New Royals Chair & CEO John Sherman's life is "changed now forever" in becoming the lead investor and face of the club's 17-man ownership group, as he will be the "one held publicly accountable for the results," according to Sam Mellinger of the K.C. STAR. The Royals are "not new to Sherman," as he has "been a season ticket-holder for years." But Sherman is "new to the Royals." The people who now work for him are "only getting to know him, even as he's followed their careers from a distance." Sherman at the moment is "doing more listening than dictating, more supporting than directing." After four years as a "sort of owner-in-waiting" with the Indians, Sherman is "more than qualified for the gig." Sherman said of his new role, "I want to be a good teammate. A teammate where we hold each other accountable." Meanwhile, the Royals have a "handshake deal on a new television contract that is expected to boost annual revenues" by $20M or more. An MLB owner's "effectiveness is often distilled publicly to a team's big-league payroll, and if fans are hoping that Sherman's group will spend in ways" that former late Owner David Glass "didn't, they will almost certainly be disappointed." Sherman said, "(The TV contract) gives us more flexibility. It gives us more flexibility to invest when we're ready. I would expect us to be moving up (in payroll) certainly from where we are now. Certainly if we have a competitive team and we’re ready this ownership group will do all we can to make sure this team is competitive" (K.C. STAR, 2/24).
HIGH PRAISE: In K.C., Lynn Worthy noted both Indians manager Terry Francona and President of Baseball Operations Chris Antonetti "lauded" Sherman as a "great addition to Royals leadership." Francona said of Sherman, "He is really good. He's very astute. He asks good questions. ... My interactions with him were extremely enjoyable." Francona added that Sherman "always seemed to be taking notes and asking smart questions about what they were doing organizationally without ever being overbearing." Antonetti said that Sherman was "a 'thought partner'" for Indians Chair & CEO Paul Dolan when they "faced significant issues or decisions, including baseball decisions such as trades." Antonetti: "He's such a curious person and he’s a lifelong learner, so he always sought to understand why we did things, how we did things to really understand is there potentially a better way or is there potentially a different way to look at a problem and develop a creative solution." Worthy noted Sherman "spent most" of last week at Royals Spring Training in Arizona (K.C. STAR, 2/23).
