Allen Craig Could Be the Right Fit for the Royals

With the Kansas City Royals hole in right field, a lot of focus has been placed on the free agent market. However, there are very few players available that could fit the Royals need for a middle of the order bat. Players such as Torii Hunter and Colby Rasmus have been discussed as possibilities, yet neither really appear to be the answer that the Royals need. With very little available in free agency, that would leave the Royals to explore the trade market.

In the FanSided Faux-GM Simulation, I explored the potential of adding Carlos Quentin to the Royals roster. He certainly fit the part as a power hitting right fielder, but he does come with injury concerns and is truly only signed through this season. However, there may be another, perhaps better fit for the Royals that could potentially be available in Allen Craig.

Craig, who was acquired by the Boston Red Sox as part of the trade that sent John Lackey to St. Louis, is essentially one of the many outfielders who the Red Sox will likely need to move. With the signing of hanley Ramirez, theoretically brought in the play left field, the Sox have a whopping nine outfielders on their roster. Craig may actually not even be one of the top five outfielders on the roster.

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With that in mind, the Red Sox may be willing to part ways with Allen Craig. While the Red Sox have a plethora of outfielders, they are in desperate need of pitching, something that the Royals appear to have an excess of. Could it be that the Royals would be able to move one of their pitchers, either one of their back of the rotation starters or a reliever, to acquire Craig?

If so, Craig has certainly produced at a level that would indicate that he could be a fit in Kansas City. Overall in his career, Craig has a .282/.337/.445 batting line, hitting 58 home runs and 106 doubles. Even if Craig is not the prototypical power hitter, he does have that gap power and the ability to hit the occasional home run, which would allow him to slot well into the middle of the Royals lineup.

Defensively, Allen Craig may not be in that Lorenzo Cain – Alex Gordon – Jarrod Dyson class, but he is not completely terrible either. Craig has actually never made an error in the outfield, playing either right or left. While he may not be the fastest player, that may not matter with the ability of either Dyson or Cain to cover enough ground to essentially play most of the outfield on their own.

Yes, Craig is coming off a rough season where he only hit at a .215/.279/.315 rate, which was pretty much Mike Moustakas with a bit less power. However, Craig is just a year removed from an All-Star berth and has a track record of success. If anything, based on last season, Craig may be a buy-low candidate, able to be acquired for far less than he would have last year.

Allen Craig may be the piece the Royals need in the outfield. Trading for him may not be be a difficult proposition, and for $25.5 Million over the next three years, not including a team option for $13 Million with a $1 Million buyout, he would provide the Royals with more than a one year rental.

Sometimes, a player appears to be a perfect fit for a team. Allen Craig may be just that for the Royals.