What's the deal with the Royals?

The other day, Steve and I were chatting about the current state of the AL Central (he has Octavio Dotel fever). The Tigers seem to be scary, adding Edgar Renteria, Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis. They don't seem to have any obvious holes, except maybe in the outfield, and now have a young 300 pound superstar. Sure, they mortgaged their future, but when the Tigers suck in 4-5 years again, at least they will have some good playoff runs to look back on.
The Indians haven't really done anything, and why should they have? They have a solid young core that won the division last year (only a year later than I anticipated) and are only getting better.. They may be the best team in baseball that nobody talks about.
The White Sox, the team giving Steve the fever, have quietly been stockpiling some young talent as well, to go along with some of their veterans. They added Orlando Cabrera, Nick Swisher and Carlos Quentin to the team and will likely be scoring 8 runs a game, which is good, because they will give up about as many. How long until the pitching squad is addressed on the South Side?
Then there are the Twins who have made a few interesting acquisitions, namely the Matt Garza for Delmon Young swap. Who saw that coming? It addresses a primary concern for the Twins. They can't hit. They also signed a third baseman and a slick fielding shortstop to replace Jason Bartlett in Mike Lamb and Adam Everett. It's nice to see a GM who addresses issues instead of hordes prospects. There still is the big gorilla in the room, Johan Santana, who will probably be traded before Spring Training. That could change everything.
But what about the Royals? I've heard their name brought up in rumors regarding anyone from Torii Hunter to Bartolo Colon. Interesting. I didn't think the Royals were just one player away, or that a couple of veterans would suddenly catapult Kansas City into contention. Are they? After closer inspection of the Royals roster, I have discovered that, in fact, no, they are nowhere near contention. Even with Jose Guillen. Their pitching staff is anemic. They have Gil Meche and Brett Tomko as veterans, and Brian Bannister and Zach Greinke as up and coming starters, but are totally devoid of a bullpen. Besides. Brett Tomko? Seriously? On the offensive side, they have all manner of vaunted prospects, like Alex Gordon, Mike Teahen and John Buck, but they never seem to work out. The Royals have innumerable holes.
So why are they working so hard to patch them? In my opinion, it would make more sense to develop and KEEP young talent, rather than trade it for younger talent. It makes more sense that they should try to show that it's ok to stay in Kansas City. Don't be offering up David Dejesus. Try to keep him.
But what do I know? Dayton Moore is apparently a good GM, and to convince David Glass that they should be spending money is certainly a feat in itself, but I wonder if he's not doing so a little recklessly.