Hillman Takes Over Young Royals

October 22, 2007 @ 11:55:28

By Rob McCarthy
Edited by Ryan Dodson

The Kansas City Royals crowned a new king of the clubhouse on Friday, Oct. 19, when they hired current Nippon Ham Fighters manager Trey Hillman as their new skipper. Hillman is managing the Fighters in their second consecutive Japan Series appearance. 

In addition to his five successful years managing in Japan, where he has gone 351-324 (.520 winning percentage) with one Japan Series title, Hillman spent 12 years as a manager in the New York Yankees' minor league system where he went 855-771 (.526 winning percentage) and won three Manager of the Year awards.

The 44-year-old Hillman has never played or managed in Major League Baseball. However, he was a second baseman in the Cleveland Indians minor league system with his highest level of play being Triple-A.

Hillman's road ahead is bumpy and utterly terrifying, especially when you consider that the Royals have not played in a postseason game since their 1985 World Series appearance that resulted in a championship for the now lowly team. In addition, they finished last in the American League Central for the fourth straight year - although, they did avoid 100 losses for the first time in three seasons.

Hillman is presented with a Royals team that ranked 22nd in team batting average with a .261 mark, 27th in runs scored with 706, last in home runs with 102 and 28th in RBI with 660 amongst MLB teams in 2007. 

The offensive output of the Royals in the 2008 season will be solely based on the production of their young talent, specifically Kansas City Royals third baseman Alex Gordon and Kansas City Royals outfielder/first baseman in training Billy Butler.

Gordon was one of the largest disappointments in fantasy circles everywhere in 2007. What was expected from the 23-year-old University of Nebraska product was far more than a rookie on a horrible team should be counted on. On the season, Gordon hit .247 with 15 home runs, 60 RBI, 60 runs scored and 14 stolen bases in 543 at-bats. In addition, Gordon added a developing .725 OPS which consisted of a .314 OBP and a .411 slugging percentage. 

The early comparisons to New York Mets third baseman David Wright leading up to the 2007 season was more than unfair. But let's not forget, the comparisons were a product of people who were blinded by Gordon's surreal success in the minors, which is usually impossible to translate into a solid rookie campaign, especially on a team with no lineup support like the Royals. Expect Gordon to tighten up his swing and go deeper into counts this season. His OBP should rise significantly along with his runs scored and power numbers. It is safe to assume that his stolen base numbers will rise slightly as well under a manager that will undoubtedly take advantage of every attribute that Gordon excels in. A sign that Gordon's power is on the rise in the coming campaign is the fact that he cranked out 36 doubles and four triples on 134 hits. He is once again a formidable sleeper in the later rounds of deep leagues.

During the 2007 campaign, Butler hit .292 with eight home runs, 52 RBI, 38 runs scored and notched a .794 OPS in 329 at-bats. Butler's numbers, like Gordon's, signify a possible spike in power with 23 doubles and two triples on 96 hits. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound 21-year-old showed true promise in July that saw him bat .341 with three home runs, 24 RBI, 13 runs scored and a .921 OPS in 91 at-bats. Expect Butler's value to be sought after in the later rounds of deep leagues with the possibility of being eligible at first base and in the outfield in most formats. Again, like Gordon, Butler should be considered a solid sleeper with the potential to surprise.

On the other end of the spectrum, Hillman inherits a Royals pitching staff that had 13 different starters throughout the season. They had one player, in Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Gil Meche that started more than 30 games, Meche recorded 34. As a team, the Royals ranked 16th in ERA with a mark of 4.48, 22nd in hits allowed with 1,547 and 22nd in WHIP with an average of 1.44. 

Other than Meche, who was 9-13 with 156 strikeouts, a 3.67 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP in 216 innings in 2007, the Royals have some fine young arms in starting pitchers Brian Bannister and Zack Greinke.

