Royals Notes: Santana, Moore, Francoeur, Deadline

Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star recently took the time to answer a vast array of Twitter questions from his followers and write them up in a Q&A. Here are some highlights from the piece…

• No matter how well Danny Duffy pitches in Triple-A as he recovers from Tommy John surgery, the team won't part with Ervin Santana if they're in contention. Should they fall out of the race, the Royals would likely make Santana available if they received an offer they deemed more valuable than a compensatory draft pick, suggesting that the Royals are planning on making Santana a qualifying offer this offseason.
• Dutton doesn't get any sense from the Royals organization that general manager Dayton Moore is on a short lease, though he concedes that if the team is struggling at this time next year, that could change.
• Dutton expects the recently DFA'ed Jeff Francoeur to clear waivers and sign with another team as opposed to a trade or Frenchy accepting a minor league assignment.
• It's still not clear if the Royals will be buyers at the deadline, though Dutton expects them to look hard at additions. However, he calls the odds of them making a big move "slim."
• Lefty Noel Arguelles could lose his 40-man roster spot this offseason if the Royals are in need of a roster spot. Kansas City gave the Cuban lefty a five-year, $7MM deal in 2009, but he has produced just a 5.24 ERA in 283 2/3 minor league innings to date. The 23-year-old has more walks than strikeouts in 179 2/3 career innings for Double-A Northwest Arkansas.