KANSAS CITY Ryan Goins Jersey , Mo. (AP) — closely to that of Adalberto Mondesi, one of their most touted prospects in years and quite possibly the future of the organization.After shuttling back and forth between the Royals and the minors the previous two seasons, the talented shortstop failed to make the club out of spring training. Once he arrived midway through the year, he went through another month of brutal growing pains.Then something suddenly clicked, and Mondesi went on a tear the final three months of the season, becoming one of the hottest players in the American League.The Royals, who until then were scuffling toward 100-plus losses, likewise caught fire.The club jettisoned many of its aging veterans and plugged in guys like Mondesi, up-and-coming prospects with bright futures. The result was more wins than losses down the stretch, and just as with Mondesi, a very real sense of optimism about what this year could hold.“I was so enthused with the progress we made in the last half of the season last year, how well these kids played,” manager Ned Yost said. “All the hard work they put in every single day when nobody was looking, it finally started to pay off for them the last six weeks. I just think we continue to pick up where we left off. Where we left off is OK.”The Royals are far from a finished project, of course. They have questions just about everywhere on the roster Wily Peralta Jersey , including the starting rotation and bullpen. Pitchers and catchers report Feb. 12 in Surprise, Arizona, and position players join them a few days later.NEW LOOKThe Royals added speed, speed, speed with INF-OF Chris Owings and OF Billy Hamilton joining the fold. Hamilton, Mondesi and Whit Merrifield give them three of MLB’s top eight base-stealers last season.“Power is always an important part of the game. I don’t think with our ballpark and our style of play, that we can live on that,” Royals general manager Dayton Moore said. “We need a balanced team.”ROOKIES TO WATCHRHP Josh Staumont, a second-round pick in 2015, and LHP Richard Lovelady, a 10th-round selection in 2016, appear poised to break through. Staumont had a 3.51 ERA with an excellent strikeout rate at Triple-A Omaha last season, while Lovelady carried a 2.47 ERA at Omaha and could join his fellow prospect in forming the foundation of a formidable bullpen.THEY”RE SETThe Royals are solid up the middle, where Mondesi is entrenched at shortstop and the Royals recently gave second baseman Merrifield a $16.25 million, four-year contract. Salvador Perez isn’t going anywhere behind the plate.“I love Kansas City. I love playing here. It’s where I want to be http://www.royalsfanproshop.com/authentic-ryan-goins-jersey ,” Merrifield said. “This is the organization I’ve been with my whole career. They gave me the opportunity to play in the big leagues.”THEY’RE NOTThere is experience in the rotation with LHP Danny Duffy, RHP Brad Keller, RHP Jakob Junis and RHP Ian Kennedy at the front end, but none of them is necessarily entrenched in their spots. The bullpen is total question mark, though, with perhaps the exception of Wily Peralta at the back end.“Last year, no one really knew what roles they were going to fill,” Keller said. “Now we kind of have roles. I think we’ll be more together and ready to roll early.”ON DECKStyle and substance are the two biggest reasons to watch the Royals ahead of their season opener March 28 against the White Sox. The style part is that Kansas City will likely play an entertaining style predicated on speed and daring, while the substance part of it involves seeing whether a young group of prospects can continue to develop into big leaguers. SEATTLE (AP) James Paxton wanted a healthy return from the disabled list and a chance to beat the first-place Houston Astros.He and the Seattle Mariners got just that with a tidy 2-0 victory Monday night.Paxton excelled in his first start since suffering lower back inflammation in Anaheim on July 12, and he needed to in order to outduel Houston starter Gerrit Cole, who had a perfect game through four innings.Both pitchers traded high-90s fastballs and sharp breaking stuff in a scoreless tie until Nelson Cruz’s two-run double in the sixth inning accounted for all the scoring.”Cole was about as good as you can get, and Pax is out there matching him back and forth,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. ”Probably one of the top pitching games that we’ve seen all year, on both sides of the ball.”Cole (10-3) retired the first 12 batters he faced, striking out six Alex Gordon Jersey , until he hit Cruz with a pitch leading off the fifth. After Segura’s single, Denard Span hit a clean single to right-center, and Cruz lined a first-pitch slider inside third base.Segura scored easily, and the ball caromed off the protruding side wall, allowing Span to narrowly beat catcher Max Stassi’s tag after a strong throw by left fielder Marwin Gonzalez.”He was dealing,” Cruz said of Cole. ”We battled. We found a way to get runners on base. He’s a really tough pitcher to score runs on.”Paxton (9-4) was solid for Seattle, scattering three hits – two of them infield singles – over seven innings. He struck out eight, did not walk a batter, and threw 59 of his 82 pitches for strikes.”He was good,” Astros shortstop Alex Bregman said. ”His fastball was jumping. 12-6 curveball and then a cutter as well. Both pitching performances were pretty dominating tonight, him and Gerrit. We just came up a little short.”Cole allowed four hits over 6 2/3 innings, striking out eight and walking two.Mariners reliever Alex Colome covered the eighth and closer Edwin Diaz pitched the ninth for his 40th save. The Mariners improved to 63-43 and cut the lead of Houston (67-41) in the AL West to three games.FELIX’S FUTUREAmid speculation that Felix Hernandez’s spot in Seattle’s rotation could be in jeopardy, Servais said he and general manager Jerry Dipoto have decided to keep the veteran right-hander in the five-man rotation for the time being. Hernandez is 8-9 with a 5.58 ERA.”That could change, but as of now it’s where we’re at,” Servais said. ”We’ll continue to talk about it. You just want to do what you can to give your club the best chance to win every time out.”TRAINER’S ROOMAstros: SS Carlos Correa http://www.royalsfanproshop.com/authentic-ryan-goins-jersey , who has been on the disabled list since June 26 (lower back soreness), hit off a high-velocity machine and said it went well. He expects to play in minor league rehab games soon. … 2B Jose Altuve, on the DL with right knee soreness since July 26, is in Houston to attend to family matters and is slated to rejoin the team in Los Angeles over the weekend.Mariners: 3B Kyle Seager went on paternity leave Monday, creating the roster spot for Paxton’s return. Servais said Austin Romine would play third in Seager’s absence, which could last another day or two. ”He should enjoy the day with his family,” Servais said of Seager. ”I’ll probably talk to Kyle tonight or tomorrow and see where he’s at family-wise.” … The Mariners made one more move, calling up infielder Zach Vincej from Triple-A Tacoma and optioning first baseman Daniel Vogelbach.UP NEXT:Astros: RHP Charlie Morton (11-2, 2.89) gets the start for Houston on Tuesday. Morton beat the Mariners the only time he faced them this year on April 19 in Seattle, pitching seven scoreless innings and striking out eight while allowing three hits.Mariners: RHP Mike Leake (8-6, 4.15), who starts for Seattle on Tuesday, has thrown seven or more innings in seven of his 21 starts this season, including three outings of eight innings.—