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Quick Hits: Royals, Jennings, Rule 5 Draft

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As everyone enjoys their Thanksgiving leftovers, here are a few items to serve as dessert…

  • The Royals would "much prefer" to trade prospects to acquire starting pitching and don't want to move Wil Myers or any of their top regulars, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star.  The Royals are "willing to listen," however.  We heard earlier tonight that K.C. was shopping some of its top position players in search of frontline pitchers.
  • In an appearance on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM's Inside Pitch show, Marlins assistant GM Dan Jennings told hosts Jim Bowden and Casey Stern that the club's standing with both Major League and minor league free agents has changed in the wake of the controversial trade with the Blue Jays and the accusations of broken promises from Mark Buehrle.  "We know that that is an issue.  It's out there," Jennings said.  "We probably will have to look at our policy of [not] granting no-trades, if it's something that we look to remove, [or] do you look to put more money on the front end [of contracts]? I think there's a lot of ways to address that."
  • The Baseball America staff looks ahead to the Rule 5 draft, listing both players who could be drafted and five players who were somewhat surprising additions to their teams' 40-man rosters.
  • As "Black Friday" comes to an end, USA Today's Jorge L. Ortiz lists Brandon McCarthy, Scott Hairston, Kyle Farnsworth, Ryan Theriot and Shaun Marcum as lower-priced free agents who could prove to be bargains.
  • Of recent teams who jumped from sub-.500 records to the playoffs in a year's time, MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince notes that none did so after splurging on free agents, instead relying on trades and international signings to remake their rosters.

Passan’s Latest: Myers, Fowler, Asdrubal, McCarthy

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The Royals have been shopping top prospect Wil Myers but only in exchange for starting pitching, reports Yahoo Sports' Jeff Passan.  Earlier this week, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald reported that Kansas City was known to be at least listening to offers for Myers and top position players like Alex Gordon, Billy Butler, Mike Moustakas and Eric Hosmer.  The only untouchable Royals appear to be Alcides Escobar and Salvador Perez due to their team-friendly contracts — "executives consider [Perez's deal] the best in the game," Passan writes.

The Royals have discussed trades with the Rays, Mariners, Diamondbacks and Athletics, Passan reports.  While Myers would be of interest to any team, he is of particular value to low-payroll teams like the Rays and A's given that Gordon and Butler have large contracts and Moustakas/Hosmer are Scott Boras clients.

Here are some more items from Passan…

  • The Rockies' asking price for Dexter Fowler is "absurd," one rival executive tells Passan.  It appears to be a buyers' market for center fielders right now, though another executive warns that "it will shake out" as the offseason progresses.
  • The Indians are shopping Asdrubal Cabrera, though "not at Black Friday prices," an executive says.  Cabrera is one of a few shortstops on the trade market, along with the Astros' Jed Lowrie and the Marlins' Yunel Escobar.
  • Teams are more worried about Brandon McCarthy's history of arm injuries than with his season-ending brain surgery.  If McCarthy's medicals are clear, however, a team executive thinks the right-hander will get a multiyear contract.
  • Anibal Sanchez's demands for a six-year, $90MM contract are "crazy, and he's probably going to get it," an executive tells Passan.

Olney On Guthrie, Royals, Pettitte

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While Jeremy Guthrie’s three-year, $25MM contract prompted some to question the Royals, the deal was considered fair in front offices of some other teams, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports. Some executives think of the contract as reasonable given Guthrie’s durability at the MLB level. Here are more notes from Olney…

  • The Royals will continue seeking starting pitching, even after adding Guthrie and Ervin Santana, Olney writes. They could trade minor leaguers to add to the MLB rotation.
  • Royals officials still view the club as a work in progress, but rival evaluators are intrigued by their talent. "They're a team to watch," an AL GM told Olney. The team’s young bullpen draws especially strong reviews, Olney writes.
  • The Yankees believe that the return of Hiroki Kuroda increases the chances Andy Pettitte will decide to pitch for another season, Olney reports. The Yankees signed Kuroda to a one-year, $15MM contract yesterday.

Sherman On Blue Jays, Royals, Dickey

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Though the Blue Jays and Royals have already added to their respective rotations this winter, they might not be done. According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Blue Jays are still looking for a top of the rotation starter and the Royals look as if they need one, too. Here are more notes from Sherman…

  • Many executives tell Sherman they plan to investigate the trade market for pitching more thoroughly given the expected cost of free agent starters.
  • Rival executives suggested to Sherman that the Mets could ask for more in a trade involving R.A. Dickey if they grant the acquiring team a window for discussing an extension.
  • For example, the Blue Jays might be more willing to surrender players such as Travis d’Arnaud, J.P. Arencibia, Noah Syndergaard and Aaron Sanchez if they had the chance to talk extension with Dickey. To be clear Sherman isn’t saying the Blue Jays and Mets will necessarily discuss these specific players.

Rosenthal On Royals, Uehara, D’Backs, Span, Catching

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Here are the latest hot stove items from FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal….

