Yankees Replicating 2014 Kansas City Royals

This may sound odd and perhaps a bit nauseating but the New York Yankees off season plan seems to be to replicate the mold that the 2014 Kansas City Royals formed. Odd sounding, indeed. But, there’s not shame in being a copycat, especially not in sports. Teams often build their rosters based off other teams that found success.

After the Miami Heat formed the “Big 3” of Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh the Los Angeles Lakers formed their own trinity with Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Dwight Howard. It’s a common trend all over the sporting world. The Kansas City Royals made it all the way to the World Series last year using an interesting model that the Yankees now seek to utilize to their advantage.

More from Yankees News

• Yankees top prospects butt heads after Giants’ gritty win over Commanders
• CC Sabathia defends Yankees’ massive Aaron Judge contract
• Scott Boras closed Yankees-Carlos Rodón deal from Fenway Park, put cherry on top
• Orioles are bailing out Yankees and AL East by botching free agency
• Guy who caught Aaron Judge record HR ball cost himself tons of money in auction

Basically, the Royals were able to score more runs by preventing the opposition from scoring runs. They did this with an effective pitching staff, a lock down bullpen and good defense. Their offense was mediocre at best and they relied mostly on base stealing, making productive outs and capitalizing on opportunities with runners in scoring positions. The Yankees are working to replicate this in 2015 as evident by yesterday’s acquisitions.

The Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks and Detroit Tigers came together once again for a big 3-team trade. The Yankees sent pitcher Shane Greene to the Tigers who sent two prospects to the Diamondbacks who shipped shortstop Didi Gregorius to the Yankees. The Yankees found their shortstop and, despite his struggles with the bat early in his career, the 24-year old is exactly what the Yankees were looking for. Gregorius is a defensive wizard, known for his great instincts, excellent range, slick hands and strong throwing arm.

Jul 3, 2014; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop Didi Gregorius (1) fields a ground ball against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the eighth inning at PNC Park. The Diamondbacks won 10-2. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

His bat has shown flashes from time time and at such a young age he has time to develop into a better offensive shortstop. Last year, Gregorius came to the plate with runners in scoring position 50 times (To put that in perspective he played in just 80 games) and put up a batting average of .327 in these situations. That’s an area the Yankees struggled with last year and one their hoping their new shortstop can help with. He was a highly touted prospect not too long ago and now that he’s assured regular playing time he’ll have the opportunity to boost his numbers.

The Yankees’ also signed prized left handed reliever Andrew Miller to a 4-year $36 million dollar contract yesterday which keeps up with building a roster like that of the Royals. Kansas City’s major strength was their bullpen. More specifically, three superb back end arms in Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis and Greg Holland. These three relievers made the game a 6 inning affair. If they had the lead after the 6th frame they could be assured (For the most part) that the game was over. The Yankees already have a highly talented reliever in Dellin Betances who figures to be closer if David Robertson signs elsewhere. Adding Miller to pair with Betances has now formed a lethal late inning duo.

After acquiring left hander Justin Wilson from the Pittsburgh Pirates and watching the young prospect Jacob Lindgren mow down the competition in the minors last season the Yankees all of the sudden have an abundance of left handed relief, something they didn’t have last year. Now, with a bolstered bullpen General Manager Brian Cashman will be looking to continue building a roster similar to Kansas City’s American League Champion roster.

Now, back to the defense. Gregorius’s number may seem like something to scoff at but he has been one of the better fielding shortstops in baseball. It’s not often a team can acquire a young position player (Especially at a premium position like shortstop) and while he has some growing to do the potential is there. A left handed hitter, Gregorius has displayed pop in his bat from time and the short porch might help him pump up some of his power number (He hit his first home run at Yankee Stadium back in 2013). With Marin Prado at third base (Or second depending on Chase Headley‘s decision) and Mark Teixeira at first the Yankees are poised to have an excellent defensive infield in 2015.

The Yankees had a very productive day yesterday, bolstering the infield and the bullpen following the blue print. The next step is to fill out the pitching staff. After trading away Greene the team is left with just C.C. Sabathia, Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda in the rotation. With the Winter Meetings coming up the Yankees are bound to be active on the pitching market. Whether it’s a big name like Jon Lester or Max Scherzer or more middle of the rotation arms like Brandon McCarthy, Ervin Santana or Jake Peavy the Yankees are bound to come away with a starting pitcher or two before Spring Training begins.

There’s nothing wrong with copying a blue print of success. It happens all the time in sports. The Kansas City Royals made it all the way to the World Series by relying on fundamentals more than bludgeoning the baseball. The Yankees now look to take advantage of their financial muscle and follow this pattern. So far they’ve done a job of this but there is more work to do. Next week’s Winter Meetings could be very interesting for fans of the Bombers.