The Kansas City Royals fired their manager today, while Trey Hillman was informed of the decision before the team’s game against the Cleveland Indians it was not announced to the public until, after the contest. Not that it matters but the Royals won that game. They do however sit with a 12-23 record and have fallen behind in their division by 10.5 games. It is not news that the Royals are a mess, but it seems that the wrong guy is taking the fall.
Last winter the team hired Ned Yost as a special consultant to come in and examine their organization from top to bottom. Yost served on Bobby Cox’s staff in Atlanta before spending several years with the Milwaukee Brewers. They Royals front office has now turned control of the parent club over to him. Yost was hired at the behest of Hillman for some guidance on what to do with this organization. Royals General Manager Dayton Moore previously worked with Yost when both were employed by the Atlanta Braves.
While firing a manger is never good, it is sometimes necessary. Hillman has had two years to work out the problems with the Royals. However I do not think that the problems with this team were its manager. I think the problem is the overall lack of talent on the roster. I have seen this team play much early on in 2010, and they played well. With that being said they have no talent in their bullpen and that cannot be blamed on the coach.
In my mind the problems within this organization are far deeper, and will require the owner to step up and really clean house and get a new management team in place that can go out and filed a team that can win. They do not need to break the bank on payroll dollars to compete in the American League Central division, but something deeper is wrong with this team.
Related Links:
• Kansas City Royals news and notes •MTR Baseball.com • The Business of Major League Baseball
