Major League Baseball mandates that teams play out the games scheduled in September, regardless how far out of contention they are. Players are contractually obligated to play in those games.

Fans, on the other hand, are under no obligation to watch or listen to those games, check the box scores, or to give any regard whatsoever to what happens.

Most fans of the Kansas City Royals have moved on, as of last Sunday, to football season, and rightly so. But still, the baseball games go on. And a lot has happened, and will happen, this September that is worthy of note.

New Ownership:

The sale of the Royals to Kansas City businessman John Sherman requires approval at the league meeting this winter. But with that approval essentially guaranteed, Sherman can get a jumpstart this fall on deciding the direction of the franchise. He’ll certainly be paying close attention to the product on the field, as well as evaluating what help can be realistically expected from the minor league system.

Little is known about Sherman’s plans for the team as it is currently constituted. There are rumors that he’ll keep general manager Dayton Moore in some capacity. Whether or not manager Ned Yost returns for another season remains to be seen.

Sherman’s evaluation, and his philosophy toward spending on free agents (to this point unknown) will affect the futures of several current Royals. Should Alex Gordon be brought back for a swan song? Should the team lock slugger Jorge Soler up long term? Should veterans Whit Merrifield, Danny Duffy and Ian Kennedy be traded for prospects?

Roster Expansion:

Major league teams are expanding their rosters in a big way for the last time this September. By rule, teams have been permitted to bring anyone on their 40-man roster up to the big leagues on September 1. If a club so desired, it could fill its dugout with prospects and give them a chance to gain experience on the big stage.

The tradition of roster expansion in September allows a handful of men every year to realize the dream of playing in the major leagues who would otherwise never make it. For all the players called up, the expansion allows them to showcase their abilities for future opportunities.

Backup catcher Nick Dini was called up to Kansas City earlier in the summer due to an injury to Cam Gallagher. But Dini knows what September roster expansion means to fringe players like himself.

“It’s huge. You play the whole season with the hopes of getting to play in the big leagues,” Dini said. “All the work you put in during the offseason, and during the season, it’s all for this, to get to get to the big leagues and show what you can do. September is a huge opportunity that we all want to take advantage of.”

Dini admitted part of the challenge of September call-ups is that playing time for so many players is limited. Men accustomed to playing every day suddenly find themselves sitting on the bench for days at a time.

“It’s tough but that’s part of being a professional,” the 26-year-old catcher said. “When it’s your turn to play, you’ve got to be ready to play. The days when you aren’t playing, you’ve got to put the work in to make sure you’re ready to go when your name is called.”

The rule of September roster expansion was recently amended. Starting next season, teams will only be allowed to expand their rosters to 28. Dini said this fact is well known to minor leaguers.

“Guys are aware of (the change) and how it’s going to affect opportunities. That’s 12 less slots for each team, so 12 less opportunities for guys to get called up. But that’s what’s going on. There’s nothing you can do about it. My mentality has been just to go out and prepare, and if, God willing, it happens, then you’re ready to go.”

The Royals’ September call-ups include utility player Erick Mejia and pitchers Gabe Speier and Jesse Hahn. Each has a good shot at being on the roster next summer, so this exposure should accelerate their learning curve.

Keller On Ice:

The Royals announced in late August that it would limit pitcher Brad Keller’s innings and pitch count. The team indicated that Keller still had a ways to go in the season, but it hinted at concern for the 24-year-old’s health. He got blasted on August 26, and that was all the Royals needed to immediately shut Keller down.

“It was a consensus among the coaches that it’s what I needed,” Keller said. “It sucks, from the competitive side. You always want to go out there and compete with the boys. But it’s like a stepping stone for the future. They’re looking out for my best interest, and I agree with what they’re doing. So I just have to (accept it) and keep moving forward.”

Keller’s absence in the starting rotation will open up opportunities for others. Giving starts to Jorge Lopez will open up relief opportunities for Speier, Hahn and others. The final month should see Kyle Zimmer, Josh Staumont and Eric Skoglund get a long look in the bullpen.

“I’m really excited to see how we do in September and what the other guys can do,” said Keller. “It’s a showcase. It’s going to give them a chance to get their feet wet, to get an understanding of what it’s like to play in the big leagues, on and off the field.”

Minor League Playoffs:

When the prospects that eventually won the 2015 World Series worked their way up through the farm system, a premium was placed on winning minor league championships. The franchise wanted the Royals of the future to learn to win together. New prospects, now at the lower levels of the minors, are reviving the winning tradition.

The Wilmington Blue Rocks, a club flush with premium prospects, is competing this weekend for the high A classification Carolina League championship. Meanwhile the lower A-ball Lexington Legends are playing for a South Atlantic League title. And down at the Royals Dominican Academy, a collection of Latin American prospects claimed the Dominican Summer League championship.

Fall League Action:

Some of the Royals’ top prospects in the minors will get additional seasoning in the Arizona Fall League. Brewer Hicklen and Kyle Isbel, seen by the Royals as outfielders of the future, will be joined by versatile slugger Gabriel Cancel. Pitcher Daniel Lynch, considered the Royals #3 prospect, will see some additional innings in Arizona to make up for time lost due to injury earlier in the summer. Lynch will be accompanied in Arizona by fellow pitching prospects Daniel Tillo and Tad Ratliff.

