Post by White Sox GM (Michael) on Jun 19, 2014 12:06:41 GMT -5
Royce is one of the newest general managers in our league. He is taking over a team that won the World Series a year ago but finds itself as a team ready for years of success. Royce is looking to build on some past success and rekindle the Cardinal magic. I sat down with him for a one-on-one conversation.
When you joined the league, what was your first impression of the St. Louis Cardinals roster?
My first impression? Wow, how are we not first place with a team like this? If I told you that a team that had Rosario at catcher, Rizzo at first base, Profar at second base, Machado at third, and Bryce Harper in the outfield wasn't in playoff contention, you wouldn't believe me. Unfortunately, our record doesn't reflect the talent we have on this roster. Some of our young guys have struggled and we've had a few injuries.
Your core Major League players is one of the most talented groups in the league. Do you plan on moving forward with all of them, or do you have something else in mind?
Right now we plan to move forward with what we have. We traded Rizzo, but that wasn't a sign that the rest of our guys were for sale. We needed to improve our farm and we did that with the Rizzo deal. I can't guarantee that we will keep everyone from our core because my door is always open, but as of right now we don't have any plans to deal them.
Speaking of talented young Major Leaguers, the Anthony Rizzo deal was touted by some and questioned by others. Why did you move the first baseman?
Rizzo has had a great year, no question about it. His value was at an all time high. The rest of our guys? Not so much. Profar has lost a year of development due to injuries. Machado has had his ups and downs. Harper has been hurt as well. Rosario has started slow. Rizzo was really the only batter on our roster that was meeting and exceeding expectations. We had a depleted farm and saw an opportunity to inject it with some young talent. I understand why people were upset about the deal because Rizzo is a young and rising star, but we like what Schoop brings to the table in terms of power and Urias, McCullers, and Dominic Smith will be valuable assets to us going forward. If we can develop them, we'll feel like we won the deal. My message to those who questioned the deal is this: Give the prospects a chance to develop and come back five years later. That's the best way to gauge who won or lost a deal.
Andrew Cashner has been rumored to change teams before the postseason. How have talks over your ace progressed?
I can't say that we're definitely trying to deal Cashner this year, but we have gotten some inquiries and offers on him. For the time being, we haven't gotten anything we've liked, but like I said my door is always open. Cashner is our ace and will continue being our ace.
The Cardinals are unlikely to repeat as ODC champions this season. What are your plans for the future in St. Louis so that you can hoist another trophy?
We never rule out a chance at a championship. With Harper coming off the DL soon as well as Siegrist, we're still hoping for a playoff run. When I first took over this team, I wanted to make sure we have a young farm to develop so that we wouldn't have to rely on free agency or trades to improve the team. Being able to improve a team internally is one of my main focus' as I look towards the future of this organization.
Have you enjoyed your time in On-Deck Circle so far?
Hell yeah. It's a great league with a lot of great owners. Obviously there will be some arguments and disagreements, but I'm very happy about the activity thus far in this league.
Whose behavior will be more troubling over the next decade, Machado's or Harper's?
That's a clown question, bro.
What's your favorite movie and why? If you were watching said movie, what would be your snack of choice with which to enjoy it?
Any transformers movie. In fact, my favorite movie will probably be the one that comes out in a week or so. Dinosaur Transformers? Come on, now!!! As for the snack of my choice, let's just say I've eaten three packs of Twizzlers in one sitting before.
If you were stuck in a foxhole and you could have one of your players there to help you out, who would it be and why?
Andrew Cashner. Give him a year or two, I'll be able to climb out of the grand canyon on that beard.
Any closing thoughts?
Thanks for the questions, Michael. You only had one clown question. Any more and I'd have to "accidentally" throw a bat at you.
Thanks to Royce for taking time out of his busy work schedule to answer our questions. Good luck to the Cardinals this summer.
When you joined the league, what was your first impression of the St. Louis Cardinals roster?
My first impression? Wow, how are we not first place with a team like this? If I told you that a team that had Rosario at catcher, Rizzo at first base, Profar at second base, Machado at third, and Bryce Harper in the outfield wasn't in playoff contention, you wouldn't believe me. Unfortunately, our record doesn't reflect the talent we have on this roster. Some of our young guys have struggled and we've had a few injuries.
Your core Major League players is one of the most talented groups in the league. Do you plan on moving forward with all of them, or do you have something else in mind?
Right now we plan to move forward with what we have. We traded Rizzo, but that wasn't a sign that the rest of our guys were for sale. We needed to improve our farm and we did that with the Rizzo deal. I can't guarantee that we will keep everyone from our core because my door is always open, but as of right now we don't have any plans to deal them.
Speaking of talented young Major Leaguers, the Anthony Rizzo deal was touted by some and questioned by others. Why did you move the first baseman?
Rizzo has had a great year, no question about it. His value was at an all time high. The rest of our guys? Not so much. Profar has lost a year of development due to injuries. Machado has had his ups and downs. Harper has been hurt as well. Rosario has started slow. Rizzo was really the only batter on our roster that was meeting and exceeding expectations. We had a depleted farm and saw an opportunity to inject it with some young talent. I understand why people were upset about the deal because Rizzo is a young and rising star, but we like what Schoop brings to the table in terms of power and Urias, McCullers, and Dominic Smith will be valuable assets to us going forward. If we can develop them, we'll feel like we won the deal. My message to those who questioned the deal is this: Give the prospects a chance to develop and come back five years later. That's the best way to gauge who won or lost a deal.
Andrew Cashner has been rumored to change teams before the postseason. How have talks over your ace progressed?
I can't say that we're definitely trying to deal Cashner this year, but we have gotten some inquiries and offers on him. For the time being, we haven't gotten anything we've liked, but like I said my door is always open. Cashner is our ace and will continue being our ace.
The Cardinals are unlikely to repeat as ODC champions this season. What are your plans for the future in St. Louis so that you can hoist another trophy?
We never rule out a chance at a championship. With Harper coming off the DL soon as well as Siegrist, we're still hoping for a playoff run. When I first took over this team, I wanted to make sure we have a young farm to develop so that we wouldn't have to rely on free agency or trades to improve the team. Being able to improve a team internally is one of my main focus' as I look towards the future of this organization.
Have you enjoyed your time in On-Deck Circle so far?
Hell yeah. It's a great league with a lot of great owners. Obviously there will be some arguments and disagreements, but I'm very happy about the activity thus far in this league.
Whose behavior will be more troubling over the next decade, Machado's or Harper's?
That's a clown question, bro.
What's your favorite movie and why? If you were watching said movie, what would be your snack of choice with which to enjoy it?
Any transformers movie. In fact, my favorite movie will probably be the one that comes out in a week or so. Dinosaur Transformers? Come on, now!!! As for the snack of my choice, let's just say I've eaten three packs of Twizzlers in one sitting before.
If you were stuck in a foxhole and you could have one of your players there to help you out, who would it be and why?
Andrew Cashner. Give him a year or two, I'll be able to climb out of the grand canyon on that beard.
Any closing thoughts?
Thanks for the questions, Michael. You only had one clown question. Any more and I'd have to "accidentally" throw a bat at you.
Thanks to Royce for taking time out of his busy work schedule to answer our questions. Good luck to the Cardinals this summer.
