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So let's just say that you wanted to model the 2016 M's after the Kansas City Royals.  Which DiPoto has kinda done.  He knows the inner circle of baseball value is K, BB, and HR, though he hasn't stated that exactly.  He believes the second circle of baseball value is defense and speed, and he has stated that exactly.  

He emphasizes that the third circle is winning all the other battles, as we grok from DiPoto's two-handed powerflush of Lloyd McClendon.  Scott Servais will not be crumpling DiPoto's pregame techie reports and playing "21" with them in his office wastebasket.

To look at it another way:  DiPoto's job is create a good 25-man roster.  That's the BB's, K's, HR's - the ability.  Servais' job is to turn them into a ballclub, a team that wins the "Hustle Board" of steals, blocks, and offensive boards.  As the Royals showed us, that Hustle Board is more relevant than ever.  Somehow, Dr. D is glad to hear that.  He couldn't quite tell you why.

Just real quickly here, DiPoto inherits the following commodities, and here's how Dr. D fits them into the above 3-circle paradigm:

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Marte ... SS (?) ... +. .... 6 EYE as rook.  +4 plays at SS.  Faster than, say, Montero.

Smith ... RF/LF ... = ... .48 EYE.  Not athletic.

Cano ... 2B ... ++ ... Solid EYE, great hitter for a defensive position

Cruz  ... DH  ... + ... Solid EYE considering he is the Jimmie Foxx of the moment.  Shelf life unknown

Seager ... 3B ... ++ Excellent EYE, good hitter at D spot ... "crisp ballplayer"

Trumbo ... 1B ... - ... Fails all this shtick

LoMo  ... 1B  ... -/= ... Sigh.  Looks better from this camera angle than Trumbo does

FGuti ... LF ... +/= ... Athletic for a LF; good "ballplayer"

Miller ... LF/RF ... +/=  ... Fast & athletic if and only if playing other than CF; EYE is ok (could use platoon)

Montero ... DH/1B ... - ... Does nothing Royally well    

Felix ... SP1 ... +++ ... The basis for a TEAM winning the strike zone

Iwakuma ... SP2 ... ++ ... See above

Taijuan ... SP3 ... ++ ... This DiPoto paradigm makes him look GREAT (remember Stars & Scrubs)

Paxton ... SP4 ... = ... Not a DiPoto/Royals "style" of player but remember, you can be wrong style, great player

Elias ... SP5 ... - ... Talented but either you coach up his personality or you shed him    

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The bullpen?  First you get Furbush back, who is a bona fide lockdown 8th-inning lefthander.  You've nominally got Wilhelmsen in the closer role, which is meh.  Tony Zych is main guy out there who shows promise of a Royals-style lockdown 10K, 3BB short man.  A handful of other options exist, and the main problem is making sure that none of them are Joe Beimel.

Main thing we wanted to point out was --- > if you want a particular KIND of player, one who will go Rah-Rah at Servais' remodel and who will play reasonably well around the core, there is no reason in the world it should be hard to do so.  Dunno whether it starts with a Denard Span type in CF, whether Shawn O'Malley might be a key for #5 outfielder, whether Nori Aoki fits as a cheap player in the anti-Jack-Cust mold, but ...

.... DiPoto has a very, very do-able job.  The 2015 M's went in as the favorites in the American League.  If his job is just to get them playing like a ballclub, it's nice that he is able to use the outfield as his renovation turf.

BABVA,

Dr. D