Throughout the Kansas City Royals’ youth movement of 2011 to 2013, the championship teams of 2014 and 2015, and now the current rebuild, one thing remained constant – elite play at the catcher spot.

Early on, Salvador Perez flew under the radar as the heralded group of prospects, including Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, and Danny Duffy, progressed through the minor leagues. But once they reached the majors, he exceeded them all. Perez has won five Gold Gloves, two Silver Slugger awards as the top hitter at his position, and played in six all-star games. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2015 World Series.

But as Robert Frost once wrote, nothing gold can stay, not even a Gold Glove catcher. Sooner or later (depending upon how the Royals handle his next contract negotiation), Perez will eventually have to be replaced. One of the biggest downfalls of the Royals organization has been its inability to backfill for stars like Hosmer, Moustakas and Lorenzo Cain when they inevitably moved on.

That void appeared to rear its head at catcher this spring when Perez was unexpectedly derailed by an arm injury. In lieu of handing the catching duties to backup Cam Gallagher or promoting a minor leaguer prematurely, they signed fellow Gold Glove winner Martin Maldonado as a one-year stand in for Perez. So the play at catcher in Kansas City continues at an elite level, but only on defense. Maldonado is no match for Perez with the bat.

Perez’ injury may be a signal that the end is near. He is expected back next season, but age and injuries will cause the Royals to think long and hard about extending his contract.

In the long run, replacing Perez may not be as difficult as one might fear. The Royals actually appear to have an enviable collection of prospects who may be ready to step in when the next opportunity arises. Of the organization’s top 30 prospects, three are catchers. At nearly every level of the minors, there is at least one, if not more, heralded receiver striving to eventually emerge from Perez’ imposing shadow.

“I spent a lot of time with them (in spring training) and got to watch them go about their business. They look pretty good,” Gallagher said about the minor leaguers who gathered in Surprise, Ariz. prior to the season.

Gallagher described catcher as a position that requires a studious and thoughtful approach.

“There’s a lot that goes into it and at each level that you go up, there’s more preparation that goes in,” said the 26-year-old backstop. “There’s more information available and the game planning becomes more detailed. You have got to do your homework in order to be ready.

“The main priority is behind the plate – handling the pitching staff, having a game plan, calling a good game. Those are the things that don’t show up in the box score. I feel like I’m just getting the hang of it.

“Development defensively just takes a lot of time. Up here, the bat is always a plus. If you get a catcher who can really catch and hit, he’s an All-Star.”

An All-Star like Perez. Topping the list of prospects to follow in Perez’ footsteps is MJ Melendez, the organization’s third rated prospect. Drafted in the second round in 2017, Melendez was recently ranked the seventh best catching prospect in all the minor leagues by MLB.com.

“I spent a little time with him this spring, and he’s got some off-the-charts tools,” Gallagher said. “He’s still maybe a little bit raw, but he’s going to be a really good player.”

Melendez’ development may take longer than prospect watchers initially hoped. Promoted to the high-A level this season, Melendez has flailed miserably at the plate. His progress will be slowed dramatically until he gets the problem rectified.

Recently making a huge jump in the eyes of talent evaluators was Melendez’ current teammate Sebastian Rivero. The 20-year-old native of Venezuela (which also produced Perez) is ranked 27^th amongst Royals prospects, and is splitting the catching duties with Melendez at Wilmington.

“This spring I was most impressed with Rivero, honestly,” Gallagher said. “He went about his business the right way. I really respect the way he handled himself. He may not get quite the attention that some of the other guys do, but he came in and did really well. I think he’s going to be a really good player.”

Another defense-first catcher, Meibrys Viloria, has a jump on Melendez and Rivero in that he’s already donned the Royals’ uniform. When the Royals traded Drew Butera and needed a fill-in for Perez last season, they elevated Viloria all the way from A-ball to the big leagues. He played 10 games as a 21-year-old, gaining valuable insight into what it takes to play at the highest level. But when Perez went down in the spring, the Royals believed Viloria needed more seasoning in the minors, necessitating the signing of Maldonado.

The problem is, like Melendez, Rivero and Viloria have struggled mightily with the bat in 2019. None of the three merits a promotion midseason. In fact, of all the Royals’ minor league catchers, only the Omaha Storm Chasers’ Nick Dini is having a good season at the plate. But the 25-year-old Dini is not considered much of a prospect.

One dramatic twist could drastically change the outlook for the catcher position. Adley Rutschman, catcher at Oregon State, has long been considered the top prospect in the 2019 draft. So much so, major league teams were tempted to “Play Badly For Adley.”

The Royals hold the second pick and will watch anxiously the selection of the Baltimore Orioles at number one. Should the Orioles, for whatever reason, pass on Rutschman to draft other prospect, the Royals would be in a position to swoop in.

The Royals’ highly regarded collection of catchers need to get it going with the bat if they hope to someday adequately replace the great Salvador Perez. But if the Royals should have the chance to add Rutschman, they might just opt to greatly enhance their present collection of catchers.