  • Teams in search of bullpen help have been looking at Royals right-handers Greg Holland and Aaron Crow, though Kansas City isn't likely to trade any of its Major League players unless they can move Jeff Francoeur.
  • The Royals bolstered their pitching staff by re-signing Jeremy Guthrie and trading for Ervin Santana, but Rosenthal still feels the team needs a true ace.
  • The Phillies are interested in free agent reliever Koji Uehara.
  • The Diamondbacks could deal Jason Kubel instead of Justin Upton, which would be an easier move to make though Kubel would bring back a lesser return.  A source tells Rosenthal that the Rangers are still interested in Upton but are waiting for the D'Backs to back down on their demands for Elvis Andrus or Jurickson Profar in return.
  • Denard Span could be a good trade target for a club that doesn't want to pay for one of the expensive center fielders on the free market.  With the Twins desperate for pitching, Rosenthal speculates that a team like the Braves (who need a center fielder and have pitching depth) could be a trade partner.
  • The free agent catching market is stalled since the Red Sox and Blue Jays have catchers available for trade, plus the Yankees are waiting to address their pitching before making a decision on Russell Martin.
  • Speaking of the Blue Jays' catching depth, Rosenthal thinks that Toronto is in no hurry to deal J.P. Arencibia, as a dependable catcher is needed if top prospect Travis D'Arnaud hasn't recovered from his season-ending knee injury.
  • Reed Johnson is drawing interest from several teams, including the Braves, who acquired Johnson from the Cubs last July.

Royals Notes: Guthrie, Pitching, Trades

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The Royals took another step towards solidifying their 2013 rotation when they re-signed Jeremy Guthrie today.  Here are some notes about both the Guthrie signing and the club's offseason search for starting pitching…

  • The Royals overpaid for Guthrie, opines Fangraphs' Dave Cameron, and Kansas City hasn't made the most of its limited payroll space by committing $17MM to Guthrie and Ervin Santana next season.  "Guthrie makes the Royals a little bit better, but they didn’t need to get a little bit better this winter," Cameron writes. "They needed to get a lot better, and now they’re running low on ways to make real significant improvements. For $17 million, plus the $20 million in future commitments to Guthrie, they should have been able to do better."
  • Conversely, Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star likes the Guthrie signing since the right-hander can eat innings and he pitched well outside of Coors Field over the last three seasons.  With Guthrie and Santana now in the fold, Mellinger argues that GM Dayton Moore or owner David Glass must be comfortable in trading prospects or raising payroll if it means acquiring even more quality arms to solidify the rotation.
  • The Royals aren't done shopping for pitching and ESPN's Buster Olney says the club's plan is to acquire another veteran by trading prospects.  ESPN's Jayson Stark, however, says that teams who have spoken to the Royals say Kansas City is "now more likely to go young than [for] another vet" in their pitching search (both links are to Twitter).
  • In other Royals news from earlier today, the team agreed to a new contract with catcher Brett Hayes and designated eight players for assignment.

Royals, Hayes Avoid Arbitration

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The Royals announced that they've avoided arbitration with catcher Brett Hayes, agreeing to a one-year deal for 2013. Hayes, a TWC Sports client, will earn $600K in 2013, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star reports (on Twitter).

The Royals claimed Hayes off of waivers from the Marlins earlier this month. The 28-year-old appeared in 39 games for the Marlins in 2012 and hit .202/.229/.254 in 118 plate appearances. Luke Hochevar, Felipe Paulino and Chris Getz are the Royals' only remaining unsigned arbitration eligible players.

Royals Designate Seven For Assignment

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The Royals announced that they designated seven players for assignment to create 40-man roster space for players who would otherwise have been eligible for the Rule 5 draft. The Royals designated right-handers Vin Mazzaro and Chris Volstad, left-hander Ryan Verdugo, catcher Brayan Pena, infielder Clint Robinson and outfielder Derrick Robinson for assignment.

The Royals, who are also designating catcher Adam Moore for assignment, now have a full 40-man roster. They selected the contracts of left-handers Chris Dwyer, Donnie Joseph, John Lamb, Justin Marks and Mike Montgomery, and right-hander J.C. Gutierrez in related moves.

The move could amount to an early non-tender for two players. Pena was on track for a salary in the $1.1MM range as a third time arbitration eligible player. Meanwhile, Volstad projected to earn $3MM as a second time eligible player.

Royals To Designate Adam Moore For Assignment

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The Royals will designate catcher Adam Moore for assignment, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports (on Twitter). Moore, 28, appeared in four games for the Royals in 2012.

The Royals claimed Moore off of waivers from the Mariners in July and called him up for four games after rosters expanded in September. Moore spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he posted a .259/.326/.413 batting line in 229 plate appearances.

Royals Sign Jeremy Guthrie

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The Royals announced that they signed right-hander Jeremy Guthrie to a three-year contract through 2015. Excel Sports Management represents Guthrie, who hit free agency this offseason after splitting the 2012 season between the Rockies and Royals. Guthrie will earn $25MM over the course of the three-year, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star reports (on Twitter). He'll earn $5MM in 2013, $11MM in 2014 and $9MM in 2015.

Jeremy Guthrie - Royals (PW)

Guthrie pitched poorly in Colorado (6.35 ERA, 21 home runs allowed in 90 2/3 innings), but pitched closer to his career norms after leaving Coors Field. In 14 starts with the Royals, Guthrie posted a 3.16 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9. He has been durable enough to complete 175 innings or more in each of his six full seasons at the MLB level. However, he has allowed more hits than innings pitched in his career and remains somewhat home run prone with 1.3 home runs allowed per nine innings.

Guthrie joins Ervin Santana, Bruce Chen, Luke Hochevar and Luis Mendoza in the Royals' projected 2013 rotation. Danny Duffy, Felipe Paulino, Chris Volstad and Nathan Adcock could also be considerations for the rotation.

Tim Dierkes ranked Guthrie 48th on MLBTR’s list of the year’s top 50 free agents, predicting a deal with the Pirates. I mis-read the market for Guthrie in September, anticipating a one-year deal in the $6MM range. Credit Excel for finding a three-year guarantee for a mid-rotation starter.

One reader has correctly predicted the destinations of every top 50 free agent who has signed to this point in the offseason. Be sure to see where you rank in MLBTR's free agent prediction contest.

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

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