I actually work on SQL Server, but I also write a lot of KQL queries which also work this way and I totally agree that the sequential pipe stuff is easier to write. I haven't read through the whole paper, but one aspect that I really like is that I think it's easier to guide the query optimization in this sequential style.
Given how Entity Framework is quite ubiquitous as "the ORM of choice" for SQL Server and its usage of C# Linq, there's certainly external momentum, whether or not SQL Server devs themselves are paying attention to how the majority of their users are writing queries today.
