Earlier today, reading one of the endless stories about Greinke, what he might want and whether he could handle playing in NY, etc, I was wondering what Greinke might be thinking during all this. It must be odd, being the focus of so much speculation. Well, now one thing appears more clearly: he really really wants out of KC, as reports are that he has asked to be traded after switching agents. Not sure what my feelings are about this. One thing I am certain about is that I wish Greinke’s exit from KC were more graceful or less acrimonious or something.

The leverage thing bothers me a lot. I get that he wants out, but it would be nice for him to show us some love, stay quiet throughout the process, and let DM negotiate for the best possible package. Unlike others, I don’t berate Greinke for wanting to leave KC — many before have wanted the same — but tanking the club’s leverage just to speed up the process seems unwarranted. Part of the business…maybe. I don’t know. It just feels disloyal and kind of mean (a word, I know, that might not have any place in baseball anymore, disloyal, that is).

You know what, my feelings on this are still unsettled. But I can reckon two things for certain: (1) Greinke has been one of my favorite Royals since the teams of my childhood; and (2) his exit is beginning to feel harsh.

Maybe I should direct more anger at DM for allowing such a culture of negativity to continue in KC. His ML moves really have been odd, counterproductive and often just plain bad baseball.

Yes, that makes sense, and with one part of my head I agree. But it is difficult for me to separate the actions of an agent from the wishes/thinking of the player. Particularly in this instance because Greinke fired his old agent and then his new guy immediately went on the offensive. It feels like this new agent is a war time consigliere, and that Greinke has decided to blast his way out of town (not certain whether that is a mixed metaphor, but I am sticking with it).

Looking forward to discussion about the Greinke trade. It looks to me like DM said, “I want a SS and a CF,” and went out and got them. Hope he got the best deal available.

Major coup for the Brewers. They just went from no rotation to one of the best in the NL Central. Greinke, Marcum and Gallardo, with their offense, should make things an interesting three-team competition in the Central next season.

Not certain what to think about our side. So far I don’t see an impact player among the four. But maybe that is okay.

Escobar is a very good player, and someone that can be controlled for the next few years. I like the pick up of Lorenzo Cain – he was rated as their 8th best prospect and should be a solid leadoff hitter. Plus, getting rid of Yuni makes this deal even better. It seems that Moore realized that his value would never be any higher, and struck as soon as he could.

Sorry, meant 360 wOBA for Cain.

People will probably rush to trash this trade. With names like Montero and Drabek and Perez thrown around all offseason, returning a bunch of relative unknowns from Milwaukee probably isn’t that exciting. And, really, I still don’t see an impact player in the bunch. But I am trying to avoid a knee-jerk reaction, and these players are beginning to look better. At the very least they all look like ML-caliber players, and that is quite good.

Still not certain how I will eventually feel. Starting to feel better though.

so now… worst rotation in MLB? Worst lineup? Hope the success rate of our “Top 10″ prospects is a little higher than Escobar’s OBP last year. I also wonder about the league effects distorting this trade… I think Greinke will likely destroy the NL, and not sure what effect the AL might have on Escobar’s performance short term.