Fantasy Forces:
CF-Carlos Beltran(25) With the unexpected surge in production from Ibanez, Beltran was allowed to get out of the three spot, as Sweeney moved up one, and slide back up  into the #2 hole.  He will hit there again this year and is on the verge of establishing himself as one of the game's biggest five-tool threats.  All he did last year was break Mickey Mantle's 36-year-old AL record for extra-base hits by a switch-hitter as well as set a career-best in steals.  The current career leader for steal percentage, he is a future 40-40 candidate and will consistently be over .300.  A free agent in '04, he may find himself elsewhere next year.  
1B-Mike Sweeney(29)  Before Sweeney decided to stay in Kansas City he must have thought long and hard about the limelight he would receive had he gone to a bigger market.  Instead, he remains to live in relative obscurity amid the Royals lineup.  Nonetheless, he is known here and is clearly one of the top hitters in the game today, holding a .309 career mark including .340 last year as he just missed his first batting title.  While he doesn't look like a 30-homerun hitter he will get his share of long balls and again be near the top of the leaderboard in almost every offensive category, though the lack of support around him in the Royals lineup will limit his overall production.

Supporting Cast:
RP-Jason Grimsley(35)  Grimsley goes into the '03 season as the oldest member of the Royals roster, outdistancing Mayne by 10 months.  Since winning two championships in New York he has seen his team win just 127 games.  With the bullpen being as inexperienced as the rotation, Grimsley will be the prime target in the set-up role.  Although a closer will be established in spring training, Grimsley is just 4 of 19 in career save opportunities and will likely avoid the role of stopper.  
RF-Raul Ibanez(30)  Perhaps no one in the bigs caused as much stir as Ibanez, a career .255 hitter prior to '02 who headed into June hitting just .216.  From that day on, the former catcher hit .314 and more importantly avoided the minor leagues for the first time in his 11-year professional career.  With a major-league leading 31 RBIs in July, he assured himself of full-time duties in right where he should make further strides this season across the board.
SP-Albie Lopez(31)  Lopez comes over after failing in his bid to hold down a rear spot in the Braves rotation in '02, getting just 4 starts and an expanded relief role.  Like May, he will be asked to provide leadership for the young guns in the rotation and although he won't see as many team wins as he did in Atlanta the task itself should be within his bounds.  A duplicate of his '01 season with the Devil Ray's is very possible though not very attractive. 
SP-Darrell May(30)  The only potential starter besides Lopez over 24, May returned from 4 years in Japan to hold a spot in the rotation although the results were not very pretty as he watched balls leave the yard at an alarming rate of one every 4.69 innings.  However, the southpaw's maturity will be needed to add years to the young rotation and he will fit there in '03.   
3B-Joe Randa(33)  While Randa continues to supply steady production, he has seen his homeruns decrease 3 straight seasons to a meager 11 last year.  A career .285 hitter, he generally hits out of the fifth hole, which makes the dropoff even more alarming.  After having a trade to the Cubs nixed by president Dan Glass, the Royals are stuck with Randa's big contract and middle of the road production.

Past Their Prime:
C-Brent Mayne(34)  While the sun is setting on Mayne's 13-year career, his focus this year will be to develop the young arms abundantly present on the Royals staff.  Any offensive production will be minimal and he will likely be given every third day off if not more.

