Peyton>100 percent Matt casell

Sure, who is disagreeing with that? But if Manning is a top 10 quarterback and Cassel is somewhere between 20 and 25, the Chiefs are trying to make up the difference throughout the rest of the roster.

And, honestly, I think they have. Both teams are fairly well screwed if their starting quarterback goes down — the Broncos more than the Chiefs — but the Chiefs have better balance throughout the rest of the offense and especially the defense, which could be one of the best in football.

That team had about every crap break you could imagine last year, and still went 7-9. Still won in Denver.

@Turnksu #Kstate just announced record fundraising amounts. does this indicate that currie is more important to the school than F. Martin?

I don’t know about that, but it sure is a good point to argue. It became apparent that those two guys — no matter what they say publicly — couldn’t co-exist. I think that’s a bad mark on both men, but I’m also not sure why a reasonable person would expect the athletic department to take an enormous step back without Martin.

Don’t get me wrong, he’s a terrific coach, had a lot of success. But he’s not John Wooden.

@ClintT13 Will you take in the cosmopolitan St. Joe nightlife this year during training camp? Or will you drive home every night?

I’ve been a driver in past years, because it’s only like 40 or 45 minutes — I drive fast, don’t tell the police — home.

But this year, I’m not sure how much I’ll make it up to St. Joe, actually. I’m starting a circuitous route to the Olympics in London on Friday, and won’t be back until Aug. 13. That only leaves about three days of camp.

So if you hear of some major public disturbances in St. Joe, chances are it’s Teicher.

@thillsman Well-written Paterno articles this week. In general, who are your top three sportswriters to read? Yourself excluded.

Well, thanks.

I might have a different answer if I thought about it a bit more, but the first three who come to mind are Dan Wetzel, Jason Whitlock and Joe Posnanski. I like different styles, and I like people who make me think, whether I agree with them or not.

But there are so many talented writers out there, Sally Jenkins and Gregg Doyel and Liz Merrill and Jeff Passan and Dan Lebatard and on and on and on and on.

@flsku #TT any word on current players being effected by #kubball pot bust?

I’ve heard some rumblings about what went down, but nothing official enough to say here or in a column. Look, I am entirely unmoved by this. College kids smoked pot. Where’s the headline?

If it turns out that the players bought drugs with comp tickets, that’s an entirely different thing. But right now, it looks more to me like an attorney who wants attention and volunteered some fairly irrelevant information to do it.

@Fawkesquez Who is the best athlete with KC ties right now? #TwitterTuesday

So, if we’re going right this moment that means that Maurice Greene’s time has passed and Bubba Starling’s (or perhaps Jack Sock’s) time isn’t yet here. The first names that are coming to mind are Maurice Mitchell — check this Sunday’s paper — and Josh Freeman^.

^ The list of people I initially left out includes Darren Sproles, Matt Tegenkamp, and Amy Hastings. I’m sure there are others.

I’m fairly certain that I’m forgetting someone, or even someones. Aldon Smith. Shaun Marcum. There are other Olympians, including distances runners Matt Tegenkamp and Amy Hastings. Cam Thompson is the country’s best amateur superheavyweight boxer.

But, maybe it’s because of his event or the time of year, but right this moment, I’m going with Mitchell.

@MidMORoyalsFan I believe Jack Stack is under appreciated in KC. Your thoughts?

I have no idea how to answer this. I think it’s over-appreciated in some real ways, and I say this as someone who loves Jack Stack enough that our rehearsal dinner was there in February. It’s just that my vision of barbecue doesn’t include white cloth napkins, if you know what I mean.

Jack Stack is fantastic, but when people come in from out of town, I point them to Oklahoma Joe’s first. Jack Stack is in that next delicious tier, with Bryant’s, Gates’, LC’s, and others.

@jjskck Is the ‘we lost Beltran over $1M’ story really true? This has nauseated me for months. #twittertuesday

I wouldn’t lie to you.

@ryanscotthall You didn’t pay for my mom’s bday dinner. You can redeem yourself on my birthday by promising to attend a future SKC tailgate. #TT

Done. A friend and I have actually been talking about getting season tickets. Love that atmosphere.

@Cole_Foss77 realistic starting rotation for the royals next year… Including potential free agents??

This leans optimistic for the Royals, but: Anibal Sanchez, Jeremy Hillickson, Bruce Chen, Luke Hochevar and Luis Mendoza with the Tommy John kids ready to challenge.

I absolutely love Sanchez for this team. Hillickson would require a lot in a trade, I imagine, and the Royals will also look hard at Shaun Marcum’s health and Francisco Liriano, among others.

@ZachIsHere How hard will it be for SKC to craft a message to an average KC’er about how big it is that KC can win a championship on Aug 8th?

I imagine it’d be a bit like showing Jonathan Sanchez tape of his no-hitter.

@timscott411 dude.. Why on earth don’t you have a twitter profile pic w the proper resolution?! It’s like I’m viewing it on a Commodore64? #TT

I’m just trying to keep the ladies guessing.

Comments

1. 

   Todd Templer

   11 months ago

   Are you sure you want to bring another Sanchez to the Royals after the current Sanchez.

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