On the season, Bannister was 12-9 with 77 strikeouts, a 3.87 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP in 165 innings. Bannister is a 6-foot-2, 202-pound righty out of the University of Southern California, whose first MLB season was with the Mets in 2006. Bannister showed some true potential in the months of June, July and August where he combined for an 11-4 record with 57 strikeouts, a 2.87 ERA and a WHIP of 1.11 in 106 2/3 innings. Expect the 26-year-old Bannister to remain a solid late-round grab in deep formats with the real possibility of a 15-win season with an ERA below 4.00 and a solid 1.25 WHIP as he grows under a Hillman system that fosters development.

As for Greinke, he is a 24-year-old righty who was the sixth overall pick in the 2002 MLB Draft. In 2007, Greinke appeared in 52 games and started 14 of them while going 7-7 with 106 strikeouts, 36 walks, a 3.69 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP in 122 innings. Word out of Kansas City is that Greinke will be groomed as the third starter with the possibility of slipping to fourth in the rotation coinciding with his performance; it will definitely be a situation to monitor during Spring Training. However, a strong performance in September definitely boosted his value in 2008 drafts. In the month, he started five games and went 2-2 with 24 strikeouts, nine walks, a 2.33 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP in 27 innings. Greinke should be grabbed in the late rounds of deep leagues with the potential to be a sleek steal in all formats. His most smile-worthy statistic is his average of 7.82 strikeouts per nine innings. With the right tutelage under Hillman, it is safe to expect a 190-plus strikeout season from Greinke if he starts a full-load of 30 games.

With Kansas City Royals general manager Dayton Moore wanting to put an emphasis on new beginnings in Kansas City, fantasy owners should expect to keep tabs on the status of talented Kansas City Royals minor league outfielder Justin Huber and first baseman Craig Brazell. 

Brazell hit .315 with 39 home runs, 91 RBI, 83 runs scored and an OPS of .953 in 542 minor league at-bats between the Double-A Wichita Wranglers and the Triple-A Omaha Royals. Brazell did notch some time in the majors, where he played in five games and recorded a .250 batting average with one hit and one run scored in four at-bats. It will be tough to keep Brazell's power in the minors for long, so expect to see the 27-year-old lefty's name somewhere along the way in 2008.

Huber hit .283 with 20 home runs, 75 RBI, 43 runs scored and a .880 OPS in 311 minor league at-bats between his rehab stint with the Rookie Arizona League Royals and the Triple-A Omaha Royals. Huber was called up to the big leagues when Kansas City Royals first baseman Ryan Shealy landed on the 15-day disabled list with a hamstring injury. Huber played in eight games while posting a .100 average with two runs scored and one hit in 10 at-bats. You can expect to see Huber up with the Royals from time to time as Hillman tinkers with the lineup, which will be often.

Due to Hillman's years with the Yankees organization, the fear of him being scooped up to fill former New York Yankees manager Joe Torre's spot on the bench was a true fear for Moore and the Royals organization. Word out of the front office is that the Royals could not be happier with their choice for the position, and it has been reported that Moore felt like there was no better option to lead a young team than a winner like Hillman. I guess time will tell, but one thing is for sure, managers of a composed and teaching character like Hillman's tend to bring teams to a level they could only dream of.

KFFLians are saying....

Comment

 

---

What do you think? We want to hear from you!

Name: E-mail: Please, enter the number that you see

Comment Guidelines

Rob McCarthy
Rob has been with KFFL since 2007.

Talk Sports 24/7!
KFFL Sports Forums: Over 24,000 strong and growing!

One Day FREE Fantasy Contest - $350 in cash prizes (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Player Prospecting: Danny Hultzen, Roger Kieschnick, more (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Diamond Market: Austin Jackson headed to DL (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Closer Hot Seat: Addison Reed, J.J. Putz, Ernesto Frieri, more (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Diamond Market: Brian Roberts seeing the light at the end of the rehab tunnel (05/24)
Fantasy baseball closer depth charts - AL (05/24)
Fantasy baseball closer depth charts - NL (05/24)
Fantasy baseball players in the news (05/24)
Fantasy football players in the news (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Diamond Market: Dee Gordon's problems at bat (05/23)