Joakim Soria hasn’t been on the mound this year but the History of Joakim Soria project lives on. This installment is 2008 Topps. Topps went back to the classic white border after the 2007 Topps black border cards. The card is very playful with the lettering at the top in the multi-colored circles. The border is large and takes a ton of room away from the picture on the card. The signature is a nice touch that I always liked but this card design ranks pretty low on my list of Topps’ designs.
This is the list of the 36 Greatest Royals so far in no particular order:
Several more are to come, stay tuned…
Mike Moustakas is having the year the Royals were hoping for, the only problem is several of his teammates aren’t. Here is a 1979 Topps custom card of Moustakas.
Why 1979 Topps? Well I got some love from a 1979 Topps blog. Larry over at http://1979topps.blogspot.com/ selected my little custom card blog as his Royals blog for posting a nice Steve Mingori card. He gives a nice review of the card and some extensive background. Go over to his site and check it out.
I can’t believe he is a Royal again.
As much as I would like Aaron Crow to be the dominant pitcher he was in the first half of last year, there just aren’t many signs of it. He hasn’t been the same since the “baulk-off” against the White Sox last year. Opening Day did not go well for him this year and if he doesn’t turn things around in his next 4-5 outings we will be seeing him pitch in Omaha.
Not surprisingly Clint Robinson will begin the 2012 season in AAA for the Omaha Storm Chasers. His hitting is major league ready but their is once again no room in Kansas City for him with Eric Hosmer and Billy Butler filling the First Base and DH roles.
Irving Falu has spent a few years “one call away” now for the Kansas City Royals. He will likely never be a starting shortstop or second baseman in the big leagues over a long stretch but has the potential to be an excellent utility man. The Royals signed Yuniesky Betancourt over the offseason to fill that role so it looks like once again Falu will remain “one call away.” I am not a Yuni fan (like most Royals fans) so I hope Falu finds his way to the majors in 2012. I think he is a more adequate backup for the infield positions than Yuni defensively and that is typically what you want in a utility guy, not offense. 
Royals likely opening day starting pitcher Luke Hochevar.
So Alcides Escobar was locked down by the Royals today through at least 2015. I’ll just say this: I love this signing.
A Hair Off Square 