Baseball Insider: Buddy Bell's new gig could be a Royal pain

[CincyRedsFan30]

Buddy Bell's new gig could be a Royal pain

By Hal McCoy

Dayton Daily News

DENVER | This week's Baseball Insider is dedicated to losers, without whom there would be no winners. And what better place to start than Kansas City, city of insurance, delectable steaks, scrumptious barbecue and lousy baseball.

When Cincinnati native and former Reds player Buddy Bell accepted the manager's chair last week, he said, "I didn't even know what the Kansas City Royals' record was until today." And then he passed out. It was 13-37, worst in the majors.

Bell is stern, and Royals players say he'll need to be, including former Wright State University pitcher Brian Anderson.

"The No. 1 thing he has to do is change the atmosphere and the attitude. And I don't mean just on the field. He needs to ensure that guys do things the right way," Anderson said. "Rules that have been in place for three years on this team ... how about one time we follow them?"

Pitcher Jose Lima cited a loud-music bus ride after a 14-1 loss.

"Nobody likes music more than me, and I like it loud," he said. "But we just got beat — not beat, we got our butts kicked. And some guys had their iPods turned up so loud we could hear it a few seats away. Have some respect. At least wait until you get to your room."

Said outfielder Matt Stairs, "The biggest challenge is for him to watch all the stuff on the field. I'm tired of hearing that we're playing hard and giving a good effort or that we're just coming up short. That's no excuse. I don't want to hear anybody complaining about the umpire or whatever. We've got 13 wins."

Good luck, Buddy.

Darn Yankees

The Royals won Bell's first three games and entered the weekend with 16 wins, and those three came against our next losers — the New York Yankees. Yes, by their standards they are losers, and Gary Sheffield says it, too.

He compared the current team with the 1990s Yankee teams that blustered and bullied everybody.

"Talent-wise, this team is better. But those guys were willing to get blood on their clothes. They were willing to fight the opponents. They were willing to do anything to win because their jobs were on the line," he said.

"With a team like this, you don't feel like you have to play with a sense of urgency," he added. "I sense that sometimes guys feel like this talent is so good we don't have to run into walls or do something extra to win this ballgame, to take the walk and let somebody else get the hit. The little things are the reasons you lose games, and that is the reason we're losing."

Charging Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies remained last in the NL East as the weekend began, but within a week had cut their deficit from 71/2 games to 31/2 from the top.

And manager Charlie Manuel says, "Here come the Phillies." His team is in the embryonic stage of playing 35 of 48 at home and Manuel added, "We're going to get out of last place, and when we do, we're going to be OK. We're getting out. We've been there long enough."

Fair enough ... except, home isn't always where it's at for the Phillies. Last year, the Phillies were better on the road (44-37) than at home (42-39), and beginning their current stretch of home games they were 10-10 at home.

Fightin' words

Sometimes it is a newspaper's fault. On Wednesday, the Houston Chronicle buried the Astros, claiming their season is finished. The story was illustrated with a drawing of a tombstone on which was inscribed, "RIP 2005 Astros."

Before that night's game against the Cincinnati Reds, manager Phil Garner told the writer he had no issues with the story, then called a clubhouse meeting to discuss an "Us-against-the-world mentality."

Garner was upset about some of the younger players complaining that older, washed-up players are holding them back. And he wanted to know which player laughed at Garner's claim that the team's problems are mental. The player said it wasn't mental, it was talent.

Juan gone, again

After rehabbing his injured hamstring all season, Cleveland's Juan Gonzalez returned to the lineup last week and lasted three pitches. On the third pitch he grounded out ... and injured his hamstring.

Making it worse, to make room for Gonzalez on the roster, the Tribe lost outfielder Ryan Ludwick by designating him for assignment. Ludwick, 26, had hit .333 in his last six games and hit four home runs in his last 30 at-bats.

Gonzalez? His career probably is over.

Let it go

Seattle manager Mike Hargrove, disturbed by fundamental flaws in his team, staged an R-rated meeting after a 5-4 loss to Tampa Bay.

I was hot and let it go," he said. "If I had a nickel for every bad word I threw out there, I could retire. My wife told me I've had more patience with my players than she has with our kids. There is a fine line between being patient and being foolish."

Contact Hal McCoy at hmccoy@DaytonDailyNews.com

[Fishercat]

Woohoo, Matt Stairs quote...that is all.