Better Days Ahead:
SP-Jeremy Affeldt(23)  Affeldt made his major league debut last year and had just made his way into the rotation when he was sidelined with blister and nail problems, keeping him out for two months.  In the meantime, he was fairly successful in his rookie season, starting 7 games while allowing just over a hit an inning although past control problems rose up, partially as a result of his injuries.  Slated to be a part of the rotation this year, he suffered a recurrence of the blister in winter league action, making his spot in the rotation questionable for early season.  
SP-Miguel Asencio(22)  Following a solid campaign at Clearwater, the Royals snagged Asencio in the Rule 5 draft and put him on their major league roster for the season.  Known to have periodical control problems, he was overcome by them in his debut as he threw sixteen straight balls before exiting.  He has good stuff so the Royals will be patient with his development and with his Rule 5 status running out, he may spend most of '03 in the minors if he can't break the rotation.  
SS-Angel Berroa(25)  Coming over in the deal for Jermaine Dye and Johnny Damon in '01, Berroa had an impressive September that was supposed to pave the way for a bigger role last season.  However, the organization's top prospect aged two years in the offseason during the visa sting, then on top of that suffered a knee injury that kept him out for most of the first half.  When he returned he was clearly behind, hitting just .215 with mind-boggling strikeout totals at Omaha.  Convinced he is over the debacle of '02, the Royals dumped Perez and Alicea to make room for Berroa as the full-time shortstop, where he will hit low in the lineup and surely need a season or more to adjust. 
SP-Chris George(23)  Another of the talented young lefties on the cusp of stardom, George has struggled through two stints with the Royals the last two years.  With an impressive three-pitch repetoire, he only needs to gain confidence in his stuff and learn to take the out anyway he can get it as he did throughout his developmental years.  Like Hernandez and Affeldt, the Royals seem content to let him learn on the big league level as long as he can perform in the spring.  
1B-Ken Harvey(25)  Like many of the prospects littering the upper ranks of the Kansas City farm system, Harvey endured a dropoff last season.  Hitting no lower than .335 at four stops prior to last year, the rotund slugger hit just .277 at Omaha before lighting up the Arizona Fall League to the tune of .479.  With the potential to win a future batting title, Harvey will battle for a bulk of the DH duty and is a darkhorse for ROY honors.
SP-Runelvys Hernandez(24)  Only a year ago Hernandez was a 20-year-old gunner starting the climb through the ranks.  A victim of the visa crackdown, now he is a 24-year-old nearly assured of a spot in the Royals rotation after making 12 starts with good success in '02.  With a good fastball and effective change, Hernandez has good control when he wants to, while having the physical build to be an intimidating presence on the mound.  While he is no longer ROY eligible, Hernandez is surely one of the top young pitchers in the AL.  
CL-Jeremy Hill(25)  Drafted in the fifth round in '96, Hill struggled for for 5 minor league seasons to establish himself as a catcher before converting to his current role.  His feisty demeanor carries over to a mid-90s fastball but he has no other big league quality pitches to back it up.  Never the less, the Royals have liked what they see and given his age are ready to throw him to the wolves.  With last year's closer out of the scene, Hill will be one of a few competing for a closing role although a committee is not out of the question.  If he does become the stopper he is a ROY candidate and could eventually turn into a poor man's Billy Wagner.

Risky Business:
2B-Carlos Febles(26)  Breaking in the same year as Beltran, Febles was once thought to have similar potential creating a lethal one-two punch atop the lineup.  Unfortunately, what was a respectable rookie campaign has become a disappointing trend as his career hangs in the balance.  He will once again leadoff but security is not certain if cannot improve his .283 OBP.  What was once a promising career could quickly be washed out.  
OF-Mark Quinn(28)   Like Beltran, Quinn is a former ROY (2000) but like Febles he has seen a bright beginning turn into a questionable future.  Betrayed by health and consistancy, he slumped through a disappointing '01 season before missing nearly all of last year with rib, hamstring and ankle injuries...two of which were non-baseball related.  With Ibanez's bustout season, Quinn stands little chance of playing right field although he should be the primary denizen in left.  
LF-Dee Brown(25)   While Berroa's star seems to be still high in the sky, Brown's is about to flame out.  With tremendous power potential, his minor league production has been the only thing keeping this future DH afloat although his history as a big leaguer has proved nothing to the point.  Out of options and his team in the midst of a youth movement, he will be given a spot on the roster and battle Quinn for time in left although it's better to keep him off the field entirely.

The Final Cut:
With 197 losses the last two years, Pena's aim will be on what he knows best, continuing the maturation period of his young arms.  With pitching coach John Cumberland and Mayne in the fold, the departure of the Royal's only two 5-win pitchers last year there will be ample exposure to let everyone get a taste of the bigs.  While Sweeney and Beltran are established commodities, Berroa and Harvey appear to pack a world of potential but will have set out to prove the hype is warranted.  While it is apparent there won't be many wins this season for the Royals faithful, the older generation will see similarities to the young fuzzy faced slingers who graced the Kansas City hill in the early 80's And a year later we watched Bret Saberhagen, Danny Jackson and Mark Gubizca bring a world championship home to Missouri.