12:36pm: The two-year deal is worth $13.5MM, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City (via Twitter).
10:18am: The Royals have signed outfielder Jeff Francoeur to a two-year extension, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). Terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed.
The Royals and Francoeur had a $4MM mutual option for 2012, so this deal buys that out and locks up Francoeur through the 2013 season. The 27-year-old right fielder, a one-time blue-chip prospect, signed with Kansas City in December after he was traded twice in less than two years, going from the Braves to the Mets to the Rangers.
Francoeur was mentioned prominently in trade rumors prior to last month's deadline, but he remained in Kansas City, where he is enjoying a modest renaissance from his nadir in New York. A career .269/.312/.430 hitter, Frenchy has been a bit better than that in 2011, hitting .278/.328/.465.
Francoeur and Royals GM Dayton Moore have always had a strong relationship, going back to their time together in the Braves organization, according to Knobler (Twitter link). Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports first reported last month that a possible extension was in the works.
