Why KC Royals GM J.J. Picollo thinks ‘fairly quiet’ offseason could pay dividends

Kansas City Royals executive vice president and general manager J.J. Picollo and his front office lieutenant knew well before they arrived at the MLB Winter Meetings that the free-agent market might not be the best avenue for them to fill their roster needs.

If free agency isn’t a viable method, Picollo is open to exploring trades. However, he seemed much more inclined to bank on the continued improvement of some of the young players rather than make a deal he thinks weakens the club in the immediate future.

The Royals’ acquisition wish list includes a starting pitcher, a swing pitcher who could start or relieve, a reliable high-leverage reliever and an experienced right-handed hitter who most likely could play multiple infield positions.

As far as making those additions via the trade route?

“We’re very interested in doing it,” Picollo said on Tuesday. “The hard part is finding a partner. At least in our experience so far, what we’d like to do isn’t necessarily what the other club would like to do.

“So trying to find that marriage of their needs and our needs and then agree on players, we haven’t made a lot of production in that sense this week. Hopefully, we’re laying some groundwork for weeks to come, months to work.”

While free agency will be the first option because it’s a much easier transaction to execute — the matter of making a deal with an individual player as opposed to working out a swap with one of the 29 other teams — several players who aren’t at an elite level have signed hefty contracts this winter.

The high price to acquire free agents may force teams to explore trades. For the Royals, Picollo said, it has to “be part of the equation” for filling their needs this offseason.

“When you’re working with somewhat of a limited payroll, that’s the other route you could go because the free-agent dollars are going to get you so far,” Picollo said. “That’s why we have to be open to it, and we have.”

Not afraid to hold steady

Picollo also indicated he wouldn’t be adverse to heading into next season with a roster largely similar to how it currently stands, heavy on youth and inexperience — particularly in the pitching staff — and with veterans sprinkled into key spots.

“We might be in a position where this year is going to be fairly quiet overall because of where our guys are and who we’re committed to, and then next year may just be more active for us,” Picollo said. “I don’t know. That can change in a moment’s notice.”

While some fans may bristle at the idea of returning much of the roster intact after a last-place finish, the Royals changed over their active roster as well as their 40-man roster significantly over the course of last season as well as this offseason.

Picollo isn’t buying into the idea that the Royals have to overhaul their roster drastically further this winter in order to compete.

“I think if we could reshape it a little bit, that would be great,” Picollo said. “But when I look around our field, I mean (Salvador Perez) is catching, Bobby (Witt Jr.) should be our shortstop, you’ve got Nicky (Lopez) and (Michael) Massey in the middle as well, Michael Taylor in center and then we’ve got the options in the outfield.

“We don’t look at that team and say that’s not a team that could be competitive. But they do have to improve in some areas.”

Picollo pointed to the recent and past success of teams in Cleveland, Tampa Bay and the latest Royals championship incarnation as examples of teams that have built largely from within and relied on continued development of their own players.

“You’re not talking about pulling off the impossible,” Picollo said. “You’ve just got to be patient and deliberate in what you want to do.”

Incremental improvement

Picollo and new manager Matt Quatraro appear in lockstep with their emphasis on “incrementally” getting better.

In the case of their young position players, led by MJ Melendez and Witt Jr., that means better “swing decisions” in pursuit of consistently better on-base percentages.

For the young starting pitchers, specifically the 2018 draft class that included Brady Singer, Kris Bubic, Daniel Lynch, Jackson Kowar and Jonathan Heasley, it’s a matter of “living in the strike zone.”

“It’s hard to get guys to the big leagues, and they’ve gotten to the big leagues,” Picollo said. “Now, you want guys to start separating themselves.

“So if we just give them the time, hopefully it’s in that six-year window that they hit (their) stride for three or four years, preferably, where they are going into the prime of their careers and we’ll benefit from that.”

This season, the Royals’ pitching staff finished ranked at or near the bottom of the majors in ERA (4.70, 27th of 30), walks (590, 29th), walks plus hits per innings pitched (1.47, 30th), opponent batting average (.271, 29th), strikeouts per nine innings (7.57, 28th), walks per 9 (3.74, 29th) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.02, 30th).

“You always step forward by pitching, getting people out is what wins games,” Quatraro said. “I think that’s where we’re going to look to make our biggest strides on the pitching side.

“I think it’s exciting because the guys that are going to make those strides are the guys that are already here, for the most part. So that’s pretty cool to know that they’ve gotten those reps under their belt. Some of them have taken some lumps. Some are really aware of why they have and what they need to improve on.”