Buddy Bell steps down, Reggie Sanders could be done, and more
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by Minda33
So many things to cover today! We have Buddy Bell stepping down as Royals manager, the bridge collapse in Minneapolis (and the subsequent game and groundbreaking postponement), Reggie Sanders' future, Gathright and Braun getting called up, Shealy being optioned to triple-A, and KC tying the White Sox again.
I must apologize for not doing this all last night, but a migraine hit me out of nowhere and the thought of spending any time staring at a computer screen was enough to make me ill. So here we go:
Buddy Bell resigning as KC skipper'
Royals manager Buddy Bell announced yesterday afternoon that he's stepping down at the end of this season. He said that after his scare with throat cancer last year, his priorities have shifted, and the choice between staying with the team or being with his family more was a "no-brainer."
I'm glad he's staying the rest of the season. It might give the players some extra motivation to work hard for him, knowing their games with him are limited so they should make each game a great one. Also, Dayton Moore and company will have oodles of time to figure out who will succeed Bell. My money is on Billy Doran or Frank White. White did a fabulous job with Wichita last season, which shows that he's great with younger players. Given that most members of the KC roster could be considered "younger players," White seems like a good choice. However, I would also be perfectly okay with it if Doran was chosen for the job.
Also, in the royals.com article, Bell jokingly wondered if the journalists present would not report this story until today so that his daughter Traci, who has Down's Syndrome, could be prepared to hear the news. I like to think that my waiting to blog about this was just honoring Bell's wishes.
Minneapolis bridge collapses
The Associated Press has reported that the death toll, which was at 7 last night, has been lowered to 4 this morning.
Last night's O-Royals game was delayed a bit because of rain, so the video guys put the RSTN telecast on the video board. That was how the Omaha players, staff, and fans learned about both the bridge collapse and Bell's announcement. I guess I'm not used to seeing news of a tragedy (the bridge, not Bell) on such a large screen, but I'd like to not do it again.
I didn't realize until this morning that the reason KC and Minnesota still played last night's game was actually traffic-related. It makes perfect sense, though, to not send over 20,000 vehicles back on to the roadway and potentially hinder rescue efforts. That was good thinking.
Normally if a Royals game was postponed for any reason at all, I'd be rather upset. I mean, what am I to do in a given day if I don't have my Royals? But today's postponement, I understand, and I will continue to pray for the rescue workers, the families who don't know where their loved ones are, those awaiting rescue, and those who have died. An event like this is horrifying, especially when it's so random and so sudden.
Reggie Sanders questions his future
Another thing the O-Royals crowd saw in the RSTN telecast was the list of transactions made yesterday. Leading this list in significance (I think) was Reggie Sanders' being placed on the disabled list again for his left hamstring. The poor man now has to figure out if this is the end for him.
I thought for sure Sanders would have been traded and Joey Gathright would have been called up to take his place, but now that this hamstring injury has come to light, it's clear he wouldn't have passed the required pre-trade physical. Either way, Gathright is now back in the majors, and probably will be for the rest of the season.
Too bad for Sanders, though. I hope he can still find some way to play more. He deserves the opportunity to decide for himself when his career should end so he can prepare himself for that. To have a stupid hamstring take away that decision is awfully sad. Shealy optioned to Omaha
Ryan Shealy's bat has been heating up in his last 10 or so games in his rehab stint with the Omaha Royals, but it was announced yesterday that he's been optioned to Omaha. Though this move is kind of unfortunate for Shealy, it makes perfect sense to me. It's been pretty clear lately that having Ross Gload in the lineup every day is a Good Idea. If Shealy were called back up to the big-league club, then Gload might have to DH some days, which would either take Billy Butler out of the lineup or force Bell to put him in on defense somewhere. (left field perhaps? But then where would Gahtright play?) As long as Gload's bat is as ridiculously effective as it has been lately, I see no reason to keep him out of the KC everyday lineup. His defense is more than adequate, and he's exciting to watch. Why take that away?
Tied for non-last once again!
I'd like to personally thank the Yankees at this time for hitting ludicrous number of home runs in the last few days to keep the White Sox from winning. The two teams are wrapping up their series right now, and this pains me greatly to say, but...
...go Yankees. Gross, now I have to go wash my mouth out with soap for saying such a dirty thing.
(article from my blog, Baseball and Other Things)
