As the Kansas City Royals begin their quest for back-to-back World Series titles, there are several storylines worth following. Here are the latest news and rumors on the MLB reigning champion Royals.
MLB puts Kansas City in awkward situation
The Royals had the odd distinction of opening the season against the team they defeated in the 2015 World Series. Sunday's pregame ceremony had a "strange" feel, according to manager Ned Yost, who made it clear that he would have preferred a different opponent than the New York Mets. The awkwardness continued on Tuesday, as the Mets watched the Royals receive their rings at Kauffman Stadium. Even with their bitter rivals looking on, the players seemed to enjoy the ring ceremony just fine. And who wouldn't after being handed one of these bad boys:
Everything you need to know about the Royals 2015 World Series Champs rings. #Crowned #ForeverRoyal pic.twitter.com/Kg2w5sSmv6
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) April 5, 2016
Aging veteran, surprise rookie make roster
There were a couple unexpected entrants on KC's Opening Day roster, including 36-year-old Taiwanese pitcher Chien-Ming Wang and rookie outfielder Reymond Fuentes. Wang, who has not pitched professionally since 2013, will pitch out of the Royals bullpen. The former New York Yankees star has regained his mid-90s velocity, reports MLB.com's Jeffrey Flanagan. Fuentes, who went 0-for-3 in his first start on Sunday, will fill in for injured outfielder Jarrod Dyson.
Royals the new "Moneyball" standard?
Though K.C. has been called an anti-Moneyball team in the past, the counter-argument is now being made by Joe Vasile of SB Nation's Beyond the Box Score. Vasile says that General Manager Dayton Moore has established a new standard for evaluating players that values more than just Sabermetrics.