Royal Gamble: I Get It

There are a lot of mixed feelings about the recent Royals trade that sent top prospects Wil Myers, Jake Odorizzi and Mike Montgomery to Tampa Bay in exchange for starters James Shields and Wade Davis. I have some mixed feelings myself. Giving up their top hitting and pitching prospect seemed like a bit much, but I understand what Dayton Moore is doing. He desperately needed better pitching, and he got it. Did he overpay? Probably, but the guys he got might be worth it.

Dayton Moore is going all in for the next two seasons.

The Royals have not made the playoffs since 1985. Kansas City fans really want to see a winner, and they weren't going to see one in 2013 with the staff they had last week. Now, there is some reason for hope.

Saviors? I don't know about that, but I do know that
Shields and Davis are big upgrades to the staff in KC.

You can debate whether or not James Shields is a "true ace" all you want. There is no debating that he is instantly Kansas City's best starting pitcher. Wade Davis might be their second best. At worst, he's their fourth starter. With all due respect to the current starters, there is no chance of being a playoff team with a staff that has Bruce Chen and Luke Hochevar at the top of it.

If you're upset about trading hot prospects like Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi, I get that. They were a high price to pay, but Royals fans have to be tired of the words "prospects," "potential," and "future." At some point, it's time to trade a piece of the future and try to win. To do that, you have to take a risk here and there. I think this was one worth taking. Those prospects might be great, but they might not. James Shields is rock solid, and Wade Davis has proven himself as a big leaguer as well.

Kansas City has a promising lineup that should win quite a few games in the AL Central. Alex Gordon has settled in nicely at the top of the lineup. Salvador Perez, after missing a lot of time with an injury in 2012, could be an All-Star catcher. Billy Butler is solid at DH. Mike Moustakas and Eric Hosmer went through some sophomore slumps last year, but have all the tools to be successful Major League hitters. How those two as well as the ever-inconsistent Jeff Francoeur perform at the plate will ultimately decide how good or bad the Kansas City offense is in 2013. I think the Royals will be fine at the plate.

With the young pieces in place in the lineup, Dayton Moore had to put together a staff that could win games while all these talented young hitters are under club control. Eventually, they'll become free agents and likely leave. The likelihood that they leave greatly increases if Kansas City stays below .500 for the next two seasons. Then those guys get sick of losing and want to win as well as get paid like Zack Greinke, Carlos Beltran, Johnny Damon and so many others have.

It'll be easy to judge this trade in two years. If the Royals are winners, it was totally worth it. If they are still lousy and Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi are All-Stars, it was stupid. All we can do is judge the risk vs. reward right now, and I tend to agree with Moore's move. I think he got pressured into overpaying in giving up Odorizzi and Mike Montgomery, but I get it.

Is it a risk? Sure, but in the end, what is Moore really risking? If he wins, he's the hero who finally put together a winner in Kansas City. If he loses, well, that's what Kansas City has been doing for 27 years. People tend to overvalue prospects and the future. Royals fans have to be sick of hearing "some day" and "eventually." Win now. If you swing and miss, oh well, you're still the Royals. At least Dayton Moore is trying.

To change that culture of losing, he had to do something drastic. Since he didn't have $147 million to spend on Zack Greinke, this move was worth the price of those great